David Fincher directs a fantastically twisted thriller about gruelling deception, crumbling relationships, and even murder. It gave an authentic account on how horribly torn up relationships can be, and reminds us that things aren't all as joyful and fairytale-inspired as they are made out to be at first glance. It also reminds us how believing false reports could lead to dangerous consequences. The twist can be deduced quite easily, but the way the film crept towards it still managed to make the end result a spine-chilling surprise. When it's paired up with a pulsating soundtrack, it makes the experience even more worthwhile.

Ben Affleck plays an innocent and stressed man who is caught in all of the media buzz about his supposedly missing or dead wife, and is fed up of everyone blaming him for her disappearance. He plays his character well, capturing the weak innocence he has left in his grasp. You could read it in his eyes and you start believing him as the film crawls along in a minacious manner.
I love Rosamund Pike's terrifying turn as a woman who deceives Affleck and her lovers with her cunning wit and malicious planning. She's a woman pushed to her very limit. So much so, her virtuous nature becomes ghoulishly sick and twisted. She also has a surprising pinch of sympathy to match, which I think makes her character even more terrifying. That "cool girl" speech she makes just adds to the creep factor.
We need more women like Rosamund Pike, we really do. I'm thirsty for seeing more emasculating men in the media! I'm often bothered seeing the same old "nice guy" trope we've seen in many male roles within the media, so I always find it refreshing to see men cowering on their knees in the hands of their once cherished female friends and partners.

To summarise: Don't believe in everything you read and see on the news. Be very conscious about the world around you and the people you converse with, even if it's with your loved ones. Because sometimes, the most deceptive of people are the most cunning and secretive, and the ones that get away with absolutely anything with flying colours. Especially if that someone is a certain blonde woman. Hitchcock would've been proud!

A brilliant page-to-screen adaptation. It easily beats Fight Club for me by a wide margin.

9/10