You’ve probably seen the movie. Ryan Gosling, looking all 1970s-cool in a corduroy jacket, standing next to Kirsten Dunst in a health food store. It’s called All Good Things, and it’s one of those films that stays with you, mostly because of how deeply weird and cold the main character, David Marks, feels.
But here’s the thing: David Marks isn't a real person. Not exactly.
Honestly, he’s a thin veil for one of the most bizarre and terrifying real-life figures in American history: Robert Durst. If you haven't gone down that rabbit hole yet, buckle up. The film isn't just a "based on a true story" thriller; it’s a psychological blueprint of a man who spent forty years dodging the law while leaving a trail of bodies across the country.
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The Man Behind the David Marks Fiction
In the movie, David Marks is the reluctant heir to a New York real estate empire. His father, Sanford Marks (played with a terrifying, hulking presence by Frank Langella), is a man who treats the city like a chess set. David wants out. He wants the simple life. He meets Katie, they fall in love, and they move to Vermont to open a health food store called—you guessed it—All Good Things.
It sounds like a hippie dream. But in real life, Robert Durst actually did this.
He and his wife, Kathie McCormack, moved to Middlebury, Vermont, in 1972. They actually ran that store. But the dream didn't last. The movie gets this right: the "old man" eventually pulled David back into the family business. The money was too big to walk away from, or maybe the psychological grip was just too tight.
Why Gosling’s Performance is Kinda Genius
A lot of critics back in 2010 thought Gosling was too "blank." They said he was wooden.
They were wrong.
If you watch The Jinx—the HBO documentary that came out years after the movie—you see the real Robert Durst. He’s got these black, shark-like eyes. He blinks constantly. He has this weird, involuntary habit of talking to himself. Gosling captured that eerie, distant vibe perfectly. David Marks isn't supposed to be a hero; he’s a man whose soul basically checked out of his body when he was seven years old.
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What Really Happened with Katie Marks?
The core of the movie—and the real-life mystery—is the disappearance of the wife. In the film, Katie (Kirsten Dunst) is this bright, aspiring medical student who starts to realize her husband is, well, a monster. She sees the "episodes." She feels the violence.
In January 1982, the real Kathie Durst vanished.
She was last seen at a dinner party in Connecticut. Robert claimed he dropped her off at a train station so she could go back to their Manhattan apartment. He said he talked to her on the phone later that night.
He was lying.
Decades later, Durst admitted he just made that up to "make the police go away." The movie shows David Marks disposing of her body, though in reality, Kathie’s body has never been found. She was finally declared dead in 2017, thirty-five years after she disappeared.
The Weirdest Part of the Whole Story
Most people don't know this, but the real Robert Durst actually liked the movie.
Usually, when a filmmaker makes a movie saying you're a murderer, you sue them. Not Bob. He called up the director, Andrew Jarecki, and said he liked the performance. He even agreed to sit down for the interviews that eventually became The Jinx.
Think about that. The movie was so accurate—or at least captured his "vibe" so well—that the killer himself wanted to talk to the guy who made it. It’s arguably the most successful "true crime" trap ever set.
Breaking Down the David Marks Timeline
If you're trying to keep the facts straight, the movie follows three distinct "acts" that mirror Durst’s life:
- The New York Years (1970s-1982): The marriage, the real estate pressure, and the eventual disappearance of Katie. This is where the mask starts to slip.
- The Best Friend (2000): In the film, David’s friend Deborah Lehrman is killed because she knows too much. This is based on Susan Berman, Durst’s long-time confidante who was shot execution-style in her home just as police were reopening the investigation into Kathie’s disappearance.
- The Texas Escape (2001): This is the part of the movie people think is fake because it's so insane. David moves to Galveston, Texas, and pretends to be a mute woman named Dorothy Ciner. He ends up killing his neighbor, Malvern Bump (based on Morris Black), and—get this—was acquitted of murder by claiming self-defense, even though he admitted to dismembering the body.
Why Does This Story Still Matter in 2026?
We’re obsessed with true crime now, but All Good Things was ahead of its time. It didn't try to give us a "why." It just showed us the "how."
The film explores the idea of "legacy" and how a powerful family can protect a predator. The Marks family (The Dursts) had friends in high places. They had the money to hire the best lawyers. They had the power to make people look the other way for forty years.
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Honestly, the lesson of David Marks is that sometimes the most dangerous person in the room is the one who looks like he’s not even there. He’s the guy mumbling to himself in the corner while he figures out how to get away with it.
Actionable Insights for True Crime Fans
If you've watched the movie and want to understand the full scope of what happened to the people who inspired David Marks, here is what you should do next:
- Watch The Jinx (Part 1 and 2): It’s the essential companion piece. You’ll see the exact moments where the fiction of the movie meets the reality of the man.
- Look up the Kathie Durst case updates: Even though Robert Durst died in prison in 2022, the legal battles over his estate and the search for Kathie's remains continue.
- Analyze the "Burp": In the documentary, Durst has a physical reaction (a loud burp/gasp) when confronted with evidence. Compare that to Gosling’s twitchy, nervous energy in the film's later scenes. It’s a masterclass in psychological acting.
The story of David Marks isn't just a movie plot; it’s a cautionary tale about power, mental illness, and the high price of "all good things." Robert Durst eventually got caught, but he lived a full life before the law finally caught up. The movie remains the best fictionalized look into the mind of a man who thought he was untouchable.