From All Movie Guide: With only a handful of credits to his name, David Fincher became one of the most talked-about American directors to emerge during the late '90s. Although Fincher first earned recognition -- albeit negative -- as the director of the critically eviscerated Alien 3 in 1992, it was his work on Seven three years later that earned him both critical approval and industry acceptance. A noirish, grimly atmospheric crime thriller starring Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt as detectives following the gruesome trail of a serial killer, the film was hailed by a number of critics as one of the most innovative and unsettling of the decade, and duly established its director as one of Hollywood's most compelling new talents.
Originally hailing from Denver, where he was born in 1962, Fincher began making movies at the age of eight and, particularly inspired by the work of George Lucas, got his first major industry job ten years later at Lucas' own Industrial Lights and Magic. After his four-year stint at ILM, during which he worked on such productions as Return of the Jedi (1983) and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), Fincher helmed commercials and music videos for the likes of Aerosmith, Paula Abdul, and Madonna.
Following the disappointment of Alien 3, his directorial debut, the filmmaker received Andrew Kevin Walker's screenplay for Seven. Relentlessly grim and oozing with rancid cynicism, the film's success was even more remarkable for the fact that it strayed so far from the escapist fare that typically primes a film for mainstream commercial standing. Because the acclaim surrounding Seven made the relatively unknown Fincher one of Hollywood's hottest new commodities, the anticipation surrounding his subsequent project, The Game, was considerable. Released in 1997 and starring Michael Douglas as a soulless attorney who becomes caught up in the sinister, Kafka-esque machinations of the titular scheme, the film boasted almost as much feel-bad cynicism as Seven, but failed to get the warm reception enjoyed by its predecessor.