The movie David Fincher’s wife begged him not to make: “In hindsight, she was right”
David Fincher is one of the most revered modern filmmakers of all time, pioneering a new style of filmmaking known for its dark and gritty qualities. The director has created masterpieces such as Se7en, Gone Girl and Fight Club, as well as joining forces with Aaron Sorkin at the height of his screenwriting career to create The Social Network, which is one of his most accomplished projects.
In recent years, Fincher has extended his talents to the world of television, creating the serial killer drama Mindhunter with Jonathan Groff, Holt McCallany, and Anna Torv. This staggering piece of work was criminally cancelled after two seasons despite the fact that no one else was achieving what Fincher was through the show.
While the director has had an undeniably successful career, he has also been met with many of the same challenges as other filmmakers in recent years due to the rise of streaming and the decline of the movie-going experience. As a result, his 2023 film The Killer suffered due to no theatrical release, and the director has since spoken about another project that he regrets.
The Game, released in 1997, was one of Fincher’s earlier films. It came just after the success of Se7en and before the global phenomenon of Fight Club. The film follows a San Francisco banker named Nicholas Van Orton, who receives a usual present from his younger brother—a gift certificate to play a unique game. Nicholas soon finds himself consumed by a dangerous set of rules, unable to distinguish between real life and the game.
Starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn, the film is perhaps less popular within his overall filmography, despite the fact that it created an interesting tone that was then continued in many of his later works. However, there was one element that Fincher later berated himself for: not believing that one aspect was well-executed, something that his wife initially warned him about.
When discussing his wife’s initial words of warning about the film, Fincher explained, “It’s a blessing and a curse because she’s obviously someone who knows me, in some ways, better than I know myself. There are definitely things we disagree about. She was extremely vociferous, for instance, when she said, ‘Don’t make The Game.’”
However, it seems as though Fincher agrees with her wariness about the project, describing his own complicated relationship with it, saying, “Yeah, and in hindsight, my wife was right. We didn’t figure out the third act, and it was my fault, because I thought if you could just keep your foot on the throttle it would be liberating and funny. I know what I like, and one thing I definitely like is not knowing where a movie is going. These days, though, it’s hard to get audiences to give themselves over. They want to see the whole movie in a 90-second trailer”.
While he may be critical of his work, this is ultimately the hallmark of a great director, leading him to continually hone his craft and push his skillset to the absolute max.
