Customer Reviews

Chaos [VHS]

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Chaos (Hideo Nakata, 2001)

Hideo Nakata, by far best-known in the west for the ultra-smash hit film Ringu, departs from the horror films that have paid his way for the past few years and delves into the straight mystery. It probably helps that the same production team who produced one of Japan's finest mystery films, Cure, was in on this one as well.

Komiyama (Ken Mitsuishi of Malick's The Thin Red Line), an executive at a generic company, has lunch with his wife Saori (Miki Nakatani, seen recently in Ringu). She disappears while he's paying the bill. He goes back to the office to a telephone call from someone (Masato Hagiwara, the Hannibal Lecter-like villain of Cure) saying his wife has been kidnapped. To say things go wrong from that point on, both for Komiyana and the kidnapper, would be an understatement.

While the trailer reveals far more than this, best to leave it there. The plot spoilers start less than fifteen minutes into the movie, and you're best off going into it with no preparation at all.

As the DVD has no dubbing capability-you watch the film with subtitles or you don't watch it at all-Chaos is a film that will make the American viewer pay very, very close attention. The movie shifts back and forth in time, revealing a piece of the puzzle here, a piece there. The viewer will have to keep all his attention focused on this movie in order for it to make any semblance of sense, and even with all the pieces in place, it's going to take the viewer quite a while to figure out what to make of the movie's ending.

As with all of Nakata's movies, the lighting and cinematography are brilliant. Everything is perfectly staged to create a feeling of complete claustrophobia, accented by a number of scenes that take place at Asagaya Station; the limitless sky in those scenes only makes the closing-in feeling that much more real. Twist after twist, turn after turn leaves the viewer almost breathless. And still, the pace is perfectly done; nothing ever feels rushed.

While this is a mystery and not a horror film, it should be noted that Nakata's not going to let a whole film go by without at least one triumph of the make-up department. If you're the squeamish type, be warned, but don't let that turn you from this complex, wonderful movie. ****

Great movie about love and deception, but confusing the first time around. The story is not told in chronological order, and to add to the confusion there are the similar-sounding names of two characters, (Saori and Satomi) names that are unfamiliar to Western ears and some characters who were only on screen for a short while. I won't give away the plot, but when you finally realize what's going on, it's brilliant! I had to watch Chaos more than once to get the full picture, buy it was well worth it!

a sexy, mind bending thriller-a film that starts out pretty straight forward and then throws you 360 degrees.

Fairly tame as to the sex and violence compared to American thrillers, but that, IMO, makes the film more enjoyable-you need to use your brain instead of being clubbed in the head with gratatious imagery. You'll need to pay attention to this one if you hope to keep up.

A surprising ending but one appropriate for a Japanese film-known for their moralizing undertones. A enjoyable, thought provoking movie. 4 stars.

There are many sly tricks played on the viewer during the unfolding of the plot in Chaos. Like The Usual Suspects, Best Laid Plans, Memento, Identity and even Wild Things, there's a such a sheer delight in unravelling the tangled web of narrative twists and turns that you never (quite) feel cheated.

Nakata's better known for his horror genre entries (the first two Ring films and Dark Water), yet genre definitions hardly seem important, as he brings to bear the same technique to imbue this neo-noirish film with tension and intrigue. There are scenes which pull the rug from beneath your feet and slap you for feeling smug for trying to second guess what's going on. Not to say that some of the twists aren't obvious, but there enough surprises to keep you doing mental gymnastics to keep up.

A fractured, yet coherent, narrative just short of Nic Roeg's earlier kaleidoscopic filmic puzzles, Chaos leaps about through time to dissect what appears to be a simple case of kidnapping. However, nothing, and no-one, are quite what they seem.

Life may seem chaotic but there's an order to everything - which in itself creates chaos (another ring?). This is in essence the nub of the films' thesis, and a neat correlation to chaos theory - the character's actions throw their worlds in to disorder, but tracing the path through events you can see the structure that forms the chaos and in the end order is restored.

The ending is perhaps a little too poetic for it's own good - but mainly that's because you want there to be more twists and for the story to continue - in itself a kind of underhand compliment.

Chaos is in some ways more satisfying than the Ring films and is much tighter and powerfully executed than most Hollywood films.

Oh and whoever it is in Hollywood who keeps deciding to remake Hideo Nakata's films (Ring already, Dark Water and now Chaos) - please stop. Donate the production money to charity of something and just give the (excellent) originals more press. Anyone who can't follow subtitles doesn't deserve to watch.

Like Ring catch the original and Boycott the upcoming remake.

This film starts out with tight scenes that move in and out of time involving the viewer to stay focused or miss out on the plot. It has a real hitchcock style to it which makes it intelligent and intriguing. I wish there was a little more laid out in the beginning so i could understand the ending better. I don't want to spoil this review with what happens, it just doesn't add up. Maybe thats what the director wants, it doesn't follow the logical order and would be considered chaotic. The movie is about a staged kidnapping with an underlying plot as to why it needs to be staged. The acting is very good by the girl, she is somewhat mesmerizing in her actions. I could see there was going to be sparks flying between her and her partner in crime, who was really being used unknowingly at first. She is the one who stages the fake kidnapping in order to extract money from her husband, or is it her husband? The movie is for those who like a mystery and have a questioning mind, but keep in mind the ending doesn't fit with the tightness of the overall script, it feels like it needed to blend with more of a arthouse style script, not a hitchcock style. Worth Viewing.
Lisa Nary

If you have a strong, perhaps hyperactive, imagination it would be hard to recommend this film too highly, for those of you who like your eggs done over easy, this one prolly won't work for you. Reviews below will tell you more or less what to expect of the movie and I would like to add the following because this is the one element that has perhaps not been commented upon. To wit, what makes this film so beautiful is that the director has staged the film in such a way that at any one of the many significant plot twists, the viewer realizes that this film could launch into an entirely different direction. In other words the hero can become villain, the dupe the mastermind, the victim the victimizer. In fact, one finds one hoping and guessing that this is precisely what will occur at each of the major turning points in this little beauty (and there are many). Place a healthy (or unhealthy, depending upon one's perspective) gauze of menacing eroticism over the whole and one has an utterly gripping labyrinthine cinematic experience.

Hideo Nakata, who was behind Ringu (1998), has created an interesting and suspenseful story in Chaos as the beautiful wife of a wealthy businessman vanishes. It appears that she is kidnapped, and she is brutally handled by the kidnapper. As the story reveals itself, it develops into a thriller in the spirit of Hitchcock, yet the film has its own character. Throughout Chaos there are several twists and turns which the audience has to squirm through in order to reach the films conclusion. In the end, Chaos is a pretty good criminal drama that offers a fine cinematic experience.

"Chaos," is a very apt title for this Japanese murder mystery by director Hideo Nakata. I will be the first to admit that the film is very difficult to understand on the first viewing; therefore repeated viewings are recommended. And needed too! But I really like this film. It is a very good murder mystery from Japan, and the acting is very good. This is one of those type of reviews where telling too much will ruin the film for you, therefore, I will leave out much of the film: as to divulge too much will destroy this film for you.

When I first viewed this film, it was as a rental from my local Asian video rental store. After viewing it however; I decided to purchase the film, as I knew it was going to take a few go arounds to get this murder mystery right. Also, there are still some ambiguous parts of the film I have not fully comprehended. But I am getting there. Further, this is not a very transparent film. Therefore, do not be frustrated if you do not get the film on first viewings. You will on subsequent ones, and they are well worth the repeat viewings. I do take this DVD out every once in awhile since I first purchased it several years ago to try and figure out some of the ambiguities. Yeah, it's that type of film.

The films narrative begins with a husband and wife having lunch at a very fine restaurant. As the husband pays for the lunch, the wife leaves ahead of him. As he leaves, his wife is not in sight. Believing she went on ahead [no spoilers], the husband, who is a bank executive named Komiyama (Ken Mitsuishi), goes back to work. However, his wife, whose name is Saori (Miki Nakatani), has actually been kidnapped. Or has she? Meanwhile Komiyama receives a phone call from the kidnapper demanding 30 million yen. This is a film that would have made Alfred Hitchcock very happy. And I believe that the film is a sort of homage to Hitchcock by Nakata, and that Nakata was heavily influenced by him. At least as far as this thriller is concerned.

As the film proceeds further along, you will find that the timeline seems to be confusing. I believe this was deliberate by Nakata to keep the audience guessing as to what is really going on. Remember, you can always review the film again. What's important to remember, however, is that nothing is as it seems. When you think you know what's going on, you really don't. Nakata does not let the viewer in on this. The film is going on in the present as well as the past. Therefore, you may see characters out of their timeline. This is intentional. I believe this is the number one factor why the film is confusing at times. And frustrating as well. However, I do believe it is well worth the purchase. At least rent the film to see if it appeals to you. I happen to think the film is very, very good. But rent it first. Recommended.

I suppose the plot would have been more of a mind-bender if I hadn't seen Alfred Hitchcock's VERTIGO. As it was, many of the plot twists were the same, and the character construction just couldn't live up to Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly. I'm always on the lookout for another director with the ability to present complex human emotions and incredible character depth while weaving plot twists that make you dizzy. I just don't think I've found it with this movie.