Did David Fincher give Netflix the greatest montage ever made?
There are music montages, and then there are moments that feel like symphonies in disguise. David Fincher directed Mindhunter may have been shelved too soon, but one scene continues to echo louder than the rest. It is a quietly brilliant montage of Holden and Bill travelling from case to case, set to Fly Like an Eagle by the Steve Miller Band.
At first glance, it is simple. Two men on planes, in cars, in quiet hotel rooms. But with Fincher, nothing is ever just that. The camera lingers on each look. The edits feel patient and deliberate. Nothing drags, yet nothing feels rushed either.
Holden Ford, played by Jonathan Groff, flips through National Geographic. Beside him, Bill Tench, played by Holt McCallany, casually reads Playboy. Holden peeks. That one glance captures everything. Holden is anxious and restrained. Bill is steady and unbothered. In just a few seconds, their entire dynamic is laid bare.
The montage works because of rhythm. The editing flows perfectly with the track. Fly Like an Eagle is not just background sound. It becomes part of the scene’s architecture. It glides over each transition, guiding them from flight to motel to hallway. You do not notice the cuts, but you feel the movement. That’s what makes it hypnotic.
Silence plays just as big a role. No one speaks. There is no narration. But you feel the weight of it all. The repetition, the disconnection and the exhaustion that comes from seeing too much and saying too little. These are two people carrying the heaviness of their work while drifting further from their own lives.
Details are everything here. Bill turns off the hotel TV after just a few seconds. Holden lies awake, lost in thought. One eats alone. The other brushes his teeth with blank eyes. There is no breakdown. No climactic moment. Just two men folding into routine, slowly losing parts of themselves. There is something satisfactory about that.
The song itself feels unexpected at first. It is mellow and warm, while the world of Mindhunter is cold and clinical. But the contrast works. The lyrics speak about time slipping into the future. The montage shows two people who are stuck. They move constantly, but nothing really changes. The cases pile up. The tension grows. And yet, the emotional distance remains.
Fincher’s direction here is sharp but invisible. He resists the urge to spell things out. Instead, he lets glances, body language, and sound design do the talking. You feel more from a sideways look than most shows give you in a monologue. That kind of restraint is rare.
Which is why this montage has stuck with viewers. And now, with Mindhunter trending again and whispers of a potential return surfacing, the scene is gaining new life. Holt McCallany recently shared that he met with David Fincher to discuss the possibility of continuing the story. Maybe not as a full season, but as three feature-length films for Netflix. It is not confirmed. But for long-time fans, the idea alone feels like a reason to rewatch.
Even if it never comes back, this scene stands tall. It captures everything Mindhunter did best. Mood. Silence. Control. And two haunted men just trying to do their job.
So, did David Fincher give Netflix the greatest montage ever made? He may have. Because in those few quiet minutes, he created something that still speaks louder than words.