This weekend I watched a few films but the one that kept my attention was Nine (2009), directed by critically acclaimed director Rob Marshall. It's a cabaret styled muscial, film and play all rolled into one - with each component deliberately aware of its extension into the other. Simply enough, the film starts off with Guido Contini (Daniel Day-Lewis) losing his mojo, his creativity and his passion for an upcoming film that he must direct in a matter of days. Not only has Contini not written a script for what could become his unraveling disaster, he must also contend with the whims of his wife Luisa (Marion Cotillard), his mistress (Penelope Cruz), his mother (Sophia Loren) and a host of reporters who all remember him more for his 'flops' rather than for his masterpieces.
What I like most about Nine is Marshall's camera work. Instead of getting lost on the beautiful and talented cast, the camera takes its viewers inside the smoldering world of Guido Contini. Contini's brain is the mise-en-scene the majority of the time. It's filled with passion, emotion and childhood nuisances. There are definitely some grey areas, but eventually each reveals a muse who explains why Contini has lost his way through a mixture of camera angles, lighting effects and flashbacks.
Nine is all about redemption in the end. Facing divorce and the biggest failure of his career, Contini is forced to retreat from Life as it comes crashing in on all sides. All of this came too late for my taste and it all seemed rushed and out of sync. The seductive dancing seemed to occupy the majority of the film. But maybe, just maybe, that's how a man's brain really works. Either way, I understand the complexities of Contini, not only as a human being but as a haunted soul as well. Nine gets 4 stars from me. It's definitely worth watching.
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