The Chumscrubber
Picture: B-
Sound: B- Extras: C+ Film: C+
In yet another visit to that horrible place to live called
the suburbs, especially if they are in Los Angeles, Arle Posin’s The
Chumscrubber (2005) offers Jamie Bell (Billy Elliot, the latest King
Kong) in the same loner/drug user/drug dealer role Brad Renfro has done far
too often. Bell is very good here
nonetheless whose plastic, drugged-up life (and those around him) is shaken
when his one best friend turns up dead.
This sets a kidnapping in motion as his buddy seems to
have something very valuable (for which he cannot figure out the what) that a
few others want. The same group of
idiots also picks on and torments him, though the young lady of the group keeps
trying to be “pretend friends” with him.
The problem is that we have seen this kind of thing too much, especially
after American Beauty, but the cast also offers Glenn Close, Rita
Wilson, Ralph Finnes in an oddball role, William Fichtner, Lauren Holly,
Allison Janney (for that American Beauty feel?), Carrie-Anne Moss,
Justin Chadwin and Rory Culkin. Too bad
it does not give them a chance to do more on screen. The title refers to a videogame character who was beheaded, but
still roams the earth carrying the unattached head and battles everyone
else. Metaphor is intended, but like
much of this film, does not work.
The anamorphically enhanced 2.35 X 1 image was shot by
cinematographer Lawrence Sher, which has the usual muted colors too typical of
one of these “suburb-as-bad” (or is that hell?) pictures. The Dolby Digital 5.1 mix is a bit better
than the 2.0 mix, but not by much and this is dialogue based for the most
part. James Horner’s score is subtle
and helps the film be less familiar than its narrative is, but can only help so
much. Extras include previews for other
DreamWorks DVDs, a making of featurette, deleted/extended scenes that would not
have helped if they stayed in and an audio commentary by writer Zac Stanford
and Posin.
- Nicholas Sheffo
