Top 100 Movies Of The 1990's: #34 The Game

Box Office: $48.3 Million

Oscar Nominations: None

Oscar Wins: None

Movie Rankings.Net: 81/100

Available To Stream: Amazon Prime ($4)

(I'll be saying SPOILERS from The Game. It's a 26 year old movie but I wanted to at least warn people. You've been warned.)

If you try to explain this movie, you can see why it didn't do well in the box office. It has the right pieces: a star at the time (Michael Douglas), a hot director (David Fincher coming off of Seven) and a really good final product. The problem is the movie itself is the mystery. That makes it more difficult to explain why people should see it rather than a more traditional movie.

My favorite thing about The Game is how it does such an effective job putting you in the mind of Micheal Douglas's character Nicholas Van Orton. You feel just as confused and anxious as he does. Fincher does a great job leaving you understanding the surroundings but mystified by what will happen next. Is it real? What is reality at all? The closest comparison I can give it to how you feel watching Uncut Gems. With that movie, it's an anxiety attack. With this, it's fear and confusion.

I love that this was the follow-up to Seven. It reminds me of when Tarantino followed up Pulp Fiction with Jackie Brown. Both movies are definite changes of pace with middle-aged men as leads. This is Fincher's most mature movie until he made Zodiac a decade later. It also holds up remarkably well. Other than some technology differences (no cell phones, old tv's), it feels like this could take place anytime over the past 30 or so years.

Sean Penn was not the first choice to play Douglas' younger brother. In fact, it wasn't even supposed to be a brother but a sister played by Jodie Foster. Foster had prior commitments with Contact (#52) and wasn't able to be available for when they shot The Game. Fincher and Foster would later work together on Panic Room.

I like the ending quite a bit. I think it's great that it was actually a game. It seems like a simple and probable solution from afar. To Fincher's credit, it doesn't feel so simple when you are watching the movie. For a movie with such a high concept, Fincher does a brilliant job sticking the landing. When Douglas is falling, you do wonder (as must he) where the game begins or ends. 

The concept that true happiness lies in the relief afterwards is relatable. It's as simple as how good you feel right after you are sick or when something you are worried about for a long time is no longer an issue. You do feel more appreciative. They tackle this in Vanilla Sky as well ("The sweet is never as sweet without the sour"). I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to play The Game each time I watch this.

34. The Game

35. Out Of Sight

36. Carlito's Way

37. Seven

38. L.A. Confidential

39. Speed

40. Gattaca

41. Misery

42. Tombstone

43. Ransom

44. Wayne's World

45. The Insider

46. Back To The Future Part III

47. A Bronx Tale

48. The People Vs. Larry Flynt

49. Eyes Wide Shut

50. The Sandlot

51. Happy Gilmore

52. Contact

53. The Green Mile

54. Man On The Moon

55. Boyz N The Hood

56. Grosse Pointe Blank

57. Independence Day

58. The Rainmaker

59. Go

60. The Firm

61. Magnolia

62. The Talented Mr. Ripley

63. Tommy Boy

64. The Usual Suspects

65. In The Line Of Fire

66. My Cousin Vinny

67. Awakenings

68. JFK

69. Toy Story

70. Home Alone

71. Jerry Maguire

72. Titanic

73. Billy Madison

74. Apollo 13

75. Braveheart

76. Edward Scissorhands

77. Cape Fear

78. The River Wild

79. What's Eating Gilbert Grape?

80. 12 Monkeys

81. Stir Of Echoes

82. Mission: Impossible

83. Total Recall

84. Quiz Show

85. For Love Of The Game

86. Being John Malkovich

87. Men In Black

88. Scream

89. Alive

90. Three Kings

91. Glengarry Glen Ross

92. Die Hard With A Vengeance

93. The Blair Witch Project

94. Twister

95. Dirty Work

96. Election

97. Tremors

98. Any Given Sunday

99. The Wedding Singer

100. Clerks