Chapter 27
by J.P. Schaefer
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Chuck Cooper, Lindsay Lohan, Robert Gerard Larkin, Ursula Abbott, Victor VerhaegheDirector: J.P. Schaefer
Brand: Genius
Producer: Brian Bell
Writer: J.P. Schaefer
Producer: Alexandra Milchan
Producer: Gary Howsam
Producer: Gilbert Alloul
Producer: Jared Leto
Writer: Jack Jones
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.66:1
Running Time: 84 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-09-30
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Model: 81510
Studio: Peace Arch
Product features:
- On a cold evening in early December, 1980, Mark David Chapman, a disturbed drifter from Hawaii, met ex-Beatle John Lennon. Moments later, the entire world was shocked senseless Based on chilling true events, Jared Leto is unforgettable in his mental and physical portrayal of an unhinged and angry man whose descent into madness led him to commit one of the most infamous crimes of the 20th century.
Movie Reviews of Chapter 27
Movie Review: phenomenal film, uneasy 2 watch but a true vision of psychosis
Summary: 5 Stars
this movie had me from the opening lines, delivered in jared leto (as mark david chapman)'s hushed, disconnected, lilting whisper "i knew what i had to do. i knew i had to kill john lennon." fanacticaclly taken with the salinger novel "catcher in the rye" and relating easily to holden caulfield, the book's own severely emotionally disturbed main character, chapman easily relates to the protagonist of the famous counter-culture novel's pathological hatred of "phonies." chapman's obsession with eliminating lennon as the embodiment of all things false and pretentious is thus cautiously explained. we are not meant to FORGIVE it, we are meant to UNDERSTAND it. "it" being the outgrowth of an increasingly paranoid and depressed man's unraveling mental condition.
jared leto's transformation from hollywood pin-up boy to hulking, suspicious, ungainly , overweight and morbidly withdrawn and socially estranged chapman is nothing short of revolutionary. i have never seen an actor make more of a stunning commitment to such an unsympathetic character and display such a complete lack of vanity. it truly is his "raging bull" and he is perfect in the role.
lindsay lohan and judah freidlander are compelling in their brief ammount of time onscreen as, respectively, fellow lennon-stalkers, though of the more benign variety, one a lovestruck super fan, the other a street-savvy, no-nonsense ambitious photographer. lohan displays a delicate edginess amidst her character's sweetly winsome nature, and as she gets to know chapman the nervousness and discomfort she begins to feel as he displays his increasingly more and more abnormal behavior becomes slowly palpable. she is a lovely and talented actress, no matter what her tabloid reputation may be. friendlander has an even briefer part but is effective as a vaguely suspicious photographer who actually takes a picture of chapman with lennon the first time they met, in which he heart-achingly reveals, through the interior monologue that is heard throughout the film, that he, at that instance, is startled to discover lennon is in fact, much to his astonishment, not a despicable "phony" at all, but is indeed quite humble, kind, and polite. we hear him struggle to figure out what to do...
but we are shown that he has felt like a failure all his life, and that this is the one thing he MUST "succeed" at, that he believes this will be his mark on humanity, this cruel act is somehow his destiny, given to him by his disturbed mind and obsessive mistaken interpretations of the novels and books which seem to be his sole comfort. perhaps it is also implied chapman follows through with his horrid, despicable crime only b/c that is merely "the plan" and as an army man he has spent a significant portion of his adult life following orders and seeing to plans -- you don't quit no matter WHAT, whatever you start, no matter even if you have a change of heart, you finish it, or fail once more. it's almost as if lennon's murder will, in a sick way, provide him with the redemption the formerly devout believer found christ could not. as chapman makes these bizarre interpretations of the bible and how it and "catcher" speak to him; how he analyzes random coincidences occurring outside the famous dakota building he shot him in front of, in those fateful weeks, to have deeper, more significant meaning (magical thinking) is also apparent. this inner dialogue is so warped and paranoid, so sadly macabre twisted and macabre one cannot help but infer that it is the rambling self-persecution of a tormented individual, suffering most likely from an intensive schizophrenic and delusional state. again, leno's performance cannot be understated in it's effectiveness at doing this, it is a remarkable achievement. his is almost the ONLY voice we hear throughout the movie. it is not that he creates sympathy for the character, it is more that he, most remarkably, allows us to see how this man's senseless act MADE SENSE TO HIM. how the immorality of it all paled in comparison to what chapman thought was the bigger outrage and hypocrisy of celebrity worship replacing "true" deity worship, and the likely bitter anger, resentment, and jealousy he, as a depressed unhappy, socially ostracized failure felt towards a man whom he did not have a relationship with beyond that of being, at one time, a self-described huge fan .
this is a difficult film to watch, it is about a subject which struck horror in the hearts of many of us who loved the Beatles and john lennon's music and will never forget that awful day. but it is an important movie to see, and the viewer will walk away with a deeper understanding on mental illness, those whom it affects and it's impact on society as a whole, even years after it's most vicious feared outcome and scenario takes place. you can't defend the indefensible, but you can understand and have knowledge of how the indefensible occurs, and why the undefendable allow it to.
Summary of Chapter 27
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