CHAOS WALKING (12A)
★★☆☆☆
Thinking out loud is commonplace in director Doug Liman’s dystopian sci-fi, where inner-most desires are visible to all in a gaseous cloud above characters’ heads.
Orphaned runt Todd Hewitt (Tom Holland) lives on the planet of New World in an exclusively male settlement. The women, including Todd’s mother, were killed by the indigenous species, the Spackle.
Mayor David Prentiss (Mads Mikkelsen) has managed to silence his consciousness and dominate the townsfolk. Any resistance is snuffed out by his son David (Nick Jonas)
and the preacher (David Oyelowo).
When a space ship crashes, survivor Viola Eade (Daisy Ridley) poses a threat to the mayor’s rule, forcing Todd and Violet to flee.
Ridley and Holland try to elevate the muddled material, but dispel any fanciful thoughts of this becoming a franchise.
■ Released: April 2 (available via Premium Video On Demand)