There are plenty of movies that exist that are character studies, and they fail miserably, then there are movies that attempt this feat and end up being dissected and analyzed by film professors and film students for years to come. Thankfully, Robert Machoian’s The Integrity of Joseph Chambers is the latter and Clayne Crawford is the perfect leading man for this character study. There is not an entire lot going on throughout the film except one man’s mission to serve his family, and that enough gets the audience engaged in the film.
The film focuses almost solely on Joe played by Clayne Crawford, as he decides he must declare his manhood to his wife, Tess played by Jordana Brewster, and ventures out into the woods himself to hunt in hopes of securing dinner for himself and his family. What ends up happening is far from that as it’s a venture into toxic masculinity and through some visions and twists, not everything is as it seems like Joe is slowly descending into madness and everything around him does not end up being what it originally seems.
What makes The Integrity of Joseph Chambers work so incredibly well is that the audience is not in the know of what is happening until Joe is aware of what is happening. The script that Robert Machoian provides is intense, suspenseful, and engaging. To be able to captivate an audience with a near singular character in the woods practically alone for nearly 90 minutes is an impressive feat that is going to be dissected and written about for years to come.
