Movie Review: Nine
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Daniel Day-Lewis and Marion Cotillard in Nine
Photo by David James - Courtesy Weinstein company
Daniel Day-Lewis is one of those actors who, in my book, can do no wrong. And I’ve never seen a performance by Dame Judi Dench that was wanting. Since she played Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose and won an Oscar® for her work, Marion Cotillard has not disappointed. And who doesn’t like Penélope Cruz? With or without Pedro Almodovar she shines in every film she does. Add to these actors Sophia Loren, Kate Hudson and, in her first movie role, the Black-Eyed Peas’ Fergie, you have a great cast. When they’re bringing a Broadway musical to the screen under the direction of Chicago director Rob Marshall, the result should be a smash.
The result in this case is the film of Nine, based of Federico Fellini’s 1963 autobiographical film 8 ½, and the 1982 multi-Tony®-Award-winning Broadway musical, Nine — it’s title bumped up a fraction and it’s splash up an untold number— is the story of successful Italian director Guido Contini and his battle with director’s block — a totally mixed up personal life, the great expectations of his oeuvre-worshipping audience and himself, have completely crippled him.
In the original film Marcello Mastroianni played Guido and, in the Broadway original and the 2003 revival the part was played by Latinos Raul Julia and Antonio Banderas, respectively. Here Brit Daniel Day-Lewis takes on the role — he sings, he loves, he’s anguished and absolutely blocked. His Guido is appealing in that odd if-you-like-Day-Lewis-you’ll-probably-like-him-here kind of way. But, even though we see him working/trying to work and with his wife, lover and potential lover, we never quite know what Guido’s problem is.
In the original musical, Guido was the only man in the cast. Here, he’s got a producer and Judi Dench’s Lilli — originally Guido’s producer — is some kind of costume designer who’s nonetheless important enough to be part of every conference he has and is his sole confidante. Even though it doesn’t quite make sense, her big musical number is fun.
Also fun is Fergie’s rendition of the film’s only real takeaway song, Be Italian. Cotillard, all Audrey Hepburn-ish, is lovely and Cruz, oozing sex and need — not always a comfortable combination — isn’t very likeable or sympathetic, but she’s very good at what she’s doing. Kate Hudson, too, is fine. She both literally and figuratively sparkles in her musical number. Sophia Loren isn’t given much to do, but it’s nice to see her.
I’ve not mentioned Nicole Kidman who here is her usual dull self. Her reedy singing voice and plywood personality don’t belong in this sparkle-fest. Clearly, Guido has a thing for her. She’s his “muse.” But why? She’s supposed to invoke the memory of Fellini leading lady Anita Ekberg. Sadly the only memory she invokes is how Ekberg was all lush and sensuous. Kidman suffers from the memory.
The pedigree of this film is amazing — Fellini’s original won the Best Foreign-language Oscar®, the Tony-winning show, a cast that includes four Oscar®-winners, a Gramny® winner and Rob Marshall, director nominated for the Oscar®. The late Anthony Minghella (The English Patient) worked on the screenplay.
So what went wrong? Or did anything go wrong?
Ask the majority of film critics and they’ll tell you Nine is an awful mess. One complained, for example, that it’s about a film director and many of the musical numbers take place “on a stage.” That ridiculous carping. It’s clearly a soundstage. Also, when our protagonist imagines most of the musical numbers and the protagonist is a film director, there’s something very right about the soundstage being the setting. There are complaints about Guido’s inability to make a move and/or a movie. Yes, the camera brings us closer than the stage production did into the mid-life crisis angst Guido is suffering, but that’s what film does.
I went to see Nine sort of against my will. I had really anticipated its release and, then, read too many reviews that made me dread seeing it. Going in, I was grateful only that, unlike too many films today, it’s less than two hours long. When I left the theater, I was glad that I’d seen it. I had a lot of fun.
(6 votes, average: 4.83 out of 5)
Loading ...
