Editing David Fincher (section)

===1992–2000: Breakthrough===
In 1990, [[20th Century Fox]] hired Fincher to replace [[Vincent Ward (director)|Vincent Ward]] as the director for the [[Science fiction|science-fiction]] horror ''[[Alien 3]]'' (1992), his film directorial debut.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Pearce |first=Garth |date=1991 |title=Alien3: Set Visit To A Troubled Sequel |magazine=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]] |url=https://www.empireonline.com/interviews/interview.asp?IID=1102 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150703222946/http://www.empireonline.com/interviews/interview.asp?IID=1102 |archive-date=July 3, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> It was the third installment in the [[Alien (franchise)|''Alien'' franchise]] starring [[Sigourney Weaver]]. The film was released in May 1992 to a mixed reception from critics and was considered weaker than the preceding films.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Alien3 (1992)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/alien3/|publisher=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|date=May 22, 1992 |access-date=August 27, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161011050729/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/alien3/|archive-date=October 11, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> From the beginning, ''Alien 3'' was hampered by studio intervention and several abandoned scripts.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/joshweiss/2019/06/03/alien-3-crew-member-compares-david-finchers-original-vision-to-edgar-allen-poe/|title='Alien 3' Crew Member Compares David Fincher's Original Vision To Edgar Allan Poe|last=Weiss|first=Josh|website=[[Forbes]]|language=en|access-date=March 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200327155136/https://www.forbes.com/sites/joshweiss/2019/06/03/alien-3-crew-member-compares-david-finchers-original-vision-to-edgar-allen-poe/|archive-date=March 27, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=November 18, 2014|title=What Went Wrong With Alien 3, According To Tywin Lannister|url=https://www.cinemablend.com/new/What-Went-Wrong-With-Alien-3-According-Tywin-Lannister-68286.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200327155134/https://www.cinemablend.com/new/What-Went-Wrong-With-Alien-3-According-Tywin-Lannister-68286.html|archive-date=March 27, 2020|access-date=March 27, 2020|website=Cinemablend}}</ref> [[Peter Travers]] of the ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' called the film "bold and haunting", despite the "struggle of nine writers" and "studio interference".<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-reviews/alien-3-103327/|title=Alien 3|last=Travers|first=Peter|date=September 9, 1992|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US|access-date=January 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190506194541/https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-reviews/alien-3-103327/|archive-date=May 6, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

The film received an [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] nomination for [[Academy Award for Best Visual Effects|Best Visual Effects]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=The 65th Academy Awards (1993) Nominees and Winners|date=October 4, 2014 |url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1993|publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] (AMPAS)|access-date=August 27, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402004418/http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1993|archive-date=April 2, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Years later, Fincher publicly expressed his dismay and subsequently disowned the film. In the book ''Director's Cut: Picturing Hollywood in the 21st Century'', Fincher blames the producers for their lack of trust in him.<ref>{{Cite book |first=Stephan |last=Littger |title=Director's Cut: Picturing Hollywood in the 21st Century |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Academic]] |location=London, England |isbn=978-0826419026 |date=2006 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/directorscutpict0000unse}}</ref> In an interview with ''[[The Guardian]]'' in 2009, he stated, "No one hated it more than me; to this day, no one hates it more than me."<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Salisbury|first1=Mark|last2=Fincher|first2=David|title=Transcript of the Guardian interview with David Fincher at BFI Southbank|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/feb/03/david-fincher-interview-transcript|website=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=August 27, 2016|date=January 18, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160922204519/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/feb/03/david-fincher-interview-transcript|archive-date=September 22, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

After this critical disappointment, Fincher eschewed reading film scripts or directing another project.<ref name="Taubin">{{Cite news |last=Taubin |first=Amy |title=The Allure of Decay |website=[[Sight and Sound]] |page=24 |date=January 1996}}</ref> He briefly retreated to directing commercials and music videos, including the video for the song "[[Love Is Strong]]" by [[the Rolling Stones]] in 1994, which won the [[Grammy Award]] for [[Grammy Award for Best Music Video|Best Music Video]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Trenholm|first=Richard|title=David Fincher returns to his Vogue-ing video days in new comedy|url=https://www.cnet.com/uk/news/david-fincher-returns-to-his-vogue-ing-video-days-in-new-comedy/|publisher=[[CNET]]|access-date=August 27, 2016|date=May 5, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160920125425/http://www.cnet.com/uk/news/david-fincher-returns-to-his-vogue-ing-video-days-in-new-comedy/|archive-date=September 20, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Shortly, Fincher decided to make a foray back into film. He read [[Andrew Kevin Walker]]'s original screenplay for ''[[Seven (1995 film)|Seven]]'' (1995), which had been revised by [[Jeremiah Chechik]], the director attached to the project at one point. Fincher expressed no interest in directing the revised version, so [[New Line Cinema]] agreed to keep the original ending.<ref name="Taubin"/><ref>{{Cite web|last1=Couch|first1=Aaron|title='Seven' Screenwriter on How a Mix-Up With David Fincher Led to Its Gutsy Ending|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/se7en-screenwriter-how-a-mixup-david-fincher-led-gutsy-ending-963957|website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|access-date=March 23, 2018|date=January 13, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180324041244/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/se7en-screenwriter-how-a-mixup-david-fincher-led-gutsy-ending-963957|archive-date=March 24, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Starring [[Brad Pitt]], [[Morgan Freeman]], [[Gwyneth Paltrow]], [[R. Lee Ermey]], and [[Kevin Spacey]], it tells the story of two detectives who attempt to identify a [[serial killer]] who bases his murders on the [[Christianity|Christian]] [[seven deadly sins]].<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Turan|first1=Kenneth|title='Seven' Offers a Punishing Look at Some Deadly Sins|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-22-ca-48658-story.html|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=March 23, 2018|date=September 22, 1995|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208014027/http://articles.latimes.com/1995-09-22/entertainment/ca-48658_1_deadly-sins|archive-date=December 8, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> ''Seven'' was positively received by film critics and was one of the highest-earning films of 1995, grossing more than $320&nbsp;million worldwide.<ref name=":22">{{Cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=seven.htm|title=''Seven''|date=1995|website=[[Box Office Mojo]]|access-date=September 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150830115239/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=seven.htm|archive-date=August 30, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Writing for ''[[Sight and Sound]]'', John Wrathall said it "stands as the most complex and disturbing entry in the serial killer genre since ''[[Manhunter (film)|Manhunter]]''" and [[Roger Ebert]] opined that ''Seven'' is "one of the darkest and most merciless films ever made in the Hollywood mainstream."<ref name="Wrathall">{{Cite news |last=Wrathall |first=John |title=''Seven'' |website=[[Sight and Sound]] |page=50 |date=January 1996}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last1=Ebert|first1=Roger|author-link1=Roger Ebert|title=Seven (1995)|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-seven-1995|website=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|access-date=March 12, 2018|date=July 18, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180313093538/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-seven-1995|archive-date=March 13, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

Following ''Seven'', Fincher directed a music video for "[[6th Avenue Heartache]]" by [[the Wallflowers]]<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Puchko|first1=Kristy|title=28 David Fincher Music Videos, Ranked|url=https://www.vulture.com/2014/10/david-fincher-music-videos-ranked.html|website=[[Vulture (magazine)|Vulture]]|access-date=March 25, 2018|date=October 6, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180325232125/http://www.vulture.com/2014/10/david-fincher-music-videos-ranked.html|archive-date=March 25, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> and went on to direct his third feature film, the mystery thriller ''[[The Game (1997 film)|The Game]]'' (1997), written by the duo [[John Brancato and Michael Ferris]].<ref name="The Game">{{Cite web|last1=McCarthy|first1=Todd|author-link1=Todd McCarthy|title=The Game|url=https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/the-game-3-1117341147/|website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|access-date=March 25, 2018|date=September 5, 1997|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180325171257/http://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/the-game-3-1117341147/|archive-date=March 25, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Fincher also hired ''Seven'' screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker to contribute and polish the script.<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Salisbury|first1=Mark|title=Butcher my script and I'm outta here|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/1999/apr/09/features|website=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=March 23, 2018|date=April 9, 1999|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180324041149/https://www.theguardian.com/film/1999/apr/09/features|archive-date=March 24, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Filmed on location in San Francisco, the story follows an investment banker, played by [[Michael Douglas]], who receives an unusual gift from his younger brother ([[Sean Penn]]), where he becomes involved in a "game" that integrates with his everyday life, making him unable to differentiate between game and reality.<ref name="The Game"/> Almar Haflidason of the [[BBC]] was critical of the ending, but praised the visuals—"Fincher does a marvelous job of turning ordinary city locations into frightening backdrops, where every corner turned is another step into the unknown".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2001/03/02/the_game_1997_review.shtml|title=BBC – Films – review – The Game|website=www.bbc.co.uk|access-date=April 14, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213031334/http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2001/03/02/the_game_1997_review.shtml|archive-date=February 13, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref> Upon ''The Game''{{'}}s release in September 1997, the film received generally favorable reviews but performed moderately at the box office.<ref name=":20">{{Cite web|title=The Game Reviews|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-game|publisher=[[Metacritic]]|access-date=March 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180509113454/http://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-game|archive-date=May 9, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> ''The Game'' was later included in the [[The Criterion Collection|Criterion Collection]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.criterion.com/films/28058-the-game|title=The Game|publisher=[[The Criterion Collection]]|language=en|access-date=January 10, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191119060255/https://www.criterion.com/films/28058-the-game|archive-date=November 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

In August 1997, Fincher agreed to direct ''[[Fight Club]]'', based on the 1996 [[Fight Club (novel)|novel of the same name]] by [[Chuck Palahniuk]]. It was his second film with 20th Century Fox after the troubled production of ''Alien 3''.<ref>{{Cite magazine|first=Michael |last=Fleming |url=https://variety.com/1997/voices/columns/thornton-holds-reins-of-horses-1116678264/ |title=Thornton holds reins of 'Horses' |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=August 19, 1997 |access-date=March 23, 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011203539/http://variety.com/article/VR1116678264.html?categoryid=3&cs=1 |archive-date=October 11, 2007}}</ref> Starring Brad Pitt, [[Edward Norton]] and [[Helena Bonham Carter]], the film is about a nameless office worker suffering from insomnia, who meets a salesman, and together form an underground fighting club as a form of therapy. Fox struggled with the marketing of the film, and were concerned that it would have a limited audience.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Rebels on the backlot : six maverick directors and how they conquered the Hollywood studio system|last=Waxman, Sharon|date=2005|publisher=[[HarperCollins|HarperEntertainment]]|isbn=0-06-054017-6|edition=1st|location=New York|pages=[https://archive.org/details/rebelsonbacklots00waxm/page/253 253–273]|oclc=56617315|url=https://archive.org/details/rebelsonbacklots00waxm/page/253}}</ref> ''Fight Club'' premiered on October 15, 1999, in the United States to a polarized response and modest box office success; the film grossed $100.9 million against a budget of $63 million.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0137523/?ref_=bo_se_r_1|title=Fight Club|website=[[Box Office Mojo]]|access-date=January 10, 2020|archive-date=November 14, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114150200/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0137523/?ref_=bo_se_r_1|url-status=live}}</ref> Initially, many critics thought the film was "a violent and dangerous express train of masochism and aggression."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2000/11/14/fight_club_1999_review.shtml|title=BBC – Films – review – Fight Club|website=www.bbc.co.uk|access-date=January 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190324041025/http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2000/11/14/fight_club_1999_review.shtml|archive-date=March 24, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> However, in following years, ''Fight Club'' became a cult favorite and gained acknowledgement for its multilayered themes; the film has been the source of [[Interpretations of Fight Club|critical analysis from academics and film critics]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/features/fight-club-david-fincher-edward-norton-brad-pitt|title=The American dream unravelled: 20 years of Fight Club|website=British Film Institute|language=en|access-date=January 10, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191016145111/https://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/features/fight-club-david-fincher-edward-norton-brad-pitt|archive-date=October 16, 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Murray|first=Brian|date=March 1, 2019|title=Fight Club: A Cult Movie at 20|url=https://www.lawliberty.org/2019/03/01/fight-club-a-cult-movie-at-20/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190326090645/https://www.lawliberty.org/2019/03/01/fight-club-a-cult-movie-at-20/|archive-date=March 26, 2019|access-date=January 10, 2020|website=Law & Liberty|language=en-US}}</ref>