HOLLYWOOD—When a great mystery is done right it propels to the top. Director David Fincher’s latest foray “Gone Girl,” adapted from the acclaimed novel by Gillian Flynn delivers on all fronts: narrative, direction, acting and writing.

Flynn’s novel is an absorbing tale for anyone who has read it; trust me it’s a page turner and has all of the complexities of any tantalizing mystery. I must say this movie had me thinking of a television series on ABC Family known as “Pretty Little Liars.” Are the two completely the same, no, but it does indeed contain some similarities that will raise eyebrows to those who have been compelled by the ongoing mystery of that TV series.

“Gone Girl” examines the relationship between married couple Nick (Ben Affleck) and Amy Elliott-Dunne (Rosamund Pike) whose portrait of a perfect marriage is not as perfect as one thinks it is. It’s already a given from the trailer, synopsis and TV spots that Nick is pegged as the villain when his wife Amy vanishes without a trace. Not only does she disappear, but the crime scene looks as if something horrific has happened to her.

I would argue this is some of Affleck’s best work to date. He conjures a great amount of complexity to a character that the audience isn’t quite sure how they should feel about him. Does he come across sympathetic to his wife’s disappearance? Not really. Do we suspect he could have been involved in her disappearance? Without a doubt; and that is not an easy task to pull off as an actor. It’s a small thin line that has to be traveled and Affleck does that with such precision and poise. Turn the camera to Amy portrayed by Pike, and she is angelic, lovable, innocent, friendly, but there is more than meets the eye.

An interesting note for fans of the novel is that the movie does not have the same outcome, so expect some differences in the narrative. Affleck and Pike are strong on the acting front and deliver for the rest of the cast that is not as strong as one had hoped. Supporting roles by Tyler Perry, Neil Patrick Harris, Carrie Coon, Kim Dickens and Patrick Fugit serve there purpose on a narrative front, but not to the degree where they steal the show from the main stars.

Director David Fincher proves why he is a mastermind behind the camera; proving once again he knows how to take beloved material and make it equally good as what was written on paper. Is “Gone Girl” a tense, can’t leave your seat thriller, to a degree. I would not compare the movie to be as compelling at Fincher’s work on the 1995 thriller “Seven” which had all of the elements of a must-see thriller: great acting, narrative to die for, a villain whose motive is not clear and supporting players who purpose is just as important as everyone else.

“Gone Girl” is perhaps the first adult movie that really knows how to unnerve the spectator, make you guess, make you speculate what might happen, but feel apart of the movie just as much as the characters you are watching on the big screen.