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The Zodiac (2005)

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All Critics
Top Critics

Average Rating: 4.1/10
Reviews Counted: 31
Fresh: 8 | Rotten: 23

No consensus yet.

Average Rating: 2.8/10
Critic Reviews: 8
Fresh: 0 | Rotten: 8

No consensus yet.

audience

liked it
Average Rating: 3.1/5
User Ratings: 9,780

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Movie Info

A determined California detective attempts to crack one of the most mysterious cases in modern crime as the tale of the fearsome Zodiac Killer comes to the screen in director Alexander Bulkley's cinematic account of the crimes that rocked San Francisco's Bay Area from December 1968 to October of the following year. As the citizens of the small California town of Vallejo prepare for their holiday celebrations, the discovery that two teens have been viciously gunned down at a remote lover's lane

R, 1 hr. 32 min.

Mystery & Suspense, Drama

Directed By: Alexander Bulkley

Written By: Kelley Bulkeley, Alexander Bulkley

In Theaters: Mar 17, 2006 Limited

On DVD: Aug 29, 2006

ThinkFilm

The Zodiac Trailer & Photos

More Photos (7)

Cast

Justin Chambers
Matt Parish
Robin Tunney
Laura Parish
Rory Culkin
Johnny Parish
Philip Baker Hall
Chief Frank Perkins
William Mapother
Dale Coverling
Rex Linn
Jim Martinez
Brian Bloom
Zodiac
George Maguire (II)
Morgue Technician
Jarion Monroe
Doctor
Brad William Henke
Bill Gregory
Paul Ghiringhelli
Victor Ramierz
Nate Dushku
Scott Washington
Nick Scoggin
Gray
Kathryn Howell
Mrs. Boucher
Marty Lindsey
Bartender, Zodiac
Shelby Alexis Irey
Bobbie
Natassia Costa
Mary Boucher
Kris Palm
Michael Newman
Katelin Chesna
Patsy
Luis Sagua
Sammy Karzoso
Ian Scott McGregor
Paul Carmichael
Jodi Feder
Gina Chambers
Molly Mulholland
Waitress
Logan Fahey
Friend #1
Joe Stricker
Friend #2
D.C. Meyer
Ambulance Driver
Jessica Rofe
Nurse
A. Donald Cross
Elderly Man
Peter Van Shaik
Pete Morgan
David Tenebaum
S.F. Police Officer
Gilchrist Macquarrie
Teenage Boy
George Maguire (I)

Critic Reviews for The Zodiac

All Critics (31) | Top Critics (8) | Fresh (9) | Rotten (23) | DVD (5)

The Zodiac has been made with the dunderheaded flatness of bad '70s TV.

March 22, 2006 Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly

| Comment

Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Top Critic

It has the look of a straight-to-video movie, or at best a Project Greenlight production.

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle

| Comment

Peter Hartlaub

San Francisco Chronicle

Top Critic

The would-be psychological thriller devolves into a plodding domestic drama.

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times

| Comment

Kevin Crust

Los Angeles Times

Top Critic

The B-team version of the story.

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle

| Comment

Bruce Westbrook

Houston Chronicle

Top Critic

Have the screenwriters ever studied the concept of arc, how characters evolve from opening to closing credits?

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News

| Comment

Michael Granberry

Dallas Morning News

Top Critic

Treats the unfolding murder spree like a routine police procedural.

March 16, 2006 Comment

Bruce Newman

San Jose Mercury News

Top Critic

I hate to waste my time seeing what I know is an incomplete work. Good filmmaking and story telling, though.

March 8, 2007 Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews

| Comment

Robin Clifford

Reeling Reviews

Whether you're a true-crime buff or just an average cinephile who enjoys a well-crafted film, you'll find something to like about Zodiac.

March 2, 2007 Full Review Source: Cinematical

| Comment

Kim Voynar

Cinematical

The Zodiac case receded into limbo, and Bulkley's film ends on an inconclusive and profoundly unsatisfying note.

February 12, 2007 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide

| Comment

Maitland McDonagh

TV Guide's Movie Guide

It's two, maybe three different takes on the same subject duking it out for airtime, and the resulting struggle only leads to boredom.

September 5, 2006 Full Review Source: DVDTalk.com

| Comment

David Cornelius

DVDTalk.com

We can only hope that his blood lust has been quenched.

August 18, 2006 Full Review Source: Dread Central

| Comment

Steve "Uncle Creepy" Barton

Dread Central

Though The Zodiac is filled with a strong premise and taut atmosphere, Bulkley hardly ever gives us a reason to care for Johnny or Laura.

August 1, 2006 Full Review Source: Film Threat

| Comment

Felix Vasquez Jr.

Film Threat

A B-movie with just enough heft and factual accuracy to lull us into taking it seriously.

March 28, 2006 Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine

| Comment

Mark Keizer

Boxoffice Magazine

Great case; mediocre movie.

March 27, 2006 Full Review Source: Internet Reviews

| Comment

Steve Rhodes

Internet Reviews

A wan, pedestrian treatment of a notorious unsolved crime

March 21, 2006 Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion

| Comment

Frank Swietek

One Guy's Opinion

Bulkley juxtaposes the benign ordinariness of Vallejo with the savagery of the crime, the wholesome landscape standing in sharp contrast to what happens when no one is looking.

March 18, 2006 Full Review Source: Killer Movie Reviews

| Comment

Andrea Chase

Killer Movie Reviews

It's a barely serviceable police procedural that has a harder time locating persuasive drama than its detectives do tracking down their man.

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: Los Angeles Daily News

| Comment

Bob Strauss

Los Angeles Daily News

Impressive and unnerving, if uneven.

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: Contra Costa Times

| Comment

Randy Myers

Contra Costa Times

This movie was born under the sign of the mediocre.

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com

| Comment

Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone

TheMovieChicks.com

A less-than stable script and some questionable performances keep it firmly in the realm of direct-to-DVD fodder.

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: Dread Central

| Comment

Johnny Butane

Dread Central

More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for The Zodiac

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Not as in-depth or graphic as David Fincher's version of the Vallejo killings and this one got a little boring at times too. But overall I thought it was ok and watchable at least. I do enjoy fact-based serial killer movies and I've seen a fair few and this was far from being the worst of them.

March 8, 2011

Lee ?

Super Reviewer

Not to be confused with the David Fincher masterpiece, THE Zodiac is utter shit. It apes said genius's work in the most generic and unapologetic of ways--all from the "let's get this guy" cop pep talk down to the cliched "problems at home when the cop becomes obsessed with his work and misses his own birthday" scene.

February 10, 2008

Michael Gildea

Super Reviewer

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