As one of modern Hollywood’s more acclaimed American directors, David Fincher has made some of the biggest projects since debuting in the early 1990s. That was of course with Stranger 3 (1992), a highly divided film among fans and critics alike. But then came Se7en (1995), and from there it was on to the races of superstardom for newcomer David Fincher.
The cult classic Fight club (1999) came shortly after, but there are so many other projects worth mentioning in Fincher’s career that should be mentioned first, such as The curious case of Benjamin Button (2008) and The social network (2010). However, unlike most of Fincher’s other films – particularly his thrillers – those two dramas lacked one special filmmaking tactic in particular: the plot twist.
They generally appear in two places in a given story: the middle or the end. There are a few instances where a character dies at the beginning of a movie that could technically count as a plot twist, but for the most part that sounds more like an incendiary incident. But of course, with regard to real life examples throughout the film, there’s no better director to watch than the master himself.
Some examples from Fincher’s filmography
After his directorial debut Stranger 3 (1992), bombarded with critics and audiences alike, David Fincher went through the ages in the 1990s. And first up was perhaps the greatest of all the twists Fincher has ever had to offer: the “What’s in the box?” scene out Se7en. This was executed to perfection by every actor involved – Kevin Spacey, Morgan Freeman and of course Brad Pitt.
But it was also so skillfully woven into the plot that audiences could never have seen it coming. It’s one of the meanest schemes ever executed in a movie, and the fact that Spacey’s psychopathic character has done it within the bounds of realism is something to applaud screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker for – as the BAFTAs did that year with a nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
The next project worth mentioning is The game (1997), starring Michael Douglass. It’s easily one of the director’s most underrated films, and of course it has a groundbreaking plot twist that has resonated with cult fans for the past two decades. As one of the lesser-known movies on the list, it’s best seen for yourself. But a project that almost everyone reading this should recognize is Fight club (1999), another cult classic.
The twist of it, of course, was that Edward Norton’s character (credited simply as The Narrator) was the same person as Brad Pitt’s character, the infamous Tyler Durden. You probably all remember this turn as the details on the back of your hand. So it is almost superfluous to note its fame. Besides – we probably shouldn’t talk about it.
To claim that Zodiac (2007) had a surprise ending and would stretch it to some degree, but for those onlookers unfamiliar with the real case, the fact that the film’s detectives ultimately came up short was no doubt a shock. And that’s especially true when you consider how creepy some of the suspects were.
So there were definitely elements of a plot twist in that particular crime thriller. The same can be said The girl with a dragon tattoo (2011) as well, albeit to a less convincing degree. Regarding Missing girl (2014), however, the answer is clear: it featured one of the greatest plot twists of the twenty-first century, up there with movies like The prestige (2006) and Shutter Island (2010).
The film follows Nick Dunn, Ben Affleck’s character, whose wife escapes their tumultuous marriage by staging her own murder and framing Nick for the act. For those who haven’t seen the film or read Gillian Flynn’s novel of the same name – who also wrote the screenplay – spoilers will be avoided here as well. But it’s one of Fincher’s more famous twists, up there with both Se7en And Fight club both in terms of quality and popularity.
Fincher has almost made a name for himself in Hollywood, shaping his entire career based on the plot twists of his many famous works. But of course he was far from the first filmmaker to use this tactic. Hundreds of directors used plot twists before Fincher came into the picture, and just as many have since. In fact, some of the biggest names in the industry have used it just as consistently.
Other directors famous for using plot twists
There are several individual movies in Hollywood history that are fondly looked back on for their twists and turns. Planet of the Apes (1968) by Franklin J. Schaffner and The Empire strikes back (1980) by Irvin Kershner, for example. However, none of those respective directors have made any other projects worth mentioning in regards to this particular plot device.
Meanwhile, there are filmmakers like Alfred Hitchcock – the master of suspense. Of course, the most prominent plot twist in his entire body of work would have to go Psycho (1960). But the fact that Norman Bates was the killer on that project all along, dressed as his late mother, was far from the only turn Hitchcock took during his career.
Rear window (1954) has a twist for all ages along with movies like Suspicion (1941), A little doubt (1943), and Fear of heights (1958). None of those are as famous as Psycho, though – and frankly, that’s the only one that holds a candle of popularity (or quality, for that matter) to David Fincher’s many masterful plot twists. However, the other director worth mentioning in this regard is M. Night Shyamalan.
While he may be the most commercially known director of plot twists—in other words, the most popular from a general audience’s perspective—M. Night Shyamalan’s films aren’t exactly of the highest quality. His name value skyrocketed after the end of The Sixth Sense (1999) shocked the film world. And while he hasn’t topped that turn in terms of overall fan appeal, there have been many more throughout his career, such as unbreakable (2000), Signs (2002), and a few others of lesser quality.
More prominent directors who come to mind in this regard, thoguh, are Christopher Nolan and Martin Scorsese. But there are also hugely underrated names like Dario Argento and Pedro Almodovar. In the end, however, only one director stands out as the legitimate master of plot twists.
Why David Fincher Stands Out
If you take those other two directors – Alfred Hitchcock and M. Night Shyamalan – and see how they can be viewed from a critical and commercial lens respectively, David Fincher fits right in the middle. He may not be the most famous, and some of his projects may be divisive among critics, but for the most part, he’s the best of both worlds.
The plot revolves around each project to a tee, but Fincher never really relied on the device to deliver a quality product. Each film is atmospheric to a truly unforgettable degree and features great performances from the entire respective cast. But he stands out because they so consistently defined his movies in a positive way, influencing audiences decades later as they discussed each screenplay whenever movies came up.
Meanwhile, Alfred Hitchcock had dozens of other moviemaking tactics on his directorial toolset. Which, of course, isn’t to say that Fincher didn’t. It just points to the fact that there’s an entire Wikipedia page titled “Hitchcockian” dedicated to the filmmaker and his many wonderful, world-famous techniques. The word “Hitchcockian” is even recognized by most dictionaries as crying out loud.
To call him the master of plot twists among all those other skills – plot devices like MacGuffins, for example – just seems, well, unfair, to be honest. Critics and scholars to this day discuss Hitchcock’s revolutionary methods of continuity editing, in addition to his penchant for directing award-winning performances and even his keen eye for framing shots.
As for Fincher, the plot twists were the biggest takeaway from any movie. Sure, maybe you remember Se7en for his early performances of Pitt, Paltrow and Spacey. Or Fight club may have made an impact due to its indelibly atmospheric storytelling with plenty of memorable scenes to boot.
And while Go girl had that career-defining acting effort from Rosamund Pike, all three of those films ended up being memorable for their iconic and masterful plot twists. There are a number of novelists and screenwriters who deserve credit for each, but when it comes to putting it all together, there’s no question about it. David Fincher is the master of plot twists.