Nine (2009):Summary
Release Date:December 18th, 2009Director:Rob MarshallWriter:Michael TolkinStarring:Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cottilard, Penelope Cruz, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Kate Hudson, Nicole Kidman, Sophia Loren, Judi Dench, FergieStudio:The Weinstein CompanyGenre:Drama, Musical
In a nutshell: After Chicago grossed over $300million worldwide, there was always going to be a Hollywood appetite for another glamorous movie musical featuring sexy A-list stars, adapted from a Broadway hit. Preferably directed by Chicago's Rob Marshall. Instead of Prohibition-era Chicago, we're in 1960s Italy, where film director Guido (Daniel Day-Lewis) is spiralling into a personal and creative crisis. With only 10 days to go until production starts on his ambitious new movie Italia, he has yet to write a word of the script. When he bolts to a seaside town the whole world follows him there: his production team; the press; his wife (Marion Cotillard); and his mistress (Penelope Cruz).
Any good? Not really. Chicago pulled off the neat trick of making us care about fame-hungry murderesses, but Nine somehow fails to do the same for its flawed protagonist. Guido just isn't as relatable as Roxie Hart was, and nor is the dilemma he faces: choosing between renowned Euro beauties Cotillard and Cruz, while fending off advances from gorgeous Hollywood starlet Kate Hudson (playing a Vogue journalist) and reflecting on missed opportunities with Nicole Kidman (as the leading lady of many of his films). If this is a midlife crisis, bring it on. As Guido ricochets between these various women – there's also Judi Dench as his costume designer, Sophia Loren as his mum, and Black Eyed Peas' Fergie as a prostitute he remembers vividly from his boyhood – there's little with which to engage.
There must be some good points? The costumes and sets are lovely, and fans of glossy Hollywood musicals will enjoy watching the ladies cavorting through them. And credit is due to Cotillard, who brings a soulful texture to Guido's neglected wife. The scene where she watches footage of her husband's latest casting session and is confronted with the full horror of his spiritual bankruptcy, and the song that follows it, is where Nine suddenly achieves real depth.
No Chicago, then? There are plenty of people who reckon Marshall's earlier musical didn't exactly deserve to win the Best Picture Oscar in 2003. In all probability it wasn't the best film released in 2002, but one thing's for sure: it's a whole lot more fun than Nine. Better songs, too.
