Review: ‘Chaos Theory’ on DVD

Ryan Reynolds is truly grabbing my attention lately by his choice of smaller, more intelligent films he has been selecting. In this case, he stars as Frank Allen in Chaos Theory, written by Daniel Taplitz and directed by Marcos Siega. Both of these filmmakers are fresh to feature film and, as is often the pleasantly welcome case, are proving the wellspring of true talent is in indie film-making more than ever. That’s a whole whole series of posts on its own …

Frank Allen is a shy, introverted man who’s obsessed with organization and list-making. He makes his living writing books and giving lectures on how to avoid “living on a whim.” Surprisingly, he’s married to Susan (Emily Mortimer), a woman who appears to be quite his opposite … but, the two have managed to hold together a happy eight years of marriage and have an adorable daughter named Jesse. Or, maybe not?

In Frank perfect life, he’s constantly tempted by his friend Buddy (Stuart Townsend) to dabble in the less-organized, more spontaneous party life as Buddy does. Frank is driven by his own beliefs to avoid living by chance until one night after a lecture he comes dangerously close to making a mistake. While driving home from this near-miss, Frank has a chance encounter on the road with a pregnant woman. Frank drives the laboring mother to the hospital then proceeds to go home.

At this moment, Frank’s life becomes precisely the opposite of what he’s constructed his life to function. Susan falls victim to some misinformation that forces her to believe Frank has not been honest with her, which in turn forces Frank to desperately seek proof that he’s innocent. This, in turn, leads Frank to some heart-breaking news about himself and his life as he knows it.

The film chronicles Frank’s life-changing experience through this ordeal as a retelling of the story to his daughter’s fiance just before their wedding. Chaos Theory is a great story about how life plays tricks on us and how just when we think everything is in order, chaos can hit at any moment, putting our sense of love and commitment to the ultimate test. Reynolds gives a great performance as a man whose life is turned upside-down and then must struggle to flip it right-side-up again.

[rating:4/5]