Chopper is one of the most iconic Australian films to have been made. With not only an amazing work of the Cast, but also the very dedicated job of the entire team behind it. From the writers to the extra's. Chopper delivers on every single category of great classical films.Eric Bana plays the role of Mark "Chopper" Read, one of Australia's most notorious criminals. Chopper is a man who, through circumstance and necessity, uses violence as a tool. He is a man of intense emotion - most of the time he is torn between fear, remorse, horror and despair.Film at its best makes think and makes you uncomfortable. It explores emotions and feelings which the viewer understands but wants to comprehend. This is such a film.Chopper is a man of morals and is angry at himself when he has to compromise in what he believes in. He wants to be loved and this is the reason why life has become infamous to him. There are many criminals out there, but few have captured the imagination quite like Chopper did.Some people criticize the film because it is obviously not an exact account of events, they obviously didn't read the films tag line: "The truth, the whole truth and nothing like the truth!" This film was intended to be a "dramatization" of events and was co-written by Mark "Chopper" Read himself. And he never tries to hide the fact that he makes up a story or two.

Eric Bana is really great in this. Like, I'm surprised his work here doesn't seem to get mentioned much. Or maybe it's just not that seen. Regardless, it's outstanding work, the kind of work Tom Hardy was tying to hit in Bronson but didn't hit the depths that Bana did. The film is good, definitely nothing compared to Dominik's masterpiece The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. But Bana makes it truly worthwhile, even if his film threatens to fall under its own ambition. It's not a great film, but it's a great effort at one and it sometimes shows, maybe too much. But I definitely recommend it, it deserves to be seen and one day maybe it will hit the mainstream.

This is 94 minutes of watching Chopper wander about town and shooting people at random. It becomes clear about 15 minutes in to the movie that Mark Read is as deluded about his self- importance as the film is about it's ability to say anything interesting.Eric Bana does a nice job of delivering the BS that constantly flows from Read's mouth. He comes across and eloquent despite the shallow material.Cinematography is well done. Colors are wrong in almost every scene of the movie as if it was filmed in the wrong light or with expired film. It emphasizes the insanity of Read's world while also making it feel like personal snapshots of the world in which he lived.

Eric Bana (The Hulk, Blackhawk Down, Troy) began his career in Australia on a sketch TV Show called Full Frontal. Mark Brandon "Chopper" Read was an Australian criminal who extorted money from other criminals, basically by being more dangerous and psychopathic than anyone else. He wrote a book detailing his life in the Melbourne criminal underground during one of his prison terms which became a massive bestseller in Australia. In fact, Read became the bestselling Australian author with his series of violent yet comedic books and when a film was to be made of his life, he recommended Bana play him, based on a recurring character Bana had been doing on his sketch show, an obnoxious macho ignoramus called "Poita" – "yabbo"-speak for Peter.The choice was inspired. Bana is magnetic playing the complex Read, witty yet terrifying, intelligent and sadistic. His behavior is so extreme and button-pushing, it really forces you to examine Western ideals of masculinity. Is Chopper admirable or horrifying? He is fearless and seemingly impervious to pain. At one point, he has another inmate cut his ears off in order to be transferred to another wing of the prison. He is a really funny and likable guy in a brash in your face sort of way. Yet he is a cold blooded killer who makes his living terrorizing other people, who just happen to be criminals, specializing in cutting their toes off to compel them to pay his extortion, or killing them outright. He justifies his behavior through his code – he claims he does not hurt "civilians" – only other crooks.Not for those with a weak stomach.