"Fight Club" is an extremely violent adaptation of a cult novel by Chuck Palahniuk. The theme seems to be the liberation of American men from their dead-end jobs and emotional isolation through violent and anarchic male bonding. Of course, director David Fincher is not endorsing anti-social behavior as a solution for male frustrations, but instead showing how dangerous and powerful those feelings can be.
The film begins quietly enough. Jack (Edward Norton) has had insomnia, and finds a cure by attending support group meetings. He may not have testicular cancer or tuberculosis, but by pretending that he does, he can receive both free coffee and faux intimacy. The problems begin when jaded chain-smoker Marla (Helena Bonham Carter, who looks like an extra from "Beetlejuice") also joins the various therapy sessions. Since she is a 'faker', he feels like a faker, and begins having insomnia again.
Homeless as the result of a freak accident, Jack moves in with an interesting stranger he met on an airplane flight. Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) is self-confident and uninhibited, sort of an alter ego for Jack, and becomes his mentor. He talks Jack into fighting with him in the parking lot of a bar. These fights occur every Saturday night, and attract a host of spectators who wish to join in. An underground fight club is established, full of angry young men. This leads to Project Mayhem, in which these men, now decked out in look-alike dark clothing like a gang, vandalize corporate property. All the while Jack continues to work (albeit with ever-increasing hostility) at his crummy job, with a stereotypical uncaring, humorless boss.
One can argue that "Fight Club" doesn't promote violence, since its consequences are shown, and its proponents are depicted as psychotic or brainwashed. But the numerous scenes of bloody beatings go beyond making any point, and in the end are simply voyeuristic. One particularly gratuitous scene has Jack beating Jared Leto until his head is lying in a pool of blood. "Fight Club" also has an unsettling moment of 'triumph' for Jack when he succeeds in blackmailing his company by beating himself up. Was this intended as humorous?
Not to give everything away, but there is a major plot twist somewhat akin to those in "The Sixth Sense" and "Wild Things". This twist, as usual, makes much of the film up to that point so much nonsense (e.g. the Jack-Tyler conversations in the car with two Mayhem members in the back seat unperturbed). There's also the matter of so many recruits to the underground society, from so many major cities, a virtual army of brainwashed followers, all organized in short order by Tyler. And this all begins with Jack making a spectacle by beating himself up. I just don't buy it.
As a disclaimer, I must note that my opinion is in the minority, and most critics have heavily praised this film. "Fight Club" does tap into the frustrations of the American Male, although taking them to ridiculous extremes. Don't try this at home. (56/100)
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