When the fiction is more unsatisfying than the real life, then you're in a big trouble. "The Chameleon" is a weak film because it fails to generate interest in a real life story that has all the elements that could make into a great project. The director made questions he couldn't answer and we couldn't figure out possible reasons for all what happened in the events surrounding a young French (Marc-André Grondin) who claims to be the disappeared son of a poor American family, "returning" to his home after being kidnapped and taken to Europe. The problem is that it's obvious that some members of the family know that this French accented guy can't be Nicky, but they continue with this game until an FBI agent (Famke Janssen) get suspicious about this sudden reappearance.Its cheap insistence in creating a mystery bigger than the one existing just doesn't work, with the skeletons in the family's closet with people who knew about the kid's real fate, like his older brother (Nick Stahl). And we are easily bothered by the lack of choices, lack of ways for the story to move in a proper manner. A movie like this can't dwell in the psychology involving the main character, therefore we'll never understand the reasoning behind the boy's staying with people who don't care about him. Why the hell he'd trade his erroneous life in France by shooting in the dark with a strange and careless American family, or why he didn't run away from this family he adopted, a bunch of people who wouldn't provide for him with anything? He's not getting much by staying there, no indicative that he's winning something.The cast tries a little bit harder than what the script can offer to them make something worthy of our attention. Grondin is a fine actor as evidenced in "C.R.A.Z.Y." but here there's only glimpses of that actor, his duality of angelical innocence with some darker traits is relatively good; Janssen was pretty decent and the more her character progress the more we like her, same goes with Emile De Ravin and Brian Geraghty, doing their best; Ellen Barkin was distractive while trying to be exceptional as the mother. As a drama, it's not as compelling as the plot sounds and could be; as a thriller is just dull and worthless. Bits of decent acting aren't enough to make it tolerable or watchable. 4/10

"The Chameleon" is roughly based on the case of the disappearance of Nicholas Barclay, and the impostor Frederic Bourdin.The movie stays reasonably close to the facts, though there are some mayor things changed that IMO was totally unnecessary. At the same time, more could have been done with other things. I am on purpose gonna keep this all pretty vague; as I do not want to spoil anything. If you want to know about the real case, google on it. It is a very interesting thing to do.I would definitely have liked to have seen more background about Frederic. The case of Nicholas wasn't the first time he imposed as a missing child, neither was it the last time. As if the whole story about Nicholas wasn't bizarre enough, it gets more and more bizarre if you read up on Bourdin. He truly deserves the name Chameleon; it is incredible how good this guy is at languages and in blending in. I do understand that the movie's focus was on only one of his crimes, but I think a bit more history would have made it all even more absurd. Now, you almost feel at least a bit pity for Bourdin, but that should not happen. After all, the guy was/is a very disturbed man who didn't give a *beep* about the feelings of his victims.The overall acting was not very good. Famke Janssen made the best of it and steals the scenes when she comes in, but I was unfortunately pretty unconvinced by the lead character. The way the story unfolds was just not good enough to convince, and the characters way too shallow. Many things are there in potential, but somehow it just doesn't work. It could have been an 'edge of your seat' thriller or drama, but it simply isn't. Throughout the whole story, it just lacks something. An other reviewer used the word 'dull', and I think that's quite a good description. All in all; an intriguing case made to a less intriguing movie.(Ps: An interesting little fact; Bourdin himself worked as a creative consultant for this movie. )

I found "The Chameleon" a somewhat difficult movie to critique. It's the true story of a young man that lives his life either through the fictitious characters that he creates or through real people whose identities he assumes. The movie centers on one such event in his life where he assumes the identity of a mother's long missing son. When he is reunited with this acquired Louisiana family,he ends up getting more than he bargained for. The mother is a chain smoking drug addict. The sister is guilt ridden over not having protected the real brother prior to his disappearance. The step brother is abusive,threatening and possibly a murderer. Of course,they don't know that he's really not their long lost relative…..or do they. Each of them,in their own different twisted way,seem to need him and he,them. So,the truth really doesn't matter. Meanwhile,there are two F.B.I. agents who are suspicious of the impostor,one of which has her own dark secret and reason for investigating the case. You have interesting characters here and very good performances by everyone. Moreover,it's presented very effectively in a realistic gritty manner. That said,this movie will not appeal to everyone and probably not to most. Why? It's as if you walked into a theater after the movie started and left before it ended. What you see is a snapshot into these character's lives….. and it's done very well. However,you have no idea how the characters got to the point they're at and you're given no answers at the end. I suppose that it could be best categorized as a good art house movie.

I have seen this movie yesterday and the director went on to ask that we post reviews of his movie on this very site during the Q&A, so I shall oblige. The heart of the problem seem to be that his vision was rejected by the producers and that the final cut done by the producers is such a disgrace that he is going around in festivals to show his own cut.When I asked him if or when the movie would be released in North-America, he answered that it would most likely go directly to DVD, which is a shame cause it really was a tense, effective thriller, faithful to the real events it depict in a stylistically gorgeous mastery. It is a psychological thriller with great actors and a subtly photographed scenery of the deep south, in the down and dirty poor neighborhood of the drugged and drunk underclass. Of course, it isn't really uplifting, but the characters are real people playing out their desperation. The narrative is well constructed and keep you interested through out, especially in the case you had no idea about the event it portrays, you'll get drawn to it only through the sheer magnetism of the central character, who also happen to be despicable in many ways, like everyone else around him.So, let's hope you'll get a chance to see this, the way it was intended to be seen. The director's cut wasn't longish or uselessly shocking, one part that was deleted involved the main character shaving his whole body in the first scene. Perhaps, for the prude and easily upset, it could be disturbing, but isn't that key to building tension in a thriller, to disturb the audience. This first scene should be in the movie, cause it is key to the psychology of the main character. Seeing a grown man shave the hair off his chest shouldn't be cause for concern, especially these days when many men are doing it to follow a trend that made hairy men undesirable. It's a surprising scene, as it is something I never seen depicted on screen, but I don't believe it would offend neither men nor women. There is no actual nudity and very little violence in this movie.To conclude, if you have a chance and it is playing in a festival near you, try to see it and review it too. I believe it should get to be seen and get a proper distribution. It's a solid thriller that wasn't just meant to do the festival circuit.