Nine's backstory is a convoluted mess, to put it bluntly. It's a big screen adaptation of a book about stage play which was based on 8 1/2, the autobiographical film by Federico Fellini. Most people won't care about all that, and oftentimes it seems Nine doesn't either. When director Rob Marshall dazzled audiences in 2003 with his Oscar winning musical, Chicago, I felt that was a film that actually benefitted from being ported from the stage. The story was so large and glitzy that it deserved to be behind a curtain. I certainly had my problems with it, but it was entertaining. Nine is also entertaining, but for totally different and admittedly selfish reasons.
Daniel Day-Lewis, in my mind the best actor working today, stars as Guido, a self involved film director struggling to come up with a story for his next big project. Guido's life is dominated by the women in his life: His reliable and loving wife Luisa(Marion Cotillard); his sexy mistress(Penelope Cruz) who also happens to be married; and his favorite actress(Nicole Kidman) who Guido has always had a thing for secretly. As if that's not enough, Guido's memories are bombarded by memories of his deceased mother(Sophia Loren); and the local prostitute that first...I don't know, taught Guido how to "be Italian" or something. Not sure what she did actually that inspired so much attention.
Marshall knows his way around the stage, and Nine is glamorous enough to get by on sheer gaudiness alone. The film's crutch are it's musical performances, and by comparison to Chicago this one is severely lacking in memorable tunes. The only two songs I can even remember right now are Fergie's tawdry "Be Italian" featuring the White Eyed Pea doing a chair routine that would put Madonna to shame; and Kate Hudson's "Cinema Italiano", which I immediately downloaded the video onto my Iphone after the movie ended. The song itself is upbeat and perky, but it's Hudson's koochie-mama dance number that made me realize how sexy she can be when shot in plenty of fast cuts. I vaguely remember Penelope Cruz's song only because of how scantily dressed she is while performing it. Ask me why Nicole Kidman is even in this movie. Go ahead, I dare you.
Somewhere in there, Daniel Day-Lewis has a couple of songs that best left go undiscussed. Let's just say, he oughta stick to stealing people's milkshakes.
Yet despite my criticisms I really did get sucked into the story, such as it was. A large part of that is due to Daniel Day-Lewis, who despite his inability to carry a tune remains the most capitvating actor in the business. He makes Guido an almost likable, pitiable character despite his numerous flaws. Lewis has a knack for turning big roles into mountainous performances. Marion Cotillard is great as well. Her final song near the end of the film serves as something of a coda to their entire relationship.
I can admit that Chicago is probably a better technical film than Nine, but ask me which one I'd rather watch again? I haven't seen Chicago in six years, and likely won't ever again. I can pretty much guarantee I'll be revisiting Guido and his heavenly harem often in the future.
7/10
