CHAOS - DVD review

Feminism may be a dirty word to some but for French director, writer and actress Coline Serreau, it is a badge of honor and she wears it proudly. Known stateside more for the remake of her 1985 French movie, "3 Hommes et un Couffin" or "3 men and a Cradle"--titled "3 Men and a Baby" in the U.S.--and the American sequel, "3 Men and a Little Lady", Serreau has another non-sugar-coated side that she translates into dark and funny stories that are always clearly more representative of the world that we live in than most of us would freely admit to. Films like "Pourquoi Pas", "La Crise" and "Romuald et Juliette" explore our prejudices and our human frailty when confronted with social issues like racism, sexism, egotism, class warfare and politics. Serreau's immense talent for ironic comedy comes into play when she is able to disguise these critical subjects with a fast-paced and humorous storyline that will leave you reeling like a hit and run accident.

"Chaos" sticks to more or less the same formula and is no different from Serreau's other French movies. Wickedly ironic and funny, "Chaos" is classic Serreau. The film opens with Parisians Hélène (Catherine Frot) and Paul (Vincent Lindon), a successful and well-to-do couple, who are rushing to a dinner party. On their way, they witness the brutal beating of a woman on the streets of Paris. Despite Hélène's protests, Paul, self-important and seemingly without a caring bone in his body, ignores the woman's fearful pleas for help and doesn't even have the decency to call the police after watching her get savagely beaten. Later, Paul's less than stellar image gets another massive beating when we see him giving his aged mother the cold shoulder when she drops by his apartment for a visit. The poor old lady has to sleep at a cheap hotel with obnoxious green neon lights shining through the window while Paul gets a comfortable night's sleep at his lavish apartment. As Serreau sets Paul up as the lousiest jerk this side of the Seine, Hélène gets a rude awakening when her son, Fabrice (Aurélien Wiik) gives her the same cold shoulder treatment demonstrated earlier by Paul with his own mother. I hate to say it but like father and unfortunately, like son. After that incident with Fabrice, Hélène finally snaps, realizing that she can't continue on in her current situation--living an almost lifeless and meaningless existence.

Without a word to Paul, Hélène takes time off from her job and decides to correct her last mistake, by fully dedicating her time and effort to nurse back to health the woman that she and Paul had left to die on the streets earlier. Until this point, we still do not know why the woman, Noémie (Rachida Brakni) was beaten or what led to it. Sometimes ludicrous but mostly sad, Noémie's past is later revealed in the second half of the film through a series of flashbacks. Serreau does play it loose with some of Noémie's unbelievable exploits but she manages to keep it light and fun without crossing the line into absurdity. A chaotic progression of events ensues when the thugs return to finish what they started on Noémie, who, with the help of Hélène, tries to elude them while plotting her own revenge. With the police hot on everybody's trail, Paul badly in need of a housekeeper (on in his case, his wife) and Fabrice facing double trouble with his two girlfriends who are on his case about everything, the film gives new meaning to its apt title.

"Chaos" is part comedy, part revenge thriller, part social commentary and part feminist drama. Using quick-fire French dialogue, witty exchanges and some physical comedy, Serreau is able to cajole some of the film's best comedic moments from her talented actors. Brakni's saucer-sized eyes are her best assets, conveying stark and humorous emotions that are put to good use when she is temporarily paralyzed and confined to her hospital bed. Also up for honorable mentions are Frot and Lindon, who both play their bickering couple routine to the hilt.

Although comedy takes precedence in most parts of the film, it is the social commentary part that will spark the most debate. France has the largest Muslim population in Europe, mostly from its citizens who are from its former colonies in North Africa. Culture clashes are inevitable when a burgeoning and mostly traditional Muslim society slowly assimilates itself within a Western society that lives by much different values. In this film, Serreau tries to address the hot issue of traditional Muslim society's treatment of women, specifically the issue of fathers "selling" their teenage daughters into marriages with much older men. Melodrama aside, "Chaos" has a serious message to convey to its audience and it does it with force and without fear.

Throughout the film, we see the male characters, mostly portrayed as self-important, lazy and bullies, finally get what they deserved. However, without any redeeming male characters, "Chaos" is blatantly skewed towards the feminist crowd. "Chaos" openly celebrates and even glorifies the strength and perseverance of a group of women who are confronted with insurmountable obstacles in a male-dominated society. Feminist-heavy films may not be everyone's cup of tea but Serreau is still able to bestow upon "Chaos" a darkly funny nature with an equally intriguing storyline to ponder over.

Video:
For the most part, the video quality of "Chaos" is good and its anamorphic widescreen presentation, with an aspect ratio measuring 1.85:1 is clean without any dirt or scratches. For us non-French speaking viewers, English subtitles are available.

Audio:
Only a French language audio track, encoded in Dolby Surround 2.0 is offered on this DVD. The front speakers do most, if not all, of the heavy lifting, leaving the surrounds bare and underutilized. The subwoofer gets into the act once in a while but due to the film's dialogue-heavy nature, it is sparingly used. In fact, audio-wise, "Chaos" sounds pretty ordinary.

When watching foreign films, I could care less about English dubs as the natural tone and sometimes even the cultural significance of a particular scene can get lost in them. In any case, French is a beautiful language and is a joy to listen.

Extras:
New Yorker Films releases are not known for including many bonus materials and unfortunately with "Chaos", this status quo is maintained. Only the original theatrical trailer is included as an extra.

Film Value:
"Chaos" contains as many points that I liked as much as I disliked. In short, I am torn as to how to rate it. On one hand it is a dark and hilarious film with a great cast. But on the other hand, it is, in itself, extremely difficult to embrace due to its highly feminist message with a take-no-prisoner attitude that leaves all of its male characters in the gutter. The lack of a balanced portrayal between the female and male characters in the film places it on the extreme end of one spectrum, making "Chaos" a typical love-it or hate-it film. That is why I will be sitting on the fence on this one.