mlcchapter27

       You might say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
       I hope someday you'll join us
        And the world will live as one
        partial lyrics from "Imagine" by John Lennon

He came to New York to meet John Lennon...
and the world changed forever.

Mark as John Lennon
Jared Leto as Mark David Chapman

click each photo for larger version

Photos of Mark taken from trailer:

Click logo below for audio/video clip of Mark in Chapter 27

Comments about Mark Lindsay Chapman’s performance as John Lennon in Chapter 27

“…the actor playing the role makes you believe you're seeing Lennon on the screen.”

--Martin Grove, critic for the Hollywood Reporter

All the guys that make their money looking like John Lennon, you know, play him too iconically. They play him six inches off the ground and they act like they're in a movie already. I wasn't happy with any of them… and then (I saw) this guy, this British stage actor, who wasn't even performing. He was talking to the casting director. He was from South London and has that sort of blood-in-the-street thing. You know, Liverpool, where John grew up, is a tough town and …he's got this very famous chip on his shoulder and was always cracking these cynical one-liners.. And that's what the impersonators couldn't come off with. But Mark Lindsay Chapman, who's from South London and who's been a theater actor all his life, popping up in 'Titanic' and 'Law and Order' and all kinds of places, has that real quality to him -- that worn, cynical dimension that attracts people to John. That's how he got the job."

--J.P. Schaefer, Director, Chapter 27

CLICK HERE to visit the Chapter 27
Official Movie Website

For complete review click below:
The Hollywood Reporter

Chapter 27 Review
by Arcania

Step into the mind of a deranged stalker…Listen to the tortured, obsessive, thoughts as he rambles on and on.

That’s the premise of this strange but well-done film about the man who killed John Lennon. If you’re looking for a good date movie, forget it—unless your date is a forensic psychologist or a CSI fan. This film is not “entertainment.” The director’s intent was to explore the internal state of Mark David Chapman in the three days leading up to his murder of Lennon.

For those who are upset that this film was ever made, be assured that it in no way glorifies Chapman. Though the director wants us to empathize, i.e., understand the mind of the killer, he does not try for sympathy. Chapman is presented as the pathetic loser he actually was. Jared Leto, who gained 60 pounds for the role (the resemblance is eerie) gives us a portrayal of a weird, annoying pest. So annoying in fact that it’s hard to believe that Jude, the Lindsay Lohan character (who may nor may not have existed), would want to pal around with him. I guess she is supposed to feel sorry for him.

The other Chapman—Mark Lindsay Chapman (no comment on the name, that’s been done to death, pardon the expression, elsewhere) is equally good in his all too brief role as John Lennon. As the director, J.P. Shaefer, has said elsewhere, he wanted someone to play Lennon as a real person, not an icon. Mark Lindsay Chapman’s portrayal is down-to-earth and matter of fact—just like the real Lennon. He sounds eerily like the real Lennon too. MLC is a brilliant choice and cosmically appropriate. He was chosen from a field of 200 to play Lennon in a TV movie back in 1988 (when he was calling himself Mark Lindsay). When Yoko Ono found out his real name, she fired him—bad karma. Now it has come full circle and MLC finally gets to play the role--almost as if it was his destiny.

The film is somewhat artsy (which is both good and bad) but it is fairly good at capturing the essence the obsessive stalker mentality. Leto is excellent in the role, making you believe that you are actually seeing Mark David Chapman. But if you want to know why he did it, you’ll have to look elsewhere. It does not explore Chapman’s background—his religious fanaticism, his teenage obsession with Lennon, or the crushing disappointment when Lennon announced jokingly that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus.

Chapter 27 won’t be everyone’s cup of mocha latte. It’s disturbing and weird—just like Mark David Chapman. It’s not a film you will “like,” but it is a film that you may find interesting. It may not give insight in to the “why” but it does paint a striking picture of the “how.”

Arcania

Addedum:

Mark David refused to allow his lawyer to plead the “insanity” defense at his trial. Just as well, because it would have almost certainly failed. Contrary to popular opinion, the insanity plea rarely succeeds, sometimes even when it should. It is a legal term, not a psychological term. In most states, it is based on whether the defendant knew right from wrong at the time s/he committed the crime. Tough to prove but planning the crime ahead of time generally doesn’t make the plea work any better! Some of the psychiatrists who interviewed did conclude he was delusional, possibly even psychotic. Hey, no kidding…

Chapman was allowed to plead second degree murder and sentenced to 20 to life at Attica Correctional Facility in New York. He has been up for parole 4 times as of July 2008 and denied each time. No one seriously believes he will ever get out, no matter how good his behavior. The parole board would just about be lynched, figuratively if not actually. The rumor that he is currently obsessed with Lindsay Lohan (ick, ick, poor woman) will give the parole board additional ammo to keep him locked up till he dies. Yoko Ono has not forgiven him nor, I suspect, have most of Lennon’s fans. I certainly haven’t. I also know that modern psychotherapy can’t really cure wackos like Chapman. What he did was evil and monstrous and he can never be forgiven, much less cured.

Arcania’s alter ego is a psychology professor who teaches forensic psychology at a Western university.

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