Overview
A chilling investigation into the mind of a killer who plays a deadly game with the police.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- brooding
- paranoid
- meticulous
- late night viewing
- true crime marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a quiet, dialogue-driven and meticulously researched thriller whose period atmosphere, character work, and procedural detail generate sustained anxiety without relying on gore.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The detectives and reporters methodically pursue letters, codes, witnesses, and documentary evidence across the case.
Robert Graysmith becomes increasingly consumed by identifying the Zodiac after the official investigation loses momentum.
The film recreates 1970s San Francisco journalism and police work with restrained, workaday detail.
The case remains defined by disputed clues, incomplete proof, and an absence of definitive resolution.
Films like Zodiac, and why
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
meticulous police investigation, procedural detail, institutional frustration, and a bleakly absorbing crime mystery
Se7en
methodical serial-killer investigation, grim atmosphere, and psychologically consuming detective work
All the President's Men
journalism, government and investigative institutions, unresolved evidence, and period crime reporting
Memories of Murder
fact-based crime drama centered on obsessive investigators, contradictory evidence, and elusive certainty
Movie Details
- Director
- David Fincher
- Release Date
- 2007-03-02
- Runtime
- 157 min
- Rating
- 7.5 / 10 (11944)
Cast
- Jake Gyllenhaal
- Mark Ruffalo
- Anthony Edwards
- Robert Downey Jr.
- Chloë Sevigny
- Elias Koteas
- John Carroll Lynch
- Brian Cox
- Dermot Mulroney
- Charles Fleischer
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, MGM Plus, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel
- Rent
- JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, FlixFling, Spectrum On Demand, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Zodiac about?
- David Fincher’s meticulous true-crime procedural follows detectives and journalists whose pursuit of the Zodiac Killer turns an investigation into a life-consuming search for certainty.
- What is Zodiac like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Zodiac as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Zodiac violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Zodiac as moderate.
- What did critics think of Zodiac?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a quiet, dialogue-driven and meticulously researched thriller whose period atmosphere, character work, and procedural detail generate sustained anxiety without relying on gore.
- Which films are like Zodiac?
- Films with a similar feel include The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Se7en, All the President's Men, and Memories of Murder.
- How long is Zodiac?
- Zodiac runs 157 minutes.
- Where can I watch Zodiac?
- In United States, Zodiac streams on Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, MGM Plus, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel.
