Chopper (2000)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Andrew Dominik

Writers:

Mark Brandon Read (books)
Andrew Dominik (written by)

Release Date:

3 August 2000 (Australia)

Genre:

Biography | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Never let the truth get in the way of a good yarn.

Plot:

Chopper tells the intense story of Mark "Chopper" Read, a legendary criminal who wrote his autobiography while serving a jail sentence in prison. His book, "From the Inside", upon which the film is based, was a best-seller.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Criminal | Prison | Paranoia | Jail

Awards:

12 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Eric Bana	...	Mark Brandon 'Chopper' Read
Simon Lyndon	...	Jimmy Loughnan
David Field	...	Keithy George
Daniel Wyllie	...	Bluey (as Dan Wyllie)
Bill Young	...	Detective Downie
Vince Colosimo	...	Neville Bartos
Kenny Graham	...	Keith Read
Kate Beahan	...	Tanya
Serge Liistro	...	Sammy the Turk
Pam Western	...	Tanya's Mother
Garry Waddell	...	Kevin Darcy
Brian Mannix	...	Ian James
Skye Wansey	...	Mandy
Annalise Emtsis	...	Shazzy
Johnnie Targhan	...	Paul the Bouncer (as Johnnie Targan)

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Cinevex)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:18 | Australia:MA (Cable TV rating) | Argentina:18 | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | France:-16 | Germany:18 | Mexico:C | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:15 | Singapore:R21 | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R (video rating) (cut) | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Company:

Australian Film Finance Corporation (AFFC)

Trivia:

Eric Bana spent two days living with Mark Brandon Read so he could get a better understanding of how to play his character in the film.

Goofs:

Continuity: At Tanya's house you see the car lights are on as Chopper goes to her front door. When he comes back and beats the car in frustration - they are off.

Quotes:

Neville Bartos: There's no cash here. Here there's no cash, alright? Cash *no*, Robbo?
Robbo: No cash.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "20 to 1: Adults Only 20 to 01: World's Most Daring Movies (#8.1)" (2009)

Soundtrack:

Release the Bats

Amazing Performance By Eric Bana!

CHOPPER (3+ outta 5 stars) Nifty little character study of a notorious Australian criminal... well, notorious in his own mind, at least. The jury is still out on how much of the autobiographical details of the life of "Chopper" read are real and how much is fake... but it does make a compelling story either way. Eric Bana gives a great performance in the lead... nothing else I've ever seen him in prepared me for how good he really is. The character he plays is nasty, repellent, scary, ill-tempered... and still full of charisma. After a violent stint in prison (his motto appears to be "do unto others before they do it unto you") Chopper is sent back out into society. With no other skills besides his knowledge of crime, Chopper offers himself to the local police as a special undercover agent. They, of course, want nothing to do with his boneheaded scheme but he pretends that they do anyway. Inflicting pain (on himself *and* others) seems to be what he is best at and he gets plenty of opportunities to show his stuff. Amusing though it may be at times, the movie is not a glorification of violence... the ferocity and suddenness of it keeps the audience constantly on edge.