Gone Girl: 'Misogynistic or a pointed satire of the illusions underlying some marriages?'

The Bible tells us that Elijah came unto the people and asked, "How long halt ye between two opinions?" David Fincher came forth and spake: "One hour and five minutes." Which is precisely how long he keeps us guessing in his new murder mystery "Gone Girl." Is Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) a disgruntled husband who nevertheless wants the police to find his missing wife Amy (Rosamund Pike), who disappeared under suspicious circumstances ? Or is he in fact one of those supercreeps, such as O.J. Simpson or Scott Peterson, who can barely put on a convincing show of concern when their partner is killed, probably due to the fact that they know what happened to her?

Fincher, working off a script by the author of the original novel, Gillian Flynn, sets up alternating narratives: Nick's version of events that he relates to the cops versus Amy's version, which she recorded in her diary. There's a big reveal at the film's midpoint, but there's no let up in suspense, although the plotting gets a bit more labored. Two opinions continue beyond the final reel, though, in a savage split between those viewers convinced "Gone Girl" is a pointed satire of the illusions underlying some marriages — Amy's "cool girl" rant is spot on — and the usual feminist cries of misogyny.