CHOKE

Directed by Clark Gregg

Review by Jody Newman

I first stumbled upon Chuck Palahniuk’s Choke a few years back when, out of frustration over my lack of reading, I ended my long literary drought with a broken-spined, dog-eared version of his story. Over the next few days, I read in shock and awe the story of Victor Mancini, the sex-addicted con artist who preys on the kindness of people that rescue him from the staged, near death experiences of choking in order to help fund his mother’s increasing hospital bills. Now that’s a pretty long, perhaps confusing, sentence of a summary, huh? Never fear, the book, itself, is surprisingly fast-paced, witty, and streamlined. And I am happy to say, the movie is as well.

First-time director Clark Gregg (he of EVERY MOVIE AND TV SHOW OF THE PAST TWO DECADES. IMDB him!) continues the tradition of character-actors that make good filmmakers. Perhaps it’s because of their understanding of the actor’s process, their attention to characterization, but when actors take the reigns of a film production, there is going to be a story with great performances in it. And with Choke, that legacy continues with Sam Rockwell’s dead-on portrayal of Victor Mancini. Dirty, gross, overtly sexual, often perverted, momma’s boy, Mancini is portrayed with such subtle humanity that one has to wonder how Rockwell pulled it off. And then, of course, you remember that it IS Sam Rockwell, after all, whose whole career is made-up of being likable while playing some of the more difficult characters in recent film memory.( Just go to his IMDB page, too, if you don’t believe me. I dare ya!) At a Q&A following the screening with Clark Gregg and Chuck Palahniuk, the director relayed a story about Rockwell walking around the set, wearing a headset that constantly played Palahniuk’s audio recording of Choke, in order to get in character and to throw in some of his favorite lines of dialogue missing from the script, into the take.

While film adaptations can often be hit or miss, for me Choke walks away being closer to a ‘hit’. Many slight vignettes that I enjoyed so much from the story are missing in this film. Most notably missing is Gregg’s omission of the Rock fortress that famously climaxes the story. While it still is referenced, it’s power and importance to Mancini’s ultimate redemption (if the character is even redeemed) is gone. I understand why it is gone (and Gregg even explained about its purpose in streamlining the film) but I am not certain that Palahniuk’s faithful fans will be as understanding. But, let’s say the public should be grateful of the small doses this Choke provides. It’s a story that will be easier for them to digest.