In a list of the greatest directors of all time, David Fincher’s name is always going to be mentioned. He might not have the lengthy, film-filled careers of many of those who stand next to him on the list, but he is the king of tension and twists. Since his career began with music videos in the 1980s, he has developed into one of the most incredible talents in filmmaking.
It’s impossible to be perfect, however, so we have compared the five films he has made that are considered to be the best to the five which are considered to be the worst, according to IMDb.
BEST: The Game (7.8)
The Game is one of David Fincher’s many, many twist-filled psychological thrillers. When you have a filmography akin to his, films like this don’t stand a chance against the likes of Seven and Fight Club, but it’s still a very enjoyable watch.
Michael Douglas plays the lead role to perfection, as the titular game wears him down over the course of an incredibly dramatic two hours. The reason it can’t be higher on the list is due to the strangely predictable, yet implausible, ending.
WORST: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (7.8)
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is based on the fantastically successful novel by Stieg Larsson.
Teaming up with Daniel Craig, David Fincher managed to create a film that perfectly recreates the tension of Mikael Blomkvist’s investigation into a forty-year-old disappearance that was never solved. You’ll notice that this and The Game tied on a 7.8 average.
BEST: The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button (7.8)
The only time David Fincher ever brought Brad Pitt on board for one of his films was for The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button.
It is quite a few steps removed from Fincher’s usual brand of highly dramatic psychological thriller, instead taking on a fantastical romantic story with Pitt’s de-aging titular character at the helm. It managed to rake in an incredible thirteen Academy Award nominations.
WORST: The Social Network (7.7)
The Social Network was recently declared the best film of the last decade by Quentin Tarantino himself, suggesting that this biographical tale of the creation of Facebook must be a pretty impressive work. The fact that it lands in Fincher’s bottom five is a testament to how impressive some of his other films are.
Jesse Eisenberg plays Mark Zuckerberg to perfection, combining the evil at the heart of the brand with his manipulative, heartless personality with a strange veneer of sympathy.
BEST: Gone Girl (8.1)
Gone Girl is another example of a book being better than the film. However, this is a compliment to the book, rather than an insult to the film. Gone Girl has a lot going for it: an incredible storyline with a game-changing mid-point twist, some incredible moments of tension, and the ability to make Ben Affleck seem like a good actor.
Fincher himself was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Director, and Rosamund Pike was nominated for Best Actress just about everywhere it is possible to be.
WORST: Zodiac (7.7)
Zodiac is one of the most impressive true crime films ever made, but it’s a bold move from Fincher to have turned it into a feature-length (actually very, very long) film considering the case has technically remained unsolved.
While the acting, tension and action sequences in the film are brilliant, he sticks to reality quite staunchly, leaving the story just as unresolved as it is in real life. Perhaps audiences were expecting a Tarantino-esque alternative history with a twist ending?
BEST: Seven (8.6)
For one of the greatest films ever made to not make it to the top spot is yet another impressive accolade for Fincher. Seven sees Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt team up for another serial killer centric thriller from Fincher.
We might not exactly enjoy seeing Kevin Spacey on our screens these days, but his incredible portrayal of John Doe is something to be marveled.
WORST: Panic Room (6.8)
There were quite a lot of things for critics to criticize about Panic Room. Strange CGI that didn’t quite work as Fincher had hoped and some moments of questionable intelligence from the central characters, for example.
However, on the whole, the incredible intensity and manic, claustrophobic setting make for an edge of your seat thriller that you pretty much can’t look away from.
BEST: Fight Club (8.8)
There are probably millions of people in the world that would claim that Fight Club is the single best film ever made, and there isn’t a whole lot you could say that could prove them wrong. At its heart, the plot is violent and dramatic, with a variety of interesting characters keeping our attention throughout.
Everything changes at that moment though, delivering one of the best and most unexpected twists in history that basically forces you to go back and rewatch the film.
WORST: Alien 3 (6.5)
The Alien franchise is one of the most well-loved horror series’ ever, but it hasn’t been smooth sailing. Ridley Scott’s original is one of the best horror films ever made, but his return to the saga relatively recently just didn’t work out.
Fincher’s first film was the third Alien film, with terrible CGI and a lackluster story just not giving his career the start he would have wanted.