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While Dylan Reynolds deserves credit for his confident, singular approach to crafting the stark drama "Chain Link," the writer-director's self-described emphasis on "performance over perfection in image" nets mixed results. Even so, this low-budget effort contains enough flashes of vigor and vision to put the first-time filmmaker on the industry's radar.
In presenting a single, fateful day in the life of Anthony (Mark Irvingsen), an ex-con trying to square things for himself and those around him, Reynolds employs a series of long, hand-held takes that effectively immerse us into a gritty world of losers, hotheads and strugglers. There's a raw authenticity here, but several unconvincing plot devices, some jarring editing (also by Reynolds) and a shortage of nuance undermine the movie's frequent power.
As Anthony, the ponytailed Irvingsen makes for a believable screw-up but lacks the wiry intensity and seductive charm crucial to the part. Jim Storm chews the scenery as a crabby but helpful junkyard owner, and Peter Looney is gratingly one-note as a nasty cop. But Jody Jaress as Anthony's devoted mother, Rhea, Yassmin Alers as his wary ex-girlfriend and the mother of his young son (Luciano...