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the CONSEQUENCE of chaos:

chaos walking

​ ​movie review
​
​by carson timar

​
Picture


Chaos Walking (2021)

           Coming out finally after years of delays and reshoots, Doug Liman's Chaos Walking adapts the first novel in Patrick Ness's ever-popular Chaos Walking book series transporting audiences to a mysterious sci-fi world where there not only are no women but inner thoughts can be both seen and heard by everyone around which has become known as "the noise". Todd Hewitt (Tom Holland) lives on this world but his life is forever changed as he encounters a woman named Viola Eade (Daisy Ridley) who had crash-landed on the world and is being hunted.

From the very start of the film, it is clear that Chaos Walking is an ambitious attack on the senses in more ways than one. Specifically in the film's portrayal of the mysterious "noise" that projects one's inner thoughts to the outside world both audibly and visually, the film finds an incredibly clunky and chaotic voice that often has multiple voices overlapping each other growing more and more chaotic almost as if one was watching a Safdie brother's project. Where the experience is not always the most well crafted or clear, the gimmick at the very least does feel fresh and to some degree interesting. When Todd has to keep a secret or wants to keep some thought private, he has to use a variety of tactics to mask his own thoughts which are clever and reasonable. Where the actual logistics and rules of this "noise" are never quite developed enough, seeing various characters adapt to this and use it to their advantage in a variety of ways does keep the audience engaged and takes this beyond just a cheap gimmick. 

The execution of this concept is not the only thing that feels messy within the film however, the aesthetic of the world ranges greatly from sci-fi epic to grounded western never fully finding a well-developed visual style which at times can take the audience out of the world. The film's screenplay from Christopher D. Ford and Patrick Ness is also quite a mixed bag. Where there are moments where the characters do work, the dialogue largely comes off as unnatural and the film never quite finds its footing. The film never hooks the audience into its story to truly care about these characters so the deeper emotional moments connect as they should and largely the plot felt passable at best. At no point will the film pull audiences to the edge of their seat truly anticipating what is to come next and at best feels like a rather average yet completely respectable sci-fi action-adventure.

If there is one piece of the film to really elevate the material at times it is the acting. Much more than the recent Cherry, Chaos Walking is a rather strong showcase for the talents that Tom Holland possesses as he has to take a much more complex and gritty approach to the film than he has with the Spider-Man films for example. Where nothing he does is truly standout, he does show that there are more sides to him than the likable kid from New York and feels like a rather wise casting decision. In a much more supporting role, Mads Mikkelsen predictably steals the show with a performance that feels near effortless for the talented actor. Playing the Mayor of the town who leads the hunt against Viola, Mikkelsen is both understanding and threatening never falling too far into villain cliches and keeping a unique quietness throughout the entire feature. If there is one actor to feel a bit disappointing it would be Daisy Ridley who feels rather bland in her portrayal of Viola. She is easily the least personable out of the main cast and always felt more like she was going through the motions rather than really giving the effort of her other co-stars. 

The other shining highlight is simply the directing ability of Doug Liman. Liman has proven time and time again that he is possibly one of the most impressive action directors working today and his talents in Chaos Walking are clear. Where the film is full of bland dialogue scenes and can feel incredibly messy, whenever it becomes focused within an action scene Liman takes control and is able to deliver captivating and smart scenes that where far from revolutionary, do feel talented nonetheless. 

Chaos Walking might be far from a great film but for the teen sci-fi genre, the film feels at least passable. Where the story and characters are nearly instantly forgettable, the film never felt painful to sit through and the action was enough to at least give the film something of worth. Where none of the gimmicks throughout the feature feel super captivating or awe-inspiring, they also never felt like super big distractions and overall, the film feels inoffensive and respectable if nothing else.

Overall Grade-C

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