Review of Chrysalis (2007) by Peter J — 28 Dec 2009

Sadly Netflix instant-download only has the English dub, which was awful. I'm trying to decide if that alone caused me to dislike this movie, but I don't think so. Even ignoring the dub, I felt the acting was a bit flat, the plot a bit stale, and the action, while intense, was unimaginative. Some of my concerns probably stem from comparison to the animated 2006 French film "Renaissance" by director Christian Volckman, which is also a cyberpunk noir in a dystopian future Paris. That film was far more visually interesting, wasn't quite as predictable, a far better dub, and married the cyber to the noir quite nicely. This film, on the other hand, just figured if everyone was depressed and the visuals were completely unsaturated it would somehow also fit the same sub-genre. Not so. I needed so much more. And whether it was intentional or not, the "twist" was visible from a mile away.

In any case, "Chrysalis" had a lot of potential but sadly didn't deliver. The core conceit was a nice idea and I almost wouldn't mind a remake to potentially do better. I'm trying to decide if my difference in opinion with some of the other reviews here just has to do with the fact that I'm a die-hard cyberpunk fan (as well as a noir fan) and this didn't live up to expectations... but it might also have to do with the fact that I refuse to forgive stupid writing. I don't care that the film was French, no cop in any situation would have loaded guns in an interrogation room and willingly free a dangerous prisoner from his bonds... you completely lost me at that moment.