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Tell Others About This Page By Using This Button "CHOKE" (2008) (Sam Rockwell, Anjelica Huston) (R) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Heavy Mild *Heavy Minor Mild Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Heavy None None None Extreme Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Extreme Minor Heavy Heavy Minor QUICK TAKE: Comedy: A sex-addicted historical reenactor repeatedly gets strangers to save him from choking, all to pay the mental institution caring for his dementia-stricken mother. PLOT: Victor Mancini (SAM ROCKWELL) is one screwed-up fellow. He's employed as a historical reenactor at a colonial theme park where he works with his best friend, Denny (BRAD WILLIAM HENKE), for their boss and fellow actor Charlie (CLARK GREGG) who never goes out of character, all while lusting after Ursula (BIJOU PHILLIPS) who poses as the period milkmaid. The craving isn't unusual for Victor, a self-proclaimed sex addict who attends support meetings with Denny, a compulsive masturbator, but often skips out to have sex with the likes of hooker Nico (PAZ DE LA HUERTA). To top it off, Victor repeatedly gets himself to choke in restaurants so that handpicked and seemingly financially well-to-do strangers will save his life and then send him money. While it's all a con, Victor spends most of that money to keep his mother, Ida (ANJELICA HUSTON), cared for in a mental institution. Since she was certainly anything but a perfect mom when young Victor (JONAH BOBO) was just a boy and he moved from one foster home to another when not on the lam with her, he's nebulous about her declining health. Yet, she has a psychological hold on Victor -- even if she usually thinks he's someone else when he visits -- a point not lost on her new doctor, Paige Marshall (KELLY MACDONALD). Victor is fascinated by this young woman -- especially when she concocts a unique way to try to help Ida's progressively worsening dementia -- but finds himself unable to consummate his attraction to her. As Denny similarly finds himself attracted to Beth (GILLIAN JACOBS), a stripper who goes by the stage name Cherry Daiquiri, Victor tries to sort out his feelings toward both his mother and Paige. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? Older teens might be interested, especially if they're fans of someone in the cast or are enticed by the author connection to the movie "Fight Club." WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R For strong sexual content, nudity and language. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: SAM ROCKWELL plays a historical colonial reenactor and sex addict who purposefully chokes himself in order to have well-to-do people save and hopefully help finance him. Conflicted about what to do with his institutionalized mother who's suffering from dementia, he has sex with various women, but can't complete the act with Paige since he actually has feelings for her. He also uses strong profanity and drinks a bit. ANJELICA HUSTON plays his mother, now institutionalized with a severe case of dementia that's left her usually unable to recognize him. In the past, she's far from the greatest mother, coming in and out of his life, often taking him on the lam when he isn't in and out of foster homes. KELLY MACDONALD plays a young woman who states she's Ida's new doctor and wants Victor to impregnate her for familial stem cells she thinks might help the ailing woman. She turns out to be harboring a secret, but she inspires, in her own unique way, Victor to change. BRAD WILLIAM HENKE plays Victor's best friend, coworker, and fellow sex addict with a compulsive masturbation issue. He uses strong profanity, drinks some, and ends up falling for Beth the stripper. JONAH BOBO plays Victor as a boy who's unsure of what to think of his unorthodox mother. PAZ DE LA HUERTA plays a hooker who has sex with Victor, uses strong profanity, and briefly smokes. CLARK GREGG plays Victor and Denny's boss and fellow actor who rarely goes out of character and isn't pleased with their lackadaisical attitude about their work. He briefly uses strong profanity. BIJOU PHILLIPS plays the reenactor he's sweet on and who Victor constantly hits on. She briefly smokes pot, uses strong profanity, and manually stimulates Victor due to feeling bad about getting Denny fired. GILLIAN JACOBS plays the scantly clad stripper who falls for Denny. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this R-rated comedy. Profanity consists of at least 34 "f" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are also used. All sorts of sexually related dialogue and material are present, as are views of all sorts of sexual encounters (with nudity, movement and sounds). Nonsexual nudity (bare breasts) also occurs and scantly clad and partially nude strippers are seen doing their thing. A little bit of comedy-based violence is present, a few moments (where choking goes a bit too long) might be unsettling for some viewers, while that scam-based choking and other behavior might be enticing for some kids to imitate. There's drinking, brief drug use (pot) and brief smoking. Various bad attitudes are present as is tense family material, while a little bit of crude humor also occurs. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Ursula smokes pot and blows that smoke into a coworker's mouth. Denny has a beer while others drink. We hear that Ida has dementia that's been exacerbated by substance abuse. Denny has a beer in a strip club. A lone diner in a restaurant has wine. Denny drinks beer from an outdoor metal slug trap. Victor has a shot of liquor in a strip club. BLOOD/GORE Some kids lock Denny in a period stockade, and reportedly put some creature down the back of his pants (we see slightly bloody scratch marks on the top of his bare butt when he asks Victor to look at the damage). Charlie yanks a contemporary newspaper from a wooden basket, with something dark brown or black on it flinging to his face (we don't know what it is, and while it's possibly excrement, that seems unlikely since it's part of the colonial theme park experience). On several occasions, we hear intestinal rumbling from Victor. A cop performs the Heimlich maneuver on Victor who lets out a loud fart, with a previously lost anal bead in him popping out of his mouth (that being the source of previous intestinal rumbling sounds). The cop is upset and says, "You did not just sh*t all over my interrogation room." DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Most of the following is played for comedy. Some kids lock Denny in a period stockade, and reportedly put some creature down the back of his pants (we see slightly bloody scratch marks on the top of his bare butt when he asks Victor to look at the damage). Victor and Denny don't have a good work attitude, especially toward Charlie, their boss who rarely drops out of character, and thus comes off as overbearing. On several occasions, Victor purposefully eats something to make himself choke, singling out someone who looks wealthy to save him, all in hopes that the person will take pity on him and thus send him money. Some viewers might not like the comedy portrayal of various women in the mental hospital (including those thinking Victor fondled them, as well as one he calls the squirrel who has food tucked away in the pockets of her robe, etc.). While he usually puts up with their behavior, he also refers to them as "looney birds." Victor imagines an older nun nude, but we only see her from the shoulders up. We see a flashback to young Victor littering. Paige says that she might have a solution for Ida's mental issue, but says that it's an illegal procedure. She then comments on her mucous thickening and that she could harvest embryonic stem cells if Victor impregnates her. He's taken aback by this, especially since she wants to have sex in the hospital chapel and tells him "I simply need your seed." She starts to undress, tells him to do what comes naturally and then straddles him on a pew, but he's apparently unable to perform as we next see Denny jokingly commenting, "You couldn't get it up." Victor replies, "I'd like to see you pop a chubby with the Holy Savior starring down your crack." Some viewers might not like the following: Paige states she translated Ida's diary from Italian to English and that it states Ida used an ancient relic, the foreskin of Jesus, to create Victor. He then states he's the son of Jesus, but Paige says it's more like half the clone of Him. Paige then says that in Ida's mind, "You're literally the second coming." We see a flashback to Ida and young Victor breaking into a zoo at night, with Ida apparently freeing some of the animals. To try to prove that he's not a good person, Victor fondles an older female mental patient, tries to pull down the pants of another, and then repeatedly smashes a third woman's walker against a locker or wall. Victor isn't supportive of Denny now being involved with Beth, although he later comes around. Some viewers might not like it when Victor states that maybe Jesus "was kind of a d*ck for a while" in his teens. Ida admits to Victor that she stole him from a stroller in the past. SPOILER ALERT: Victor learns that Paige really isn't Ida's doctor, but has pretended to be that. Victor is arrested under rape allegations (by a woman who had a willing sexual encounter with him to play out her sexual rape fantasy. FRIGHTENING SCENES Victor tries his choking routine again, but then panics when he realizes the lone patron in the restaurant is blind. Victor then has to do a self-application of the Heimlich maneuver to save himself (played for comedy). Victor chokes in another scene, but cops think he's faking it. When it's apparent he isn't, one finally performs the Heimlich maneuver on him. GUNS/WEAPONS A colonial reenactor carries a period rifle. Victor meets a woman with a violent rape fantasy, but strong ground rules about how to proceed (with a knife, for the act to take place on a towel on the floor, with a safe word that either can use to stop the act). He then shows up at her place wearing pantyhose over his face (although she recognizes them as hers) and holds that knife on her. She's upset that he isn't very good at this and tells him what to do, including to hit her (so he does, slapping her on her head, further angering her), but not with the knife (after he asks) as that would be stabbing and not hitting. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "F*ck you," "What the f*ck /are you doing?" "The wrath of a f*cking beat-down," "F*cking naive," "F*cking up," "Are you f*cking with me?" "You guys are so f*cked," "Oh f*ck," "Please f*ck off," "Get the f*ck out of here," "You f*cking moron," "Why don't you shut the f*ck up?" "Every f*cking time," "You people can all get f*cked," "You little sh*ts," "Oh sh*t," "Psychotic sh*t," "Heinous sh*t," "If this sh*t gets you laid," "Sh*t, man," "Stop with that sh*t," "You stupid sh*t," "Check this sh*t out," "You did not just sh*t all over my interrogation room," "Waxing his weasel," "Whacking off," "Blow job," "You touched my woo-woo," "She was hot," "I boned you silly," "Horn dog," "You can't nail your mom's doctor," "I simply need your seed," "I'd like to see you pop a chubby with the Holy Savior starring down your crack," "I liked you better when you were a compulsive masturbator," "I can't ovulate forever," "A really bad lay," "When she was jerking you off?" "You're telling me you nailed all these chicks," "You skeevy colonial d*ck-wad," "Sure, when the Mayflower sails out of my ass," "Dude," "Looney broads," "For Pete's sake," "Douche-bag," "You're an asshole," "You're creeping me out," "Jesus H. Clone," "You dumb ass," "Piss all over it," "Losers" and "What the hell /are you talking about/is this?" Nico has a large tattoo on the top of one of her breasts. Ursula gives Victor "the finger" for a crude sexual gesture he made toward her. On several occasions, Victor purposefully eats something to make himself choke, singling out someone who looks wealthy to save him, all in hopes that the person will take pity on him and thus send him money. We see a flashback to young Victor littering. We see a flashback to Ida and young Victor breaking into a zoo at night, with Ida apparently freeing some of the animals. To try to prove that he's not a good person, Victor fondles an older female mental patient, tries to pull down the pants of another, and then repeatedly smashes a third woman's walker against a locker or wall. Victor spits. Some of the sexual antics and behavior (including Victor twice having sex with different women in an airplane bathroom) might be enticing for some teens to copy. Victor has a tattoo. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) None. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 34 "f" words (4 used sexually, as are the terms "boned," "laid," "lay" and "nail"), 16 "s" words, 5 slang terms using female genitals ("woo-woo"), 4 using male ones ("d*ck," "weasel" and "big man thing"), 1 possibly partial one for breasts ("t*tties" -- written), 6 asses (2 used with "hole"), 2 hells, 1 crap, 6 uses of "Jesus," 5 of "Oh my God," 3 each of "For Christ's sakes" and "Oh God," 2 each of "God" and "G-damn," and 1 use each of "For God's sakes," "My God" and "Swear to God." SEX/NUDITY Although the acts are not seen, Victor comments on the legends of the sex addicts meeting: The woman spread-eagle with her dog licking peanut butter from between her legs; the girl whose stomach was pumped to find a lot of sperm; the man found half-dead hanging from his shower curtain in an act of auto-eroticism; of a hooker; and of emergency rooms equipped with devices to facilitate the removal of champagne bottles, hamsters and other items from bodily orifices. There's talk of Denny "waxing his weasel" while looking at overgrown natural "bush" (pubic hair), and "whacking off" fifteen times a day. During the meeting, we see Victor holding a pair of Nico's panties (she appears in a short skirt and cleavage-revealing top), and next see them having sex (in another room) during the meeting, with her moving on top of him (facing toward and away) while he holds her panties. We see the side of her bare butt and movement, as well as hear sexual sounds. During that, we hear his voice-over narration about the endorphins released during orgasm, that even a bad "blow job" is better than most anything else, and that all he wants to experience is the perfect blissful nothingness he associates with having an orgasm. Spotting Ursula milking a cow as part of her historical reenactment, Victor playfully asks if he can get a turn (meaning with her). She replies, "Sure, when the Mayflower sails out of my ass." It's implied that Victor has had sex with another reenactor (both come out of a building finishing getting dressed). Some kids lock Denny in a period stockade, and reportedly put some creature down the back of his pants (we see slightly bloody scratch marks on the top of his bare butt when he asks Victor to look at the damage). When it's mentioned that Ursula is the milkmaid, that's confirmed (with sexual connotations), and we then see three imagined views of her topless, each with successively larger bare breasts. During that, Denny has his hands down inside his pants, playing with himself. Victor then makes a male oral sex gesture to her (hand movement, bulge in his cheek), but she gives him "the finger." We hear that (and see signs of) Denny being a compulsive masturbator. We see miscellaneous cleavage. An elderly patient repeatedly claims that Victor "touched my woo-woo." Victor imagines seeing a woman's bare breasts, and then of performing oral sex on another woman (her lying down, him between her legs, seen from a side view), with him saying he got the present look from her since that really happened. Ida views a man's clothed butt as he walks out, says something in French, and then kisses her fingers in admiration of the view. Victor has a memory of having standing rear entry sex with a woman, seen from a side view (her bare butt, his movement, their sounds). Denny looks at old photos of Ida (when she was younger), and then has his hand down inside his pants. Victor yells at him to stop, with Denny saying Ida "was hot." Victor imagines an older nun nude, but we only see her from the shoulders up. Paige tells Victor that he doesn't have to try to have sex with her, but he replies that he does. She then says that having sex won't resolve his issues, but he says there's only one way to find out. An older mental patient tells Victor that he touched her on her private place and put his "big man thing" in her. Tired of these repeated accusations, Victor then plays along, telling her, "I boned you silly," that he stuck it in any chance he got, and that he's a "horn dog." Denny tells Victor, "You can't nail your mom's doctor," but Victor says that he'd like to "f*ck" her. Denny says that he's almost a week sober (from masturbating). Denny may have the word "t*tties" inked on his hand. Paige says that she might have a solution for Ida's mental issue, but says that it's an illegal procedure. She then comments on her mucous thickening and that she could harvest embryonic stem cells if Victor impregnates her. He's taken aback by this, especially since she wants to have sex in the hospital chapel and tells him "I simply need your seed." She starts to undress, tells him to do what comes naturally and then straddles him on a pew, but he's apparently unable to perform as we next see Denny jokingly commenting, "You couldn't get it up." Victor replies, "I'd like to see you pop a chubby with the Holy Savior starring down your crack" and "I liked you better when you were a compulsive masturbator." Meaning it non-sexually, Ursula tells Victor and Denny, "You guys are so f*cked," with Victor playfully responding, "Promise?" We see Paige and Victor getting dressed after an apparently failed sexual encounter, with her telling him she can't ovulate forever. A man in a sex addicts meeting talks of stalking a "tranny hooker." We see a side view of Victor having sex with a woman who's lying back on a table while he stands. We see movement and her bare breasts, while we also hear sexual sounds. We see stripper Beth doing her thing in a strip club in a small bikini. There are comments about her "ass" and the size of it in relation to a sketch Denny has done of her. She then bends over, showing lots of cleavage, and then lowers her top, revealing her bare breasts. She seems taken with Denny, prompting Victor to tell his friend, "If this sh*t gets you laid..." Victor asks Denny, "Did you f*ck Beth?" Paige states she translated Ida's diary from Italian to English and that it states Ida used an ancient relic, the foreskin of Jesus, to create Victor. He then states he's the son of Jesus, but Paige says it's more like half the clone of Him. Paige then says that in Ida's mind, "You're literally the second coming." We see Victor seemingly having standing sex with Paige, with heavy breathing and thrusting, but no nudity as they're still otherwise clothed (although she shows some cleavage). She then has him listen to her heartbeat via a stethoscope, but we then learn he still couldn't complete the act. He then complains about "the fact that I'm trying to f*ck you in a church" and that he can't "f*ck you" because he wants to like her. We see a flashback to Victor having sex with a woman (he standing, she up on a washing machine or dryer). There's thrusting, the side view of him between her legs, and a side view of her bare breast. There's a comment about being "a really bad lay." To try to prove that he's not a good person, Victor fondles an older female mental patient and tries to pull down the pants of another. Victor visits a porn website that shows nudity (breasts, butt) and contains sexually related writing, including the "f" word. From that, he meets a woman with a violent rape fantasy, but strong ground rules about how to proceed (with a knife, for the act to take place on a towel on the floor, with a safe word that either can use to stop the act). He then shows up at her place wearing pantyhose over his face (although she recognizes them as hers) and holds that knife on her. She's upset that he isn't very good at this and tells him what to do, including to hit her (so he does, slapping her on her head, further angering her). He then gets a bit more violent (but controlled) with her, thus arousing her. She then uses a vibrator on herself while lying on the floor, with him asking what about him. She tells him he can put his stuff (semen) on the towel when he's done, so he masturbates (we see his hand movement, but no direct contact) and then leaves, with her looking upset that he apparently climaxed on her rug or bed. Ursula shows cleavage. We partially see a scantly clad Nico performing oral sex on Victor while he stands (we don't see the actual act or contact). He then climaxes and we see his bare butt, and Nico then holds up a string of anal balls, indicating one broke off inside him, saying it will work itself out. We see Beth, now a brunette, doing more sexy dancing while in another skimpy outfit in the strip joint. Victor states he has sex with strangers because he can't do it with someone he likes. Ursula feels bad about being responsible for Denny being fired, so she makes it up to Victor by giving him a "hand job." We don't see the actual act or contact, but do see her arm and occasional hand movement, and the related sounds. He can't climax, however, with her saying that if this was a churn, they'd have butter by now, and they make small talk while she continues. She then has to take a break and puts her head on his chest, but then falls asleep. Charlie (who likes Ursula) then walks in and is shocked. Victor says it isn't what Charlie thinks, with Charlie then asking, "Isn't that your penis in her hand?" Victor then says that Ursula said she liked Charlie, with him then asking, "When? When she was jerking you off?" Nico starts to undo Victor's pants in the hallway outside a sex addicts meeting, but Victor walks away from her and into the meeting where he announces that he's a sex addict. We see a flashback to Victor opening a bathroom door on a plane in flight to find a fully nude woman seated there (we see her bare breasts). He closes the door but then opens it again, and then joins her. She pulls off his shirt and they then have sex (seen in a head and shoulders shot) face to face and then rear entry style, with them then alternating as the scene jump-cuts through their encounter (we see movement and hear related sounds). A cop asks Victor, "You're telling me you nailed all these chicks?" Paige opens a bathroom door on an airplane in flight to find Victor seated there nude (we don't see anything explicit). She then straddles him (clothed) and the two do some long, passionate kissing. SMOKING Nico smokes after having sex with Victor. TENSE FAMILY SCENES Victor must contend with his mom's dementia (resulting in her rarely recognizing him), her hospitalization in a mental institution, the fact that she's stopped eating, and memories of their past where she kept leaving and returning into his life (meaning he was in and out of various foster homes), often taking him on the lam, and not allowing him to play in a playground (all seen as various flashbacks to when he was younger). Thinking Victor is someone else, Ida comments on her disappointments about him, such as him dropping out of medical school. We learn that Victor never knew his father, a mystery that's affected him into the present. Victor is upset to find his mom in ICU. A woman dies while her son feeds her pudding. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Sex addicts. We hear that Ida has dementia that's been exacerbated by substance abuse. Women who have rape fantasies. Victor states he has sex with strangers because he can't do it with someone he likes. The comment that nothing worth having comes without a risk. Historical reenactors. VIOLENCE Some kids lock Denny in a period stockade, and reportedly put some creature down the back of his pants (we see slightly bloody scratch marks on the top of his bare butt when he asks Victor to look at the damage). To try to prove that he's not a good person, Victor fondles an older female mental patient, tries to pull down the pants of another, and then repeatedly smashes a third woman's walker against a locker or wall. Victor meets a woman with a violent rape fantasy, but strong ground rules about how to proceed (with a knife, for the act to take place on a towel on the floor, with a safe word that either can use to stop the act). He then shows up at her place wearing pantyhose over his face (although she recognizes them as hers) and holds that knife on her. She's upset that he isn't very good at this and tells him what to do, including to hit her (so he does, slapping her on her head, further angering her), but not with the knife (after he asks) as that would be stabbing and not hitting. He then gets a bit more violent (but controlled) with her, thus arousing her. We see a flashback to young Victor first choking himself, with a man trying to perform the Heimlich maneuver on him, but they accidentally strike heads, leaving that man unconscious (and Ida steps in to finish the saving). We see a flashback to Ida struggling with some cops, including being tackled and whacking one with her purse. Reviewed August 26, 2008 / Posted September 26, 2008

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