THE NINES (2007) **** DVD Review by SEBASTIAN

If I had to sum up this movie… well, it would be hard. The surface story involves three separate stories featuring the same three cast members as different characters. Story 1 is about a young, reckless actor (Ryan Reynolds) under house arrest, who starts noticing that something seems to be wrong with the world. Story 2 focuses on a young director (Reynolds again) who is struggling to get his dream project onto the small screen. Story 3 concerns the tale he has been filming, a pilot called “Following”. It is in the last story that the first two come together and explain the weird metaphysics going on throughout the feature.

OK. So there is the gist of what you will be watching. The thing that makes this movie really interesting is little details, especially when you look back in retrospect. The last act is mind-boggling and makes you want watch the film again. The film is in some ways reminiscent of “Mulholland Drive” as well as some other “metafiction” films.

The cast features Reynolds, as well as the exceptional Melissa McCarthy, and Hope Davis (who is superb as ever). Reynolds and McCarthy really share some challenging scenes and have some very interesting interplay with this exceptional script. The actors make the writing, which is already really sharp, really sing (literally at times). Ryan Reynolds has been up and coming for quite some time and I expect the upcoming “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” film to finally put him on the map as the superstar he can be. He really carries a lot of the scenes in this one. His dialogue especially, but also his emotions come across clearly to the viewer. And this is a film that relies on a complex collection of emotions.

McCarthy though, is the showstopper here, giving what has to be hands down her best performance to date. Director John August seems to have an understanding with her that most filmmakers these days only dream about. He directs her through some really intriguing and difficult material. Her performance will linger with you.

The production is well up to par for this budget. The editing is especially rewarding. I was very impressed with the script and the premise in general. The casting is absolutely genius and somewhat out of the norm.

Original ideas are so short in supply these days. I won’t reveal anything about the overall idea, but I will say that if you’re a fan of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” or mind-benders in general, I think this is right up your alley. Also the character insight is really interesting considering what you find out in the finale.

To tell much more about this film would make the experience stale. This one surprised me and it entertained me too. Give it a shot!

Trailer below…

-Sebastian

Vote it up!