Zodiac

I once heard the main theme from True Romance in a commercial. I recognized it, but I couldn't recall from where I recognized it. This drove me absolutely crazy, especially because the playful xylophone-filled tune doesn't scream True Romance. I racked my brain for quite some time trying to figure out where I had heard the music before until it hit me one day at dinner and with a mouth full of chicken I triumphantly shouted, "True Romance!" The rest of my family was a bit confused. But I was happy. The feeling of accomplishment I got from figuring it out was quite good. And I think that's why I liked Zodiac so much. Although it isn't really comparable with regard to scale, I could completely identify with Robert Graysmith and his insatiable desire to find out who the Zodiac Killer was.

Yes, the movie is long. IMDB tells me it is 158 minutes. However, it does not feel that long. It is incredibly suspenseful in parts and genuinely looks like a film from the 1970s. It's substantially funnier than one might expect. The acting was fantastic all around, and only once did my mind wander and imagine Jake Gyllenhaal and Mark Ruffalo making out. Just kidding. Kind of. But flights of fancy aside, Zodiac is a smart, tense thriller that is haunting in its open-ended-ness. Go see it instead of wasting your time with 300.