Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike in Gone Girl. Photo Credit: 20th Century Fox

Beware of the Cool Girl. Keep an eye on your spouse. And if they ever vanish, for the love of God, don’t smile while posing next to their Missing poster.

Happy 10th anniversary to Gone Girl.

The David Fincher thriller starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike was released in theatres on Oct. 3, 2014. Based on the bestselling novel by Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl remains Fincher’s most financially successful film, grossing $369.3 million worldwide, and is one of the most memorable movies of the 2010s.

Gone Girl was a hit with audiences and critics. It also made you give the side-eye to your significant other. She/he/they wouldn’t do that to me, right? There must have been several uncomfortable conversations leaving the theatre.

Couples love to engage in hypotheticals. You always want to gain insight into your romantic partner’s thoughts. Gone Girl takes this to an extreme reality as Amy (Pike) sets a diabolical trap for cheating hubby Nick (Affleck), attempting to frame him for her murder. As we discover midway through the movie, the plot twist is that Amy is not dead, just on the run. As long as she’s gone, Nick is the prime suspect, and the authorities are closing in on him.

If Gone Girl were simply a mystery, it still would have been a triumph. The book and the movie had the fortune of good timing. The 2010s is when we saw a significant rise in the popularity of true crime. And while Gone Girl is fiction, the story fits the genre. It’s the ultimate Missing White Woman Syndrome film. It reflects how our society consumes these crimes as entertainment. Amy is Caucasian, pretty, and pregnant with her husband as the lead suspect.

If Gone Girl were real, this would dominate the news cycle. We would see several podcasts launched featuring sleuths and conspiracy theorists espousing the wildest theories. That’s how it is in true-crime-obsessed America.

Gone Girl endures because it’s less about mystery and more about matrimony. One of the most poignant scenes is when Nick says to Amy near the end, “I loved you and then all we did was resent each other, try to control each other. We caused each other pain.” Amy responds with: “That’s marriage.”

Some might take that as hyperbole. Others might see a kernel of truth.

Gone Girl is incredible entertainment for two reasons: an outstanding cast and Fincher. All the actors fit snuggly into their roles and deliver performances that jump off the screen. It might surprise you to learn that Pike and Affleck were not slam-dunk choices. Gone Girl almost starred Reese Witherspoon and Jon Hamm. Fincher decided Witherspoon wasn’t right for the part and Hamm was contractually obligated to Mad Men.

Witherspoon and Hamm might have been solid, but they wouldn’t have done a better job than Pike and Affleck. Pike, a Brit, was relatively unknown to American audiences. It’s important for this movie that you don’t have any preconceived notions about her character. Meanwhile, Affleck has been in the tabloids for decades. It’s important for the movie that you do have preconceived notions about his character.

It’s hard to get a read on Amy, especially early. She seems interesting and likable enough. But you can’t shake the notion that there’s something a little off. Pike’s obscurity serves her well.

Meanwhile, you could argue that no actor fits this role better than Affleck who looks exactly like a guy who might have done something terrible to his wife. You’re not completely convinced of his guilt. But he’s clumsily doing dumb things to make himself look bad.

The entire cast deserves applause, including Kim Dickens as Detective Rhonda Boney and Carrie Coon as Margo. However, the supporting actor who stood out the most was Tyler Perry as Tanner Bolt. Perry was a revelation, bringing energy and humor as Nick’s attorney. Perry’s performance makes you wonder why he doesn’t do more of this type of work as opposed to occasionally directing terrible films. You could make a case that Perry deserved an Oscar nomination.

Despite its success, Gone Girl got only one Academy Award nomination (Pike for Best Actress). That’s somewhat shocking since at the least it was worthy of recognition for Best Picture and Best Director.

The Academy has always undervalued Fincher who might be the best director not to win an Oscar (three nominations for The Social Network, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and Mank.). What is indisputable is that Gone Girl deserves to be on the Mount Rushmore of Fincher films, along with Zodiac, The Social Network, and Fight Club. Some might pick Se7en over Fight Club. That’s fine.

However, more than any other Fincher film, Gone Girl will forever make us wonder about the primal questions of a marriage: “What are you thinking? How are you feeling? What have we done to each other? What will we do?”

About Michael Grant

Born in Jamaica. Grew up in New York City. Lives in Louisville, Ky. Sports writer. Not related to Ulysses S. Grant.