Doug Liman's "CHAOS WALKING"

Movie review by Dennis D. McDonald

Watching CHAOS WALKING (on Hulu) reminded me of a sumptuously produced Heinlein “juvenile” novel. We have a young hero tottering on the edge of adulthood. He’s eager to Do Something More With His Life, a theme to be popularized later by Luke Skywalker.

That reference to Heinlein is not meant as a putdown. I cut my sci-fi teeth on Heinlein novels and still have fond memories of The Rolling Stones, Have Spacesuit Will Travel, and Citizen of the Galaxy. In fact, this movie is based on an YA novel trilogy (by Patrick Ness). That shows by some of the punches that are pulled both dramatically and dialog-wise.

Nevertheless we have a very well constructed action-adventure with some very interesting concepts at the core including telepathy and a female-free planetary colony that has lost touch with its Earth roots and now depends on a minimum of technology to scratch out an existence.

What really saves the movie is the camaraderie that develops between the two leads played by Tom Holland (as the young and impulsive guy) and Daisy Ridley (as the calm and collected astronaut whose ship has crashed and who is now being chased for reasons that will eventually be made clear). They are on screen constantly and, as movies like this are wont to do, they spend much of the movie on a dangerous cross country quest to find a more hospitable society. Adventure and well-produced action — including horseback and motorcycle chases — accompany them all along the way.

A little research shows that this film has been much delayed and that much reshooting was required by the studio. It shows. There are plot loose ends and the very final scene between Holland and Ridley was clearly shot at the beginning — they both look noticeably younger. Still, it’s an enjoyable and very attractive film populated by interesting characters and well done action sequences. Enjoyable.

Review copyright (c) 2021 by Dennis D. McDonald