Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageChopper (2000)
Director: Andrew Dominik
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
Mark Brandon Read earned his nickname by removing his victim's lower digits. Brilliantly portrayed by stand-up comedian Bana, 'Chopper' is one of those boorish Australians who's everyone's best friend until he takes offence: if you're unfortunate enough to tap into his dark side, he'll be sure to blame you for it and the punishment will be twice as severe. With his twinkling grin, his tattoos and beer-bucket frame, he's a plausible heavy, but Bana also shows us his sentimental side. When a cellmate repeatedly stabs him in the chest out of fear and greed, Chopper's hurt by the betrayal, but unfazed by physical pain, as if he's been desensitised to violence of any kind. Later, on the outside, he calls on his treacherous friend and your stomach churns: we know this man is capable of anything. It's funny, too: that commonplace about laughter being a safety valve has never been nearer the knuckle. Writer/director Dominik filters his subject's emotional volatility through colour washes but steps back to expose his fear and loneliness, and the infantile delusions which spur him.Author: TCh
User reviews of this film
-
- william said...
- Posted on Nov 13 2009 23:14 CHOPPER IS AMAZINGLY FULL OF RAGE AND COMES ONLY SECOND TO TONY MONTANA :SCARFACE:
- Report as inappropriate
-
- Kev said...
- Posted on Mar 28 2009 19:37 So KEVISH, only basics love this film
- Report as inappropriate
Cast & crew
Director: Andrew Dominik
Producer: Michele Bennett
Cast: Eric Bana, Simon Lyndon, David Field, Dan Wyllie, Bill Young, Vince Colosimo, Kenny Graham, Kate Beahan full cast
Duration: 94 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Review: Penélope Cruz more raunchy than ever in 'Nine'
Dave Calhoun reports on Rob Marshall's Oscar-touted musical with Daniel Day-Lewis playing a troubled director
Time Out's 101 Films of the Decade
Ten years, thousands of movies and millions of dollars in international box office, and it all boils down to this
Jim Jarmusch on 'The Limits of Control'
Jim Jarmusch has followed ‘Broken Flowers’ with an esoteric crime mystery. Dave Calhoun speaks to him from his New York office
Richard Linklater on 'Me and Orson Welles'
Dave Calhoun meets the 49-year-old, Houston-born filmmaker Richard Linklater to discuss his new comedy
Our verdict on Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson ends a triumphant decade with a sentimental misfire with this lush Alice Sebold adaptation
On the set of Ken Loach's 'Route Irish'
Dave Calhoun meets Ken Loach on the set of his forthcoming Iraq war movie
Is 'Paranormal Activity' the new 'Blair Witch'?
How does a film go from DIY experiment to box-office smash? 'Paranormal Activity' director Oren Peli explains
A gateway to all things 'New Moon'
In anticipation of 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon', Time Out is offering the chance to pick up a limited edition pack with three exclusive magazines and a free poster.
The films that deserve a TV spin-off
With Roland Emmerich suggesting he'd like to make a '2012' TV spin-off, we propose some more movie-to-TV serialisations
Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam
In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations
What do you think?
Post your review now