Top Ten Greatest Films of All Time: #6
David Fincher’s Fight Club defined a generation and closed out the greatest decade in the history of cinema. Similar to the Shawshank Redemption, Fight Club went under appreciated for years after it’s initial release. Through a strong cult following however, Fight Club has now been recognized as the great film it truly is.
The movie was only nominated for one Academy Award, Best Sound Effects/Editing and did not win. The performances of Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, and Helena Bonham Carter went sadly unrecognized.
Previous installments
Top Ten Greatest Films of All Time: #7
Top Ten Greatest Films of All Time: #8
Top Ten Greatest Films of All Time: #9
Top Ten Greatest Films of All Time: #10
In hindsight however, Brad Pitt’s character Tyler Durden has gained enormous praise, considered by many to be the greatest film character of all time. Mr. Durden represented a generation of young men who were struggling to find any purpose and direction in their lives.
What sets Fight Club apart is the message it delivers: Don’t conform, be an individual by any means necessary. In terms of cultural relevance, I’m a firm believer that Fight Club is above movies like Kramer v. Kramer, The Breakfast Club and all the great war films, including Apocalypse Now.
That’s a bold statement, but other movies like The Matrix and even American Beauty fail to capture the angst many young adults have against becoming “just a number.” Fight Club shows that through accepting your own insignificance you can find purpose in life, and walk a fine line between chaos and art.
Although Fight Club is carried by the performances of Norton and Pitt, the ensemble cast shines just as bright. Jared Leto and (surprisingly) Meat Loaf blend into the story perfectly a long with the other members of Fight Club/Project Mayhem.
Fight Club is held back by very little, but the ending and final act of the film does not do what was otherwise a great story justice. As a result, the movie kind of limps into the barn with how it wrapped things up, but this is a “knit-picky” detail that shouldn’t stop you from enjoying a great film that I’ve seen countless times.
Make sure to check in next Friday for installment #5 on my list, a classic of the science fiction genre.