Review: Chloe
Posted March 26, 2010 12:00 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
If someone asked me what I thought of Chloe when I first left the theatre I probably would have made a snide comment about it, mainly because I thought the ending was weak. But there was something about it that stuck with me, something hypnotic, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The more I thought about it the more I realized how powerful a film it was, and that yes, I do recommend it.
Believing that her husband is cheating on her, Catherine (Julianne Moore), hires a young prostitute, Chloe (Amanda Seyfried), to throw herself at him and see what he does. Chloe reports back to Catherine with the juicy details about her romantic liaisons with David (Liam Neeson), each encounter more sexually graphic than the last. The thought of her husband’s affair somehow arouses Catherine but instead of drawing her closer to David she’s drawn closer to Chloe.
Moore and Seyfried deliver two of their best performances in Chloe and they carry the film perfectly. If it wasn’t for their daring portrayals of two lost women this could easily have amounted to nothing more than a cheap erotic thriller. Instead it’s a mature erotic thriller that evaluates the relationships between people and how destructive they can be when honesty goes out the window. Neeson also shines in his role and comes across as a man conflicted with lust over love, and is oblivious to the damage he causes his family by just not paying attention.
Chloe is the first film Atom Egoyan has directed that he didn’t write (it’s based on Anne Fontaine’s 2003 French film Nathalie…) yet it has the feeling of a signature Egoyan film. The story moves slowly and is very detailed, and characters are given the chance to just sit and breathe and show subtle emotion — something missing from a lot of American thrillers. It’s in the same league as Egoyan’s Exotica or Felicia’s Journey, and if you enjoyed those you will most definitely enjoy this.
Another thing worth mentioning is the role Toronto plays in the film. Not only is Chloe shot on our streets but it’s also set here. The characters take Beck taxis, go to the Rivoli, and book rooms at the Windsor Arms. I bring this up because it’s nice to see a movie set in a Canadian city without pretending it’s New York or Detroit. With the upcoming Scott Pilgrim vs. The World also being set here hopefully this trend catches on.
It might take a while to sink in but if you give Chloe a chance you might just find a solid, worthwhile movie.
*** out of 5 stars
Rated R
Cast: Julianne Moore, Amanda Seyfried, Liam Neeson
Directed by: Atom Egoyan
Official Site IMDb
brian.mckechnie@citynews.rogers.com
ALSO OPENING THIS WEEK: How to Train Your Dragon, Greenberg, Hot Tub Time Machine, The Coca-Cola Case, Neil Young Trunk Show, City Island
Top image: A scene from Chloe. Courtesy E1 Films.
