'Gone Girl' enters the Oscar race with a slew of positive reviews ahead of its premiere

Though “Gone Girl” doesn’t hit theatres for a few weeks, the Oscar talk has already begun as the first reviews hit the web over the weekend.

Directed by David Fincher, “Gone Girl” is the long-awaited big screen adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s bestselling novel of the same name. The film stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike as Nick and Amy Dunne, a picture-perfect couple whose true colours are revealed when Amy vanishes and Nick becomes the prime suspect in her disappearance.

Best Picture?

“Gone Girl” will premiere at the New York Film Festival later this week, but rave reviews are already pouring in. Variety’s Justin Chang calls the film a “mesmerizing adaptation” with Fincher, Affleck, and Pike all operating at the “top of their game.” The Hollywood Reporter’s Todd McCarthy calls it “sharply made, perfectly cast and unfailingly absorbing.” The Guardian’s Xan Brooks delightfully compared “Gone Girl’ to a “storm in a teacup,” writing “but what an elegant, bone-china teacup this is. And what a fearsome force-10 gale we have brewing inside.”

Best Director?

If these early raves are any indication, “Gone Girl” will have no problem sidling into an awards race that has, until now, been fairly subdued and devoid of any real standouts. Fincher, who previously snagged a Best Directing nomination for his work on “The Social Network,” now seems assured a spot in this year’s Best Director lineup.

Variety on Fincher: “Surgically precise, grimly funny and entirely mesmerizing over the course of its swift 149-minute running time, this taut yet expansive psychological thriller represents an exceptional pairing of filmmaker and material, fully expressing Fincher’s cynicism about the information age and his abiding fascination with the terror and violence lurking beneath the surfaces of contemporary American life.”

Best Actor?

Affleck, who has endured public scrutiny not unlike the kind directed at his “Gone Girl” character Nick Dunne, is praised by most of the reviews for being pretty much perfectly cast and giving one of his best screen performances. Does that mean a Best Actor nomination come Oscar time? Maybe. Affleck was snubbed by the Academy the year his film “Argo” won Best Picture (he didn’t receive a Best Directing nomination, despite winning the equivalent Golden Globe). Perhaps Oscar voters will look more kindly on his acting chops.

Best Actress?

The real star of the show, however, seems to be English actress Rosamund Pike. By all accounts, Amy Dunne represents a career-making performance for Pike, who’s been languishing in mostly supporting roles since her debut as Bond girl Miranda Frost in 2002’s “Die Another Day.”

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Pike’s Amy is “powerful and commanding” and “even steelier and more brazen than one might have imagined.”

THR on Pike: “Physically and emotionally, Pike looks to have immersed herself in this profoundly calculating character, and the results are impressive.”

Variety was similarly enthusiastic about Pike's performance, saying the actress "possesses the sort of ferocious charisma that magnetizes the screen, and it’s a thrill to watch her fully embrace the showiest, most substantial role of her career." The Independent, Screen Daily and Digital Spy were also hugely complimentary when talking up Pike's turn as Amy Dunne, with the latter affirming that the role should "bag her an Oscar nomination come awards season.”

Best... Everything Else?

“Gone Girl” is also likely to pick up nominations in the more technical Oscar categories this year. Author Gillian Flynn, who adapted her own novel for her screenwriting debut, earned high marks from critics and will likely find herself with a Best Adapted Screenplay nod come Oscar night.

Variety on Flynn's adaptation: “Making an impressive screenwriting debut (with adaptations of her two other novels in the works), Flynn has ruthlessly streamlined but not materially altered her story, fully retaining its bifurcated, time-shuffling structure and elaborate, spoiler-susceptible twists.”

Editor Kirk Baxter, who previously won an Oscar for his work on Fincher's "The Social Network" (alongside Angus Wall), is another behind the scenes force on "Gone Girl" who was noted by reviewers. Another Best Editing nod seems likely here.

"Gone Girl" hits theatres Oct. 3.