Chain of Fools (film)

2001 film by Traktor

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Chain of Fools

DVD cover

Directed by| Traktor
Written by| Bix Skahill
Produced by|

* Tony Lord
* Matthew Weaver
* Happy Walters

Starring|

* Steve Zahn
* Salma Hayek
* Elijah Wood
* David Cross
* Tom Wilkinson
* David Hyde Pierce
* Lara Flynn Boyle
* Jeff Goldblum

Cinematography| Frederick Elmes
Edited by| Harvey Rosenstock
Music by|

* David A. Hughes
* John Murphy

Production
companies

* City Block Films[1]
* Weaver/Lord Productions[1]
* Immortal Films[1]

Distributed by| Warner Bros. Pictures

Release date

* March 3, 2001 (2001-03-03) (Sweden)[2]

Running time

| 96 minutes
Country| United States
Language| English
Budget| $20 million[3]

Chain of Fools is a 2001 American heist comedy film directed by Swedish production collective Traktor. It stars Steve Zahn, Salma Hayek, Elijah Wood, David Cross, Tom Wilkinson, David Hyde Pierce, Lara Flynn Boyle, and Jeff Goldblum. Chain of Fools was scheduled for release in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures in the fall of 2000, but it ended up only being theatrically released in Sweden on March 3, 2001.[2] After further delays, the film was released straight to video in the US on February 15, 2005.[3]

## Plot[edit]

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Thomas Kresk is a loser—he isn't good at his job, he's been tossed out of his home, and his wife just dumped him for the marriage counselor. On top of all that, his longtime friend and mentor Gordon Freeman died tragically. Now he's depressed, and contemplating suicide. And yes, things get worse: a criminal named Avnet (Jeff Goldblum) has stolen three priceless coins, and decided to blackmail Bollingsworth (Tom Wilkinson), his billionaire partner in crime. After Kresk overhears this, he almost gets shot—and Avnet ends up impaled on a pair of barbers' scissors.

Now Kresk is in a considerably nastier situation, so he steals the gun and the coins. But things take a sharp turn when he hires a hit man named Mikey (Elijah Wood), and discovers that the hit man is only seventeen and emotionally traumatized by his parents' suicide. And that Kresk is falling for the cop/Playboy model Sgt. Meredith Kolko (Salma Hayek), and that his nephew Scottie (Devin Drewitz) has now swallowed the coins. Now Kresk is in over his head, and has to deal with the strange and sometimes dangerous people around him.

## Cast[edit]

* Steve Zahn as Kresk
* Salma Hayek as Kolko
* Jeff Goldblum as Avnet
* David Cross as Andy
* Elijah Wood as Mikey
* Tom Wilkinson as Bollingsworth
* David Hyde Pierce as Mr. Kerner
* Kevin Corrigan as Paulie
* Orlando Jones as Miss Cocoa
* Lara Flynn Boyle as Karen
* John Cassini as Henchman
* Michael Rapaport as Hitman
* Craig Ferguson as Melander Stevens
* Myndy Crist as Jeannie

## Production[edit]

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The primary filming location was Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.[citation needed]

## Release[edit]

Chain of Fools premiered in Sweden on March 3, 2001.[2] The film was scheduled for a US release by Warner Bros. Pictures in the fall of 2000, but this never happened. It was then shelved for five years before finally being released on DVD on February 15, 2005.[3]

### Critical reception[edit]

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (January 2023)

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Variety said the film is "uneven but shows definite signs of promise."[2]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c "Chain of Fools (2001)". BFI. Archived from the original on August 24, 2017. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
2. ^ a b c d Rehlin, Gunnar (March 11, 2001). "Chain of Fools". Variety. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
3. ^ a b c "Chain of Fools". Bomb Report. Retrieved 31 January 2023.

## External links[edit]

* Chain of Fools
* Chain of Fools at AllMovie
* Chain of Fools at IMDb
* Chain of Fools at Rotten Tomatoes