David Fincher's 1999 adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk's novel Fight Club has prompted many academics to write about this film and has captivated many of their students. As Warren Rosenberg, chair of English at the all-male Wabash College has said, "This seems to be a movie that they all adore so we'll see if we can deconstruct it, and hopefully get them to like it less" (Students, A10). While we may take this flippant comment from a 2001 story in The Chronicle of Higher Education as just that and dismiss it as quickly as it passes, Rosenberg's sentiment reflects a widespread academic propensity to dismiss and disparage the film and convince students that the film does not merit the critical attention.

Also writing in The Chronicle, Steve Vineman dismisses the film as "too badly put together to support an analytical study" (Preposterous B13) and turns down his students who want to write their final papers on it.