Review by Justin Bateman
Stars Julianne Moore, Liam Neeson, Amanda Seyfried, Max Thieriot, RH Thompson,
Nina Dobrev, Mishu Vellan, Julie Khaner, Natalie Lisinska, Tiffany Knight | Written by Erin Cressida Wilson
UK certification 15 | UK RRP £23.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 96 minutes | Directed by Atom Egoyan
When gynaecologist Catherine (Moore) suspects her music professor husband David (Neeson) of infidelity, she lays a honeytrap using delectable call girl Chloe (Seyfried). As she receives feedback from Chloe on the encounters, Catherine's emotional turmoil increases as does the potential impact on her family as a whole.
The film begins with the titular (insert your own joke) Chloe getting dressed and providing a voice over regarding her choice of career. While this leaves no doubt as to what she does, the narration is immediately abandoned and so from then on the reasons for her behaviour become opaque at best.
This mystery is key to how the the film engages throughout but although there are unanswered questions, this could hardly be described as a thriller. The tension and drama comes almost entirely from character and as such works well. It's also erotically charged, unsurprising considering the set up, but surprising since most of it is discussion based, rather than the soft focus flesh-fests of yesteryear. This approach succeeds for the most part and it makes something of a change to see a film focusing on people, their feelings and how they behave rather than simply on action or special effects.
Despite being the title character, this is less a story about Chloe and more about Catherine, played with skill by Julianne Moore. Amanda Seyfried does a good line in emotionally confused seductive temptress, while Neeson provides solid support in a relatively minor role. Chloe is an interesting drama which would have been more impactful emotionally had the final act not descended into slightly hysterical melodrama with a hint of Fatal Attraction about it. But in a world of brainless blockbusters and soulless rom-coms, credit must be given to director Atom Egoyan for making a decent character-driven film.
EXTRAS ★★★★ A 25-minute making-of featurette; interviews with director Egoyan and stars Seyfried and Moore; The Strange Case of Atom Egoyan documentary, which runs for 85 minutes; deleted scenes; and alternate ending; and a photo gallery.