Stars:
*** 1/2
Rating: R for graphic
language, nudity and sexuality
Run
Time: 1
hour, 35 minutes
Sam
Rockwell proves again (and again and again) that he’s a talent to be reckoned
with.
What’s not
to love about a twisted, sex-addicted historical interpreter (i.e. tour guide)
with relentless wit and a big old damaged heart? That’s Victor Mancini
(Rockwell), who spreads himself razor thin between gigs at the colonial theme
park, weekly addiction workshops and tending to his delusional, sociopathic
mother Ida (Anjelica Houston).
Victor’s
motivations may be skewed – banging mom’s doc (Kelly MacDonald) to keep her in
his corner and keeping mom alive to establish the identity of his real dad –
but he’s nothing if not resourceful.
Victor’s trying,
really trying, to kick that nasty nookie crave; struggling through a pre-established
12-Step program and hung up somewhere around Step Three because of sticky
issues with intimacy and trust. He flogs himself for faux-choking in public to
garner sympathy from Good Samaritans but its one day and one step at a time.
Raunchy sex
and nudity accompany a witty, pattering voice over that utilizes dialogue from
Chuck Palahniuk’s controversial novel of the same name. As Victor relentlessly endeavors
to “reclaim my booth at the café of diminished expectations” he continues to
seek approval a la the high-speed chase. Whoa partner.
Actor/director
Clark Gregg gives “Choke” an indie slant far less splashy than David Fincher’s
adaptation of Palahniuk’s “Fight Club”, establishing Victor as the ultimate
anti-hero whose confrontation with reality is just this side of loco.
When it’s
all said and done in actor/director Clark Gregg’s inimitable style – dark,
smart and quirky – Victor emerges a weirdly benevolent protagonist you won’t
soon forget.