Chain Link

Ever wonder what 12 drunk people sound like on a commentary?
Look no further. Aside from that, this was actually a good freshman film for this crew. Gritty, depressing, and hopeless, yet some believable performances.

The story follows a loser dad, played well by an unknown (as is the rest of the cast actually) who is losing all that has meaning since his recent stint in jail. Through the coarse of a single day, we see him try to bond with his estranged son, hold a job and stay out of trouble. Eventually, we come to see that this guy really has no hope of succeeding at anything, and will resort to the criminal ways in order to facilitate existing. The scenes are long, the acting believable, and the general feel of hopelessness is conveyed adequately.

Trivia wise, I think this has to be the only film where three of the actors that all got there starts in the 70s, disappeared for 30 years then came together for their first recognizable film in the 2000s. Their roles were my favorite parts of the movie - Jody Jaress who plays...

You want to watch it again and again...
I've seen this film at the theater several times now and I'm still wanting to own a copy. It's not that it's an amazingly new type of film, but the characters are so full and interesting, that you want to keep watching them... but, of course the movie ends!

"Chain Link" isn't a new story... ex-con comes home to reunite with loved ones and still messes up... but the 'way' new filmmaker Dylan Reynolds wrote the dialog and his use of cinema verte' style camera work makes this film special somehow. It definately stands out from the majority of Independent films on the market right now. Dylan's scenes are mostly long, which gives you time to study these characters and become attached. And the actors portray them so skillfully it sounds like they ad libbed the whole thing... but they didn't! I was at a screening and asked that very question. I especially liked a couple of scenes between the ex-con, Anthony (Mark Irvingsen) and his mom (Jody Jaress) in the opening, and then a...



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