I’m sure you’ve already heard of David Fincher’s comments about how he can “understand both sides” of the dispute in the actors-studios strike.
His comments didn’t impress Boots Riley. The “Sorry to Bother You” director went on Twitter to criticize Fincher’s answer about the strikes and the way he worded the entire thing was rather confusing.
Citing a comment about Fincher’s “hope that someone will see [The Killer] and get very nervous about the person behind them in line at Home Depot,” Riley somehow managed to used that line to criticize Fincher’s “distorted worldview.” He added this flawed “worldview” has been “propagated in many of [Fincher’s] films.”
So, now we have Riley not only criticizing Fincher’s strike comments, but then taking a shot at his entire filmography. This can’t end well.
After some heated exchanges, Riley tried to clear the air by saying “Yes, Fincher has made some great films. I can disagree with someone, and even disagree with a common theme in their art, and still recognize and appreciate things that are great about their [art],” Riley wrote. “I shouldn’t need to say this, but apparently I need to make this clear.”
Riley, who identifies as a communist, comes from a militant political background, including his family being social justice organizers. By contrast, Fincher has not been outspoken about his politics.
Given that Fincher is now solely financed by Netflix, and only makes movies for the streaming giant, it’s not that surprising to hear him take a neutral view of the strike.