BY CHRISTOPHER STAMM
GUEST movie REVIEWER
Chaos Walking (in theatres now)
Rated PG-13
Imagine being trapped on a planet inhabited only by men, and every thought you have is seen and heard by everyone around you. There you have the main plot point of Chaos Walking.
Todd (played by the always excellent Tom Holland of Spiderman fame) is an orphan being raised by two farmers, who longs for a better life and acceptance. He craves the attention of his town’s Mayor Prentiss (Mads Mikkelson from Doctor Strange) and is bullied by the Mayor’s inept son. While working on the farm, he sees a thief run from the barn and gives chase, and it turns out it is a creature Todd has never seen, a woman (Daisy Ridley, Star Wars The Force Awakens), and from there the film is off to the races.
Based on the Novel “The Knife of Never Letting Go” by Patrick Ness, Chaos Walking is an entertaining film that does well at building its mythology, but at times seems a bit heavy handed in its depiction of the villains of the story, particularly the town’s no-longer-needed pastor, Rev. Aaron. (Nobody goes to church anymore, but no reason is ever given for that bit of plot line.) Rev. Aaron is the personification of evil, rooted in misguided interpretation of religion, as he growls his way through horrible deeds while quoting scripture.
At its core, Chaos Walking is the standard hero’s journey story we have all seen and read a hundred times; no new ground is broken here, but nonetheless, it is entertaining in spite of itself.
Rated three out of five stars because there was one major plot point in Chaos Walking that was left hanging in the wind with no resolution, which ultimately cost the film a star.