Chapter 27 (2006)
Average Rating: 3.8/10
Reviews Counted: 49
Fresh: 9 | Rotten: 40
Despite Jared Leto's committed performance, Chapter 27 fails to penetrate to mind of Mark David Chapman, John Lennon's killer.
Average Rating: 4.5/10
Critic Reviews: 20
Fresh: 8 | Rotten: 12
Despite Jared Leto's committed performance, Chapter 27 fails to penetrate to mind of Mark David Chapman, John Lennon's killer.
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Average Rating: 3/5
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Movie Info
First-time writer/director J.P. Schaefer takes the reins for this haunting look at the mental collapse of Mark David Chapman in the days leading up to the murder of legendary musician John Lennon. Jared Leto stars as the man whose awe of Lennon and unrelenting drive to achieve infamy pushed him to pull the trigger on the former Beatle, and Lindsay Lohan stars as the devoted Lennon fan who befriended the killer on that fateful New York weekend. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Cast
-
Jared Leto
Mark David Chapman -
Lindsay Lohan
Jude -
Judah Friedlander
Paul -
Ursula Abbott
Jeri -
Brian O'Neill
Patrick -
Mark Lindsay Chapman
John Lennon -
George Bryant II
Limo Driver -
Kevin Cannon
Precision Driver / Stre... -
Melissa Demyan
Lennon Groupie -
Jeane Fournier
European Woman -
Molly Griffith
Covergirl / Centerfold -
Matthew Humphreys
Frederic Seaman -
Redman Maxfield
Maitre D' -
Lauren Milberger
Gilda Radner -
Matthew Mardozzi
Little Kid -
Adam Scarimbolo
Clerk Riley -
Michael Sirow
Joseph Many -
Jeff Skowron
Waiter -
Victor Verhaeghe
Spiro -
Eric Wolfe
Lennon Band Member -
Dennis Funny
Lennon Groupie -
David Kneeream
Pedestrian -
Lisa Marie Palmieri
Waitress -
Joey Sontz
Lennon Band Manager -
Julie McNiven
photo double Lindsay Lo...
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All Critics (49) | Top Critics (20) | Fresh (9) | Rotten (41) | DVD (6)
his drama, about the three days leading up to the murder, never overcomes its inherent ghoulishness, largely because Chapman, like so many mentally ill people, is a huge bore.
Top CriticChapter 27 just makes you feel bad for, and about, everybody -- including the wretched souls who made the thing.
By the end of this modest, strange venture, Leto made me believe it was worth being forced to hang out on the sidewalk with this man, if only to get a creeping sense of what that might've been like.
The film is impressively mounted and Schaefer has made a directorial debut of distinction, but it is an uncomfortable ride from the opening scenes of Chapman arriving in New York to the inevitable, inexorable final scene.
Chapter 27 is far from flawless, but Leto disappears inside this angry, mouth-breathing psycho geek with a conviction that had me hanging on his every delusion.
There are cheesy special effects and even cheesier gags, and the schmaltz eventually piles on neck-deep.
Mature, slow-moving Lennon assassination drama.
Despite all his obvious effort and admirable Stanislavskian immersion, his Chapman is pure cinematic affectation, a compendium of great movie madmen of the past.
The eternal question of why Chapman shot Lennon is not answered. And that's probably because there IS no real reason.
Imagine hanging out in the head of a psychotic, indefensible loser for 80 minutes and getting nothing worth remembering or admiring in return.
Despite the subject, the script is flat. Despite using the real locations, the production looked cheesy. Finally, the decision to strip Mark David Chapman (John Lennon's killer) of any humanity makes the narrative decidedly one note.
Stop the madness and please avoid this film at all costs.
The film manages to be entirely about Mark David Chapman without saying a single insightful thing about him.
If [director] Schaefer's intent was to provide some sort of insight into Chapman's character, some hint of explanation for this senseless tragedy, he fails, probably because there's none to be found beyond one lonely guy's addled brain chemistry.
It's a train-wreck turn in a dreary movie about a self-pitying loser responsible for murdering a beloved pop icon.
[Leto's] mumbled voiceover may perfectly reflect Chapman's inner world. [But] who wants to enter that world? Neither Chapman ... nor his inner life is very interesting ... I was looking at my watch before the first third of the movie had passed.
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Latest News on Chapter 27
January 26, 2007:
Sundance Review: "Starting Out in the Evening" Is Funny; "Chapter 27" Needs to Lose Weight; "Once" Has CharmsSenh caught the screenings of three films making their stop at the Sundance Film Festival this week:...
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