Review of The Killing of John Lennon (2007) by Meeza (Lobsterman) — 05 Sep 2008

Did John Lennon's alleged hypocrisy ended up getting him killed? That is one of the gunning themes that are brought to the line of cinematic fire in the well-executed "The Killing of John Lennon".

The film focuses on the deranged adult life of Lennon assassin Mark David Chapman and his daily fixation with the literary work "The Catcher in The Rye". It starts from his young adult days residing in Hawaii and reaches to Chapman's deadly journey to Lennon's home in Manhattan.

Writer-Director Andrew Piddington does a credible job in depicting Chapman's plodding disintegration to maniacal madness. However, he was a tad of a nowhere man with his underdeveloped, sluggish script.

Imagine unknown Jonas Ball stealing the show as the deranged Chapman. I am sure it was a hard day's night for Jonas evolving into that character. Ball had to have balls to do it. It is one of the best acting performances of the year by an actor with a testicular last name.

Piddington wisely also incorporates the theme of the hunger for social acceptability and popularity within Chapman's deviousness, and how man could be catapulted into literary theory obsessively in low self-esteem states.

I do not think many Beatles fans will be twisting and shouting jubilantly with a viewing of "The Killing of John Lennon" but they should see it more as an objective narrative than a helter skelter fable.

**** Good.