Director Rob Marshall (Chicago) helms a musical re-telling of Fellini's semi-autobiographical 8½. It tells the story of a famous film director Guido Contini (Daniel Day-Lewis) who confronts a mid-life crisis of creative and personal problems.
Guido must balance the many women in his life, including his wife (Marion Cotillard), his mistress (Penelope Cruz), his film star muse (Nicole Kidman), his confidant and costume designer (Judi Dench), an American fashion journalist (Kate Hudson), the prostitute from his youth (Fergie) and his mother (Sophia Loren).
The original 1982 Broadway production of Nine, with music and lyrics by Maury Yeston, won five Tony Awards including Best Musical. Read a great interview between Marion Cotillard & Penelope Cruz at InterviewMagazine.com.
Adapted from one of surrealist cinema’s most iconic and seminal pieces, Fellini’s 8 1/2, Nine plays more like an elaborate stage piece then it does a film. While this allows for a few stunning scenes, the film comes off – to use musical lingo – a touch flat, both surprising and disappointing given the talent assembled.
The heart of the piece is, of course, the song and dance numbers. While each is played out with dazzlingly glamourous production design and intricate choreography, none of the songs are catchy or powerful enough to stand on their own. The cast is willing but the combination of their star power and the technical flash feels more like covering the music’s weaknesses rather than enhancing its qualities.
On top of this, the narrative feels disjointed. While this allows for variety from one number to the next, it also means you are watching a string of tenuously related scenes rather than a story progressing and building, robbing the work of an emotional core.
It’s still enjoyable watching the bona fide A-listers, particularly Day-Lewis, Cruz and Cotillard, in a different setting from the norm but anyone expecting Nine to live up to its award season hype might be let down.
By Andreas Heinemann, Flicks.co.nz
I really loved this movie and thought that it was really great. I went in to it thinking that it would be like every other musical and it so was not, not at all actually the cast was great and the costumes were amazing I was shocked to see that it did not get nominated for best picture at the 2010 academy awards. This is just a really great movie
I havent watched the movie yet but I just know it will be amazing because Daniel Day-Lewis turns everything to gold with one touch....
The person behind us summed it up as "The Ice-cream was better". I don't see how anyone could give this 5 stars.
I thought this movie was one of the worst movies I have ever seen. This is the only movie I have seen where I was tempted to leave. It was boring, the costumes were lack lustre, the music was the same the whole way through, the lyrics sucked. It was trite, and it was an insult to the intelligence of the audience - they think they can just get these big stars and slap together some dance routines and have no real script- the singing was sometimes horrible. And they expect audiences to suck that up. I actually wondered if it was some kind of farce or parody and that I didnt get the joke.
I loved the scenery of italy, the clothes & the music but as for the story... I've seen better but it was still good. Personally I would've preferred a different ending but it was quite a good movie. If you liked Moulin Rouge you'll probably like this.
Nine is just plain adrift in its own lack of necessity.
Though slightly marred by a clunky structure and a lack of truly catchy tunes, Nine’s wall-to-wall first-rate performances from its stellar cast (especially Cotillard) add a touch of class.
The disappointments here are many, from a starry cast the film ill-uses to flat musical numbers that never fully integrate into the dramatic story. The only easy prediction is that Nine is not going to revive the slumbering musical-film genre.
Looks fantastic but is emotionally underwhelming.
Daniel Day Lewis takes the cliché of the philandering Italian momma's boy, shows the charm and then savagely exposes the hollow core.
We've been told the NZ release date for this flick is Thursday, 28th Jan 2010.
Release date: January 28th 2010.
We haven't received times for this movie in this location yet. However these are updated as cinemas announce them, so check back soon. Hopefully the lovely cinemas in your location will choose to play it shortly. ~Ed.
