With David Fincher’s newest movie, Mank, out this week on Netflix, Ringer contributor Adam Nayman is back with another video essay. This time, he’s looking at how the director’s infamous control-freak tendencies have manifested in the characters and stories from some of his biggest movies—from twisted manipulators like John Doe in Se7en and Amy Dunne from Gone Girl to ordinary folk who have seeming lost control of their lives, like Nick Van Orton in The Game and the narrator in Fight Club.

Adam Nayman

Adam Nayman is a film critic, teacher, and author based in Toronto; his book ‘The Coen Brothers: This Book Really Ties the Films Together’ is available now from Abrams.