Chopper

This film about Mark ‘Chopper’ Read was an enormous hit on its home turf. In Australia Chopper is a controversial figure: the most famous ex-crook and one of the best-read writers in the country. Chopper is not an ordinary biopic, but a versatile psychological portrait of a pathologically contradictory and violent character: a man who has his eventual fame thanks to a bizarre combination of being physically uninhibited, having a sense of humour and a lively imagination.Chopper, masterfully played by Eric Bana, one of Australia’s best-known stand-up comedians, dreams in jail of becoming a famous and feared criminal. He has just been given sixteen years for kidnapping a judge – in a ridiculous attempt to free a jailed friend. In prison, a battle for power ensues. His increasingly terrifying behaviour does indeed make Chopper famous. When, eight years later, he is released, he would* appear to be driven by guilt and a desire for vengeance at the same time. He soon causes trouble again – for instance by announcing everywhere that the police has given him carte blanche to clear up `scum’.Dominik moves off the beaten track both visually and narratively and has managed to find a form that does not explain an unpredictable and inconsistent character, but does make it coherent. Above all, he manages to make the worried viewers laugh at the bloodiest of moments – much to their own surprise.