11. Alien 3

 Easily dead last is Fincher’s film debut Alien 3. This film shoots itself in the foot in the first 10 minutes by completely betraying the themes of the superior previous films–Alien and Aliens. The concept of Ripley being stuck on a planet with deadly prisoners in it of itself is an intriguing  direction to take the third film, especially if you go back to the roots of the first film and lean into the dark grimey horror aspects, but the execution completely ruins it with the prisoners being over the top and cheesy, and being so slow and adding nothing to the alien franchise that hasn’t already been done better in the previous films. Even the special effects take a gigantic downgrade. Overall Alien 3 disrespects the previous films and adds nothing to the franchise at all, therefore it belongs in last place on this list. 

10. Curious Case of Benjamin Button

I was really pumped to watch this for the first time earlier in the year and to be completely honest I was extremely disappointed. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button doesn’t make me as angry as Alien 3 does but this film just bores and doesn’t really draw much emotion from me at all. I totally respect and admire the technical feet Fincher achieves here, but when the film is 30 minutes too long, doesn’t prompt much investment in the characters and kills the momentum, you find yourself checking the clock throughout the whole film. If you’re going to watch a coming of age like this just rewatch Forrest Gump. All in all just a very average film which really disappoints me with a name like David Fincher attached. 

9. Mank

My most unpopular opinion on this list is putting Mank this low. Almost exactly like the Curious Case of Benjamin Button, I can respect the technical achievements and direction from Fincher, but the story doesn’t interest me at all. The film takes places in hollywood during the 30s and early 40s, and golden hollywood inherently doesn’t interest me. Throughout the whole two hour runtime I can’t latch onto the characters or main plotline so when they try to invoke emotion it doesn’t resonate with me and leaves me unsatisfied. What makes this film slightly above Benjamin Button is Gary Oldman’s performance as the lead ‘Mank’.

8. The Game

The Game was a weird one for me, until the 3rd act I was totally on board and intrigued on how all this would come together. Unfortunately it crumbles beneath itself when it starts giving you the answers. The script relies on too many coincidences to arrive at the destination by the end. Even with the 3rd act being by far the worst act of the film it stills has the edge of your seat sweating thriller moments that you’ve come to expect with Fincher. Michael Douglas gives one of his best moments of his career. Even with the weak 3rd act I found the first 2 acts exciting and suspenseful so overall I’m going positive on ‘The Game’.

7. Panic Room

Panic Room is Fincher’s most basic film, which isn’t all that bad in this case. This movie features a young Kristen Stewart, who gives a really solid performance which is nice to see knowing that child actors are inconsistent. The chemistry and banter between the three main villains Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and Dwight Yoakam characters were by far the best scenes in the film. The cinematography does a good job of giving you a claustrophobic feel when the two protagonists are stuck in the panic room. VFX were spotty, but I don’t have much negative on the film; it just doesn’t give you as intriguing or gripping a story as films higher up on the list. Still definitely recommend you to check it out.

6.Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Now Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is weird because I had such high expectations going into it and came out satisfied, but not loving it as much as I thought I would. The central plot-line is very intriguing with Daniel Craig as the main detective solving a 50 year mystery. This film was my introduction to Rooney Mara and she was fantastic throughout the whole film. The cinematographer and set designer are able to build this cold dark world, which really sets the atmosphere and makes every scene that much better. The script leaves little bread crumbs throughout the film, which finally build up to the big twist. Really the only negatives I have are you could cut 15 minutes off the runtime and make the ending more open ended so it leaves you wanting more, but the Fincher already confirmed that there’s not going to be a sequel so it leaves a more sour taste in your mouth.

5. Fight Club

From here on out these five films are some of my favorite of all time. Tyler Durden is definitely my favorite character Fincher has put on screen. Brad Pitt plays him with so much swagger that you could see yourself hanging out with this guy, his quotable lines, and witty dialogue really make him stand out. The film doesn’t work without a narrator like Travis who you can relate with and really sympathize with throughout. At the heart of this film it’s about normal people with 9-5 jobs who believe they have no purpose and find that in Fight Club and I really enjoy the way they show the pros and cons of having a fight club with normal day job people, also Fincher’s funniest film to date. Really throughout it plants seeds about what’s really going on and when we finally get to the 3rd act he absolutely nails it, And gives you a satisfying conclusion. I highly recommend Fight Club.

4. Gone Girl

Absolutely phenomenal whether that’s the performances from Rosamund Pike or Ben Affleck, the intriguing excellently crafted  story that keeps you hooked throughout the whole two and a half hour runtime, the beautiful cinematography thats makes this film a beauty to watch, the score that builds and adds to the tension of every scene. It executes the narrator part of the story excellently. Most times when books are adapted and have the narration style it falls flat because it’s just an exposition dump, but when you have the writer of the book also writing the screenplay it flows and the narration works without being an exposition dump. All the side characters are on the same level of the leads making every scene that much better. So of my complaints of previous Fincher films have been the endings, but not in Gone Girl the ending perfectly suits where the film was heading from minute one. You’re left hanging and waiting for the next detail to be revealed about the disappearance and with there being 2 narratives you don’t know which is right and wrong creating mysteries to unravel in your head to find out how it all comes together. This film is also a great social commentary on media news and the effects it can have on a case. All in all Gone Girl is a perfect thriller with great performances, script, and the twists and turns you love to see in a suspenseful mystery like this one. Gone Girl is currently on hulu so go check it out.

3. Zodiac

What a film, peak Robert Downey Jr, Mark Ruffalo and Jake Gylennhaal. All the scenes with the Zodiac killer are some of the best horror I’ve seen in recent memory including full on horror movies. Whether that’s the jaw dropping score or Fincher’s brilliant cinematography building the tension through each and every scene . Beyond the actual Zodiac case, it’s a film about obsession and how far someone will go to uncover these series of murders. When I first watched I wasn’t as big of a fan because I thought he was gonna put a twist on the zodiac, only in the second viewing did I realize the films about the journey of these 3 characters as they try to catch this mad killer. I don’t feel the runtime at all, partially because this is one of Fincher’s best scripts and the performances make you want to stay along for the ride and unravel this together with them.

2. Social Network

This is a masterpiece between the performances, the masterful script, subtle yet amazing score, Fincher and Sorkin gave us not just one of the best biopics of all time but one of the best films of all time. Fincher doesn’t shy away from portraying Zuckerberg and Sean Parker as the unpleasant people that they are. In all honesty I could really care less about the source material and going into it I didn’t have very high expectations knowing that I didn’t care about facebook or mark zuckerberg. Through the witty and smartly written script you are glued in on the film for the two hour runtime. Especially in biopics it can feel like an eternity to get to the finish line, but not in social networks, the 2 hour run time flies by and you don’t feel it at all and makes the film that much better. Andrew Garfield puts on an absolute clinic playing the friend of Zuckerberg who keeps getting screwed out of everything and still standing by his best friend. With the beautiful cinematography you can’t look away. Just in general one of the best of all time. Fincher and Sorkin created a perfect film.

1.Se7en

It took me a while, but I finally decided that the film I’m putting at no. 1 over Social Network is Se7en. By the slimmest of margins it was edged out. Se7e is just perfect. The murder cases immediately take you by the arms, Fincher is able to build this dark and depressing world were you believe a murder of this nature could exist. The script has you gripping and grasping for every detail so you can unwrap the mystery behind these gruesome murders inspired by the seven deadly sins. What makes this film take the top spot is the last half hour with Kevin Spacey as the serial killer. He plays him so grimey and disgusting which really hammer homes that he’s done all these horrible things. Even in the sliminess he delivers his dialogue sends chills down your whole body. The twist you can’t see coming at all but when you do find out you start connecting the dots and everything in film had a purpose leading up to the twist and the effects on the 2 leads. Se7en is in my top 10 of all time and I can’t recommend it enough.