Choke

I managed to make time yesterday to see the movie "Choke," which I have been wanting to see for a while. I'm a big fan of Palahniuk, and wanted to see how the movie held up to the book, which is my favorite of his. The reviews were very mixed--the movie scores a 52% on rottentomatoes and a rating of 46 on metacritic. So I went in with very light expectations.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised. The movie sticks with the plot of the book almost exactly. For those who haven't read the book--it is a satire telling the story of Victor Mancini, a sex-addicted medical school dropout who has a habit of purposely choking on food in restaurants, in the hopes of being saved by a rich stranger who will send him money in the future. Sam Rockwell is good as Victor, although I think the story might have played better with someone younger and less skeevy-looking. The story is told well, and is funny at all of the right moments. The supporting cast is stellar, especially Angelica Huston as Victor's mother.

The movie isn't without its problems--it seems to run for a bit too long, the production value is less-than-great with many of the shots having an almost grainy feel, and the ending isn't done as well as it could have been. But these shortcomings are more than overcome by the good script and acting.

I would recommend this to anyone out there who likes sarcastic and dark comedies, and definitely to anyone who read and enjoyed Palahniuk's book.