To this viewer the most revealing thing learned from the movie is Chapman's delusion about somehow righting Lennon's infamous comment when he was addressing the popularity of The Beatles. He was struggling between the kindness of John and his own inner demons to which you wonder if his delusional state hadn't been so fragile, perhaps, he may have just left without shooting Lennon. In the end he was just too filled with a darkness. It begs the question is some mental illness the spawn of true evil creation or something else entirely? In the end that's a question that can't be definitively answered. The only thing that is sure is this is the intersection of very misguided person and an artist who cast a long shadow. A dark turn ensued.
This is not an entertaining film, it's a hard ride. While it focuses on Chapman's evil dead, it does have some added value of humanizing him as a truly boxed-in and conflicted person - who needed treatment and help. Leto channels all this quite effectively. It's so good it's almost like he's not an actor so much as he's Chapman. Lindsay Lohan gives a totally honest performance as a girl who befriended Chapman and flees sensing danger. The guy playing the photographer is true to the N.J. good guy who tolerates little nonsense. He's lucky he didn't get shot because, while forgiving, he totally ticked off Chapman. In fact all the bit parts are expertly woven in adding sinister layers of Chapman's interactions which almost always veered to something unsettling and strange. Finally, the cinematography captures the somewhat isolating coldness of the NYC winter as the backdrop to this terrible moment in time. For a dour and down movie I'd say this rings true with little bombast Just telling it straight like a documentary, but ultimately more personal and haunting. All in all, recommended.
This is not an entertaining film, it's a hard ride. While it focuses on Chapman's evil dead, it does have some added value of humanizing him as a truly boxed-in and conflicted person - who needed treatment and help. Leto channels all this quite effectively. It's so good it's almost like he's not an actor so much as he's Chapman. Lindsay Lohan gives a totally honest performance as a girl who befriended Chapman and flees sensing danger. The guy playing the photographer is true to the N.J. good guy who tolerates little nonsense. He's lucky he didn't get shot because, while forgiving, he totally ticked off Chapman. In fact all the bit parts are expertly woven in adding sinister layers of Chapman's interactions which almost always veered to something unsettling and strange. Finally, the cinematography captures the somewhat isolating coldness of the NYC winter as the backdrop to this terrible moment in time. For a dour and down movie I'd say this rings true with little bombast Just telling it straight like a documentary, but ultimately more personal and haunting. All in all, recommended.