The popularity of Fight Club proves that even uneducated people like to pretend they are smart once in a while.
Okay, that may be a little harsh, but that is, really, the engine that’s pushing this kinda-almost interesting movie.
There certainly are a lot of playful moments, and lots of good work on display (hats off especially to Helena Bonham Carter, who seems to be acting in her own little mannered, slapstick-y comedy off in the background) but, really, I weep for anyone who extracts meaning or, heavens, a philosophy from this preposterous film.
Its biggest flaw (and there are many) is that it paints itself into the corner of needing to be realistic because, eventually, some serious stakes are raised. I bet this problem doesn’t happen in the book, where the silliness can stay hidden on the page. I wonder, maybe, if this was an adaptation that should never have happened.
So, if I hate it so much, why the B-? Well, it is watchable. Edward Norton is a rock solid actor, the look is distinctive and the way it is all stitched together, albeit idiotic, is somewhat dazzling. I’ll probably watch this again in ten years.
