What Would Jesus NOT Do?

Choke
2008, dir. Clark Gregg. 89 minutes.
Starring Sam Rockwell, Anjelica Huston, Kelly MacDonald, Bijou Phillips, and Clark Gregg.

Choke is the story of Victor, played by Sam Rockwell, who dropped out of medical school to support his Alzheimer's-afflicted mother (Anjelica Huston), but frequently abandoned him throughout his childhood and would then kidnap him from his various foster homes. Victor is also a sex addicted, and we see various quick flashes of all the women he's had sex with as he sees them again in the hallways of his mother's hospital, or at the Colonial Recreation Park where we works. To pay for his mother's medical care, Victor pretends to choke on food at restaurants, after which the people who rescue him feel obliged to send him money from time to time. If I ever give you the Heimlich maneuver, don't expect a cheque afterwards. In fact, you should be writing me a cheque.

I have to confess that I have not read Choke, the novel by Chuck Palahniuk, but I have read some of his other novels, such as Survivor and Fight Club. So after watching the film version of Choke, I have the distinct impression that what I saw on screen was not a completely accurate adaptation of Palahniuk's novel. To give you an idea of what I mean, imagine if David Fincher had changed the end of Fight Club (the movie) so that Edward Norton realized he was Tyler Durden, and this gave him a new lease on life which allowed him to reacquire all his success, get his job and old apartment back, and become a well-adjusted member of society. I'm thinking that film would not have had the same impact. But that is how I'm guessing actor Clark Gregg, in his screenwriting and directorial debut, has changed Choke. It ends with a message, yet as Gary said to me after the movie was over, "I'm not sure it's supposed to."

That all of course leads to a few questions of film reviewing in general. One is, can you (or should you) review a film based on how it's different than its origin novel, especially if you haven't read that novel? I want to say no, whether you read the novel or not, because deep down I feel a film should be critiqued on its own merits, and not on any external sources. That said, this lingering feeling that Choke was missing something will not go away. And since I have some experience reading novels by Mr. Palahniuk, I can't help but thinking that there is far more to the novel than there is to the film. Is that fair to the film? Maybe not. But on a more selfish note, if there is stuff missing, is the film fair to the audience?

Leaving that feeling aside for a minute, I will say that despite its patchiness, Choke is a very funny, sometimes off-puttingly so, film. I laughed out loud throughout the film, and never got bored of it (though no 89 minute film should ever bore you). Sam Rockwell is always better when he plays weird or off-balanced characters, and he's no different here. Anjelica Huston in particular impressed me, and I thought that this was some of her best work in years. In the end though, I think the acting elevated a weak script and even weaker direction by Clark Gregg, who gave it a good try, but should probably stick with acting, where I've always liked his work.

2 1/2 stars out of 5

Saw Choke Tuesday night at the Mayfair (where the heat was working better) with Gary, Kris and Ryan. Had some popcorn and a can of diet Pepsi.