Chaos – DVD Review

Film, Reviews

chaos
Available at Amazon.com

Quentin Conners is like any other detective that police precincts around the world have seen before. There is always that one cop who lives by his own rules, does whatever he needs to no matter how it happens, and he shoots first and asks questions later. Detective Conners is currently on suspension at the film’s open because his temper just wasn’t able to be kept under control. Luckily, Conners was only suspended and not fired like another cop involved. Little does he know though that there are a few people looking to keep him under close watch soon and make sure that he does as he is supposed to.

Lorenz is a straight and simple bank robber that is looking to make a quick buck like all common criminals. One day he goes about his business and decides to take control over a city bank, but has an unusual demand. Lorenz wants Detective Conners reinstated. The criminal not only looks to get away with a lot of cash on this day, but he also has some dangerous plans for the “good” detective.

Conners is reinstated and given his shield back by his captain, but one condition has been placed on him. Conners now has a partner in the form of young rookie Shane Dekker. Dekker not only has the orders to keep an eye on Conners and make sure he goes by the book, but to also learn a few things from one of the best. It isn’t long before the tables are turned on Dekker and his quest for street cop knowledge takes precedence over his orders to keep his new partner in line. Things are quite hectic, but something just doesn’t seem quite right either and it is up to Detectives Conners and Dekker to make sure Lorenz doesn’t get away with his plans.

Chaos is one of the most appropriate titles for a film if I’ve ever heard one before. If you’re going to watch this film, then I sincerely suggest you pay close attention because it is more then a shoot ’em up action film with mindless violence. Oh, don’t stop reading yet; it has a fair share of violence and hostility, but it’s going to make you think too. In today’s Hollywood, where it’s almost a prerequisite to producing something that has some sort of plot twist, Chaos continues that trend and then some.

The film does entertain I’ll give it that. It kept me interested and kept me intrigued even though everything seemed so incredibly familiar to me. Sometime last year I viewed a film called Inside Man with Denzel Washington and Clive Owen. The similarities between that film and Chaos aren’t exactly identical, but there are a lot of them. Herein lies the problem of wondering if one necessarily got ideas from another. Inside Man was released in 2006 in theatres. Chaos is said to have been released in the United States in April of 2007. I don’t remember it ever hitting theatres, but it was filmed in 2005. So for the sake of argument here, let’s just say both filmmakers had the same ideas around the same time.

This isn’t really a bad way to spend a weekend afternoon because the actors are top notch for this type of film, and the plot is really quite good. What makes Chaos so different though from other good guy/bad guy cop films is Wesley Snipes. I’ve seen Passenger 57, Murder At 1600, and Drop Zone. It was nice to see Snipes go back to being on the opposite side of the law like he was in Demolition Man. And this time he wasn’t playing a crazed lunatic, but a conniving and calculating criminal. Even though you don’t see Snipes in many roles anymore; fans of his work such as myself will enjoy the reversal of directions he takes playing Lorenz.

The film is shown in 2.34:1 Anamorphic Widescreen format and looks really good. There is a nice balance of lighter scenes and then some of the darker shots, and at no time was there ever a problem of being able to see what was going on. The picture is sharp and crisp with some really nice camerawork.

The film is heard in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and it really does sound quite awesome. All the music is loud and really makes the most of the better action sequences. Any and all dialogue can be heard clearly at all times so there are no problems to be found there.

Audio Commentary – Director Tony Giglio is going at the commentary alone here. Giglio actually keeps a constant banter going on with himself throughout the duration of the film. He does something good in not just talking about what is happening on screen, but gives a lot of background to each scene. He goes in depth right at the beginning about what the inspiration for the film is, and talks about how enjoyable shooting certain scenes was.

The Order Behind Chaos – This is sorta what you’d call the “making of” featurette. It lasts twelve and a half minutes and is basically the actors sitting down and talking about the film while different scenes show from time to time. Snipes discusses his character and plot twists, Statham talks about his character, and so on.

TrailersWAR, Crank, Shattered, and The Condemned

Chaos is a film that action fans and plot twist fans will not want to miss. It isn’t the best film in the world by a long shot, and I would have to go as far as to say that Inside Man is better. But still, Chaos delivers some exciting action and very though-provoking twists that are going to have you second guessing your own decisions the whole time. The DVD is rather bare bones though in that all the special features provide is a commentary and short “making of” featurette. It’s not that they aren’t enjoyable, but they aren’t much really. Go for a rental one night or on some weekend when you just aren’t sure what to watch on the tube. Action fans really need to take this into consideration because it may not be the most ideal confrontation, but you have the chance to see Wesley Snipes versus Jason Statham. Past meets present in the way of kickboxing, ass-kicking, cool line speaking action stars.

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Lionsgate presents Chaos. Directed by: Tony Giglio. Starring: Jason Statham, Ryan Phillippe, Wesley Snipes. Running time: 106 minutes. Rating: R. Released on DVD: February 19, 2008. Available at Amazon.com