There are films by David Fincher over the years that have had me on the edge of my seat (Fight Club and The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) and others that have had me covering my eyes (Se7en and Panic Room), but Gone Girl doesn’t fall into either category.

There are debates about how it compares to the book (haven’t read it) and debates about whether or not it is misogynistic (I could argue either way).

While I think the film stands alone as a solitary work (by which I mean that you don’t have to have read the book to “get it”), I find it both lacking in sustained suspense and a bit self-conscious in its construction.

The film is not bad, but with this much hype, not bad is not good enough.

Not bad is disappointing.