So what's the lesson here? If you gun down a famous person you'll get your own movie someday? Nice.

Jared Leto plays Mark David Chapman...apparently gaining weight for a role is good enough these days to qualify to get lots of people to consider your performance meaningful. Leto is remarkably bland in this role. He shares screen time with Lindsay Lohan and she's the credible one.

Mark David Chapman was a screwed up loser. John Lennon was a bitter, self-serving Marxist. Witnessing the interaction between the two holds no deep meaning, no secrets. Its just two unpleasant people caught in a deadly moment. The film ends up being nothing more than having the audience wait around listening to Chapman rant until Lennon pops up like some sacrificial lamb in stupid glasses.

As a film, writer/director J.P. Schaefer has created a very dull, toneless work. Leto's Chapman speaks plenty but reveals very little. Lohan's role as Jude, a young woman who wastes her youth hanging around waiting to see the Communist musician, provides her a chance to try her hand at acting. She gets her lines right, at least I think, so she should be commended.

Some people may be interested in seeing this film thinking that it may have some depth or contain a remarkable performance. If this is you, I advise you to go on to some other film unless you love yawning. Move along, there is nothing to see here.


He's kinda got a tubby Jim Jones look going, doesn't he?


Related Reviews:
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Control (2007)
The Caveman's Valentine (2001)


Other Critic’s Reviews:
eFilmCritic
Eric D. Snider

Labels: film, Jared Leto, John Lennon, Lindsay Lohan, movie review