11-22-2007, 04:53 PM
Chaos (2001, French, directed by Coline Serreau). This is the perfect date movie -- or watch it with your wife/SO. For extra credit, place a meat cleaver next to the lady and time when it first enters some part of your anatomy. This may happen repeatedly. Premise: Husband and wife are driving to a party. They're in a very cold relationship. The wife does everything for the husband, who is a businessman, and the parties they go to are stuffy business-related affairs. But as the husband drives down an alley, a prostitute comes running towards them, chased by several hoodlums. The husband promptly locks all the doors, despite the woman's pleas to be let in, and they sit there while the hoodlums beat the prostitute into unconsciousness. When the hoodlums leave, the husband asks the wife for tissues. He gets out and wipes the blood off the windshield, then drives onward. In the ensuing days, the wife begins to question things. She eventually goes to the hospital and starts caring for the prostitute, who is paralyzed and in a coma. While this seems like a fairly straightforward tale, it is just the beginning. This is a movie of many layers, where every time you think you understand what is going on, something is revealed that changes everything. I'm not certain Chaos is a good title, because this is more like a complex jigsaw puzzle deftly solved over the course of two hours. Hopefully I'm not giving too much away (MINOR SPOILER ALERT) by saying that this is a searing indictment of Islam – at least in its treatment of women. The movie has a secondary message, which is that all men are evil. This is a very good movie with some remarkable performances. I enjoyed it very much despite being pummeled relentlessly by the message. It really is that good. Check it out.
Chaos (1999, Japanese, directed by Hideo Nakata). A husband and wife have dinner in a nice restaurant. Afterwards, the husband pays for the meal while the wife steps outside. When he goes outside, there is no trace of her. A short time later he receives a call from someone who says he has kidnapped his wife and wants 30 million dollars. Thus begins a brilliantly convoluted tale of intrigue. The acting is superb. The wife in particular is full of nuances. The musical score is perfect, with a slow steady drumbeat at key moments that suggests the underlying complexities of a Swiss watch. I absolutely loved this movie, its characters, and the convoluted plot. Maybe I'm dense, and others would pick up on the plot sooner, but I found this to be one of the most masterful tellings of a story in recent cinema. My highest rating.
Chaos (2005, US, directed by David DeFalco). Two girls (late teens) try to score some E at a rave in the woods. A young guy (played by Stallone's son, but looking more like a Travolta) lures them to a cabin deeper in the woods where they fall prey to a homicidal maniac named Chaos and his two cohorts. This has been called "the most brutal movie ever made," so I was expecting some disgusting stuff. What I was treated to instead was your standard fare of captive women who never get hurt or undressed and who keep escaping their clumsy captors. But then, quite abruptly, it became the most brutal movie ever made. There are two scenes that are absolutely gut-wrenching. They make you sit up in shock, wondering if this is a f**king snuff film. Kevin Gage plays Chaos with cold and chilling conviction and alone is worth the price of admission, if you really want to sit through this. The other actors are for the most part quite good. In fact, the acting is what separates this exploitation film from most. Director David DeFalco somehow put together a strong cast, despite being a raving lunatic himself (more on that in a moment). In summary, this is a remake of Last House on the Left (without giving credit) distinguished by two genuinely disturbing scenes of brutal mayhem. The DVD includes a discussion of the Roger Ebert controversy. Essentially, Ebert gave this movie a 0, despite noting its effectiveness on a number of levels. The producer and director took issue with that, and Ebert defended (in writing) his verdict. But it's very clear to me that those two scenes totally burned out Ebert's critical faculties. The DVD also includes a tour of the Los Angeles Morgue – the section where homicides are handled. Director David DeFalco leads the tour bare-chested and constantly flexing (he's a bodybuilder and ex-pro wrestler), announcing how he is the first to do this. DeFalco is a narcissistic nutcase of staggering staginess. Still, this extra is worth watching when the morgue director starts talking and leading the way. He describes deftly and in detail just what happens to a body after it arrives. [Lady Cranefly even sat through this part of the DVD and found it very interesting.] But you will have to sit (or fast forward) through DeFalco's frequent and repetitive interruptions. Okay, now the moment of truth. How do I rate this movie? It's not high art. In fact, it's terribly sleazy and despicable. But I won't be Ebert-centric. It definitely affected me. Kevin Gage's performance was absolutely chilling. He and his gang reminds me a little too much of "friends" I used to associate with while growing up in Indiana. I have to give it three stars on the NetFlix rating (I liked it).
You could do worse than rent all three of the above for consecutive viewing in one week. I did, and it helped me get through a week of chaos.
Chaos (1999, Japanese, directed by Hideo Nakata). A husband and wife have dinner in a nice restaurant. Afterwards, the husband pays for the meal while the wife steps outside. When he goes outside, there is no trace of her. A short time later he receives a call from someone who says he has kidnapped his wife and wants 30 million dollars. Thus begins a brilliantly convoluted tale of intrigue. The acting is superb. The wife in particular is full of nuances. The musical score is perfect, with a slow steady drumbeat at key moments that suggests the underlying complexities of a Swiss watch. I absolutely loved this movie, its characters, and the convoluted plot. Maybe I'm dense, and others would pick up on the plot sooner, but I found this to be one of the most masterful tellings of a story in recent cinema. My highest rating.
Chaos (2005, US, directed by David DeFalco). Two girls (late teens) try to score some E at a rave in the woods. A young guy (played by Stallone's son, but looking more like a Travolta) lures them to a cabin deeper in the woods where they fall prey to a homicidal maniac named Chaos and his two cohorts. This has been called "the most brutal movie ever made," so I was expecting some disgusting stuff. What I was treated to instead was your standard fare of captive women who never get hurt or undressed and who keep escaping their clumsy captors. But then, quite abruptly, it became the most brutal movie ever made. There are two scenes that are absolutely gut-wrenching. They make you sit up in shock, wondering if this is a f**king snuff film. Kevin Gage plays Chaos with cold and chilling conviction and alone is worth the price of admission, if you really want to sit through this. The other actors are for the most part quite good. In fact, the acting is what separates this exploitation film from most. Director David DeFalco somehow put together a strong cast, despite being a raving lunatic himself (more on that in a moment). In summary, this is a remake of Last House on the Left (without giving credit) distinguished by two genuinely disturbing scenes of brutal mayhem. The DVD includes a discussion of the Roger Ebert controversy. Essentially, Ebert gave this movie a 0, despite noting its effectiveness on a number of levels. The producer and director took issue with that, and Ebert defended (in writing) his verdict. But it's very clear to me that those two scenes totally burned out Ebert's critical faculties. The DVD also includes a tour of the Los Angeles Morgue – the section where homicides are handled. Director David DeFalco leads the tour bare-chested and constantly flexing (he's a bodybuilder and ex-pro wrestler), announcing how he is the first to do this. DeFalco is a narcissistic nutcase of staggering staginess. Still, this extra is worth watching when the morgue director starts talking and leading the way. He describes deftly and in detail just what happens to a body after it arrives. [Lady Cranefly even sat through this part of the DVD and found it very interesting.] But you will have to sit (or fast forward) through DeFalco's frequent and repetitive interruptions. Okay, now the moment of truth. How do I rate this movie? It's not high art. In fact, it's terribly sleazy and despicable. But I won't be Ebert-centric. It definitely affected me. Kevin Gage's performance was absolutely chilling. He and his gang reminds me a little too much of "friends" I used to associate with while growing up in Indiana. I have to give it three stars on the NetFlix rating (I liked it).
You could do worse than rent all three of the above for consecutive viewing in one week. I did, and it helped me get through a week of chaos.
I'm nobody's pony.