Chaos [Blu-ray]
(Lionsgate)

They say to never judge a book by its cover, and that phrase should apply to films as well. 2005’s Chaos at first glance seemed promising; an action-packed thriller with a cast including Jason Statham, Ryan Phillippe and Wesley Snipes…what could go wrong? Well, apparently when there’s no true plot or storyline in a movie, that’s where the chaos comes in.

Initially the film came across as a typical bank heist thriller, filled with guns, violence, cops, and of course, the bad guys. Yet as the film progressed, I felt more and more deceived of the film’s unpredictability; that is, I knew the ending 25 minutes before it happened.

I think the biggest gap in Tony Giglio’s film was its lack of originality. (Warning: Spoiler Ahead!)

While audiences may not have initially expected Snipes’ character to be Connors’ ex partner, it too easily explained why we never once saw or heard of Connors’ police partner until the film’s conclusion (although technically we saw him in scene one, as a bank robber.)

In addition, the film’s title was supposed to link the film’s plot to the “chaos theory,” and while you can certainly argue that a hostage situation filled with missing money and mysterious murders is indeed chaotic, in no way does that relate to the theory of chaos (aka, the butterfly effect.)

While the supporting actors were excellent, I felt Phillippe, Snipes and Statham were reading lines off of a dull script they wished they’d trashed in the first place.

Besides these downfalls, however, I must give the film credit for its excellent cinematography. The entire picture was high-quality, including the explosions (this should be essential in any action film.) Watching this on Blu-Ray simply enhanced these qualities, and for this reason alone, the film was almost-tolerable.

Lucy Tonic