As I mentioned in the first part of this article, I felt deceived, doubtful, and exhausted while watching The Game, another film by David Fincher, the same director of The Killer. In the first part I already gave the reasons why I felt deceived, but now I want to tell you about my doubts and exhaustion it caused me.
Click here to read Part 1:
David Fincher's "Killer" may disappoint you like “The Game” （Part 1）
Dubious
When watching “The Game,” I don’t believe in Nicolas throughout the movie. I can’t feel his authenticity as a character, and I don’t believe that he will change.
Looking back, the movie has a quite well-written script, telling the story of Nicolas, a cold-hearted billionaire who rediscovers true happiness and achieves redemption through a game that makes him "suffer." While it seems like a touching story, it took quite some effort on my part to draw such a conclusion. The reason may lie in the poor portrayal of Nicolas' character. I can’t connect with his inner world or empathize with him.
Firstly, I don’t see any proactivity from Nicolas as an individual. Although the game successfully brings about positive changes in Nicolas, it is a completely passive process for him. The cold-hearted Nicolas is compelled to leave his job, compelled to lose money, compelled to seek help from his ex-wife, compelled to save his brother, and even compelled to join the game - at a dinner party, his brother handed him a business card, suggesting that he participate in an "interesting" game, and Nicolas, though skeptical, decides to try it.
I am not a cold-hearted person, so I can’t relate to Nicolas during his initial state; when he later seeks help from his ex-wife, I didn’t sympathize with him at all - he is doing it only because he is out of money; when he later feels sad and desperate because of his brother's "death," I still don’t like him - he has lost his money and his loved one, he is in pain, and he should feel pain, but that's all.
Could it be that I couldn't empathize with Nicolas because our personalities are too different? I don’t think so. There are many characters whom I initially didn't like but eventually deeply empathized with. For example, Chuck (played by Tom Hanks) in "Cast Away" starts off as a workaholic. However, after being stranded on a deserted island for years, his mindset changes, and he makes new decisions about his future. Another example is the old man (played by Clint Eastwood) in "The Mule." He had abandoned his family for work in the past, but after becoming wealthy, he realizes that helping others can bring him happiness. As a result, he chooses to be with his family even if it means putting himself in danger.
These characters I love share one common trait - after experiencing transformative events, they actively make choices that genuinely reflect their inner change. Through their stories, I witness the power of personal transformation, which inspires me to reflect on my own life.
However, for Nicolas, all of his actions are passive and forced. I don’t see any genuine inner change in him. While watching, I was constantly concerned that once he regained the lost money and returned to wealth, he would quickly abandon his loved ones and revert to his old ways. However, no one knows whether fate would spare him again next time.
Exhausted
A suspense movie, at the very least, should adhere to logical plotlines. Unfortunately, "The Game" falls short of this expectation. Numerous scenes that defy reality, along with some forced and questionable details, made me constantly look for flaws while watching the film. Although I did not wish to be so critical, it was extremely difficult for me to believe in the traps carefully set up by the director.
For example, there is a scene in the movie where CRS (the game's planner) shoots at the main characters, Nicolas and Christine, who are hiding in a room. The damage caused by the bullets to objects looks incredibly real, but the conclusion informed us that CRS isn't using real bullets. This means they have needed to pre-calculate Nicolas's escape route and even each movement to set up the explosion points in advance.... Even if CRS is just a game company, I don't think anyone in reality could achieve that.
One can argue that CRS employees are all brilliant actors and extremely intelligent engineers, but the final scene in the movie is undoubtedly unreasonable: Nicolas' gun hits the bottle in his brother's hand. Since the bottle shatters, it can be inferred that the bullet has hit his brother. Seeing his dead brother, Nicolas falls into despair and jumps off the building.
However, the ending reveals that CRS not only accurately predicted Nicolas' jump but even the gun itself is fake...
There are too many instances like this in the movie where coincidences are portrayed as accurate predictions, and the accumulation of these forced coincidences only serves to satisfy the unsatisfactory twist at the end. By the end, a sense of exhaustion has set in. All I wanted to say to the director is,“Alright, as you wish.”
Some unexplained cliffhangers contribute to my exhaustion. There are some carefully designed eerie images in the film, yet they are not thoroughly explained, leaving them to exist as mere shadows.
Take waht the death of Nicolas' father presents as an instance. There are various possibilities. It can be the source of Nicolas' fear or the director's attempt to evoke a sense of fate and sadness. However, the movie intentionally avoids providing a definitive answer. This is not to encourage the audience to interpret, as everything becomes insignificant and irrelevant as the ending unfolds. Consequently, all the images and the audience's attention and analysis of the film's details become unnecessary. As a result, how can I not feel exhausted?
Conclusion
Although I have many criticisms of "The Game," I still highly appreciate David Finch's directing ability. When "The Killer" is released, I will definitely go watch it.
Wishing "The Killer" good luck.
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