NINE - The Movie Musical - Review Thread — Page 5

Also very let down by this film. I would take the movie version of Rent over this anyday, at least Rent had a heart, great music and made sense, this was a big muddled mess

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Yes, my apologies. Attempt.

And I will change my avatar once I find a replacement.

It's not really why it's a fantasy sequence that I had a problem with. It's the justification as to why. Yes, the "Folies Bergère" number takes place onstage, but the rest of them don't. So why is it onstage? It's never given any justification.

I just said that number made sense to put onstage but that the others didn't so why were THEY onstage.

My problem with the FB number was that it was a throwaway, not that it was onstage.

Never thought that the FB number was a throwaway. But, it's an interesting observation.

Since he's having trouble making his film, most of the musical numbers take place on the set of his film - perhaps to get his creative juices flowing so he can focus on the film????

I think it's a wonderful, wonderful film. I'm seeing it again tonight with friends.

Updated On: 12/20/09 at 03:51 PM

He can't seriously think he can remake CHICAGO over and over again.


- While I enjoyed the film more than you, this is SO true. I am so glad Laurents canned his GYPSY idea. Imagine "Some People" being sung on a soundstage?

When did Rob M ever say that he's trying to be the new Fosse?

Not in those exact words but he's eluded to it and no one can deny where his "inspiration" comes from. It's all laid out there on the screen that only a blind person would miss it.

Alluded.

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"When did Rob M ever say that he's trying to be the new Fosse?"

If you read Marquise's post (unless it's been revised) he doesn't say Marshall said anything. He's giving an opinion that Marshall is trying to be the "new" Fosse, unless I missed something.

And, of course, he is - both Chicago and Nine are Fosse clones - anyone who cannot admit that (and it goes a lot beyond "inspiration") is just being stubborn. Chicago, especially, is Fosse-esque, but then it was Fosse's show, so I can buy it there. I cannot buy it with Nine - at all.

Did somebody else for the Chicago Sun-Times review it or is Ebert doing the review? He already give his "best of..." list for the year. That made me wonder if he is planning on reviewing movies for the remainder of the year or just did already with the rest of the movies either just good or just terrible. If Ebert gives the film a nice write-up then at least you could say it got praise from the most important critic.

I liked the film. I didn't love it. Then again I don't know the source material very well.

I loved "Be Italian" definitely the showstopper of the film...very "Cell Block Tango"

Why does every critic keep railing on Kate Hudson and her number? I think "Cinema Italiano" is the most fun number in the film as well as the most beautifully filmed with the switching of color to b&w.
Does anyone else think that "Folies Bergeres" looks almost identical to "All I Care About Is Love" from Chicago? I mean, even down to the large gold confetti at the end of the number.

I went in to the theater with very limited expectations.

I loved the movie. I had tears in my eyes during most of it, and a lump in my throat at the end.

Would I recommend it to my non-musical-comedy-loving-friends? Probably not.

Also went in with very low expectations and really enjoyed it. As a whole, it doesn't quite work. A lot of turning points in the film aren't very well defined, which make you not quite sure when the movie goes in a new direction. But I hardly think it deserves any of the pans it has been getting.

No one in the cast is bad, everyone does what they are called on for doing. Unfortunately, Kidman gets the short end of the stick and her character loses a lot of the emotional heft it had in the show. Marshall should be given a medal for making her look the most beautiful she's looked since Moulin Rouge, and she's magnetic on screen, but I just wish she had a little more to do. As previously stated, the movie could have really needed "Simple."

Cotillard and Cruz are wonderful. "Call from the Vatican" is half a wonderful number and half a missed opportunity, though. Marshall has Cruz doing too much, such as the ropes. She's such a sexy woman, she could be sitting there for half the number and it would be sexy. Both of Cotillard's numbers are wonderful.

Hudson is also wonderful, and even if "Cinema Italiano" is a throwaway number, it's an excellent one. It will definitely be remembered for years to come, it's just never going to work in context with the movie. Daniel Day Lewis is surprisingly very charming and I enjoyed him immensely.

Most of the numbers were great, in my opinion, with my two favorites being the overture and "Be Itlian" (Fergie's version will now and forever be my favorite). If there was one major issue with the film, it would have to be, I'm sorry to say, Rob Marshall. He indulges himself SO much in this film, mostly with editting. It's even more fast cutting and sweeping camera angles than in Chicago. This style almost ruined "Folies Bergeres" for me. He never lets you focus on one thing at a time, which ruins a lot of the magic that he staged for the number. But, he loves him women and they all do look wonderful.

I also wondered why they cut the whole idea that Guido's doing a musical. I thought that would've been a perfect motive for the numbers: He can't think of how to make a musical, and looks on his life and the women in it as inspiration, viewing the situations and the women as musical numbers. A little cheesy, but at least it's a segueway.

I'm really not saying much that others haven't said. I'm not an advocate for keeping everything of a musical in its movie adaptation, I'm all for taking liberties. I think some of the artistic choices they made were great, adding Carla's husband and so on. Some other ones weren't bad, just a tad muddled. Overall, it's a very good movie musical and most of the time beautiful to look at. I'm interested to see how it will hold up over time. A few years after all the buzz (both good and bad) has died down and Oscars are off everyone's mind, what people will think of it then.

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