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I'd like to express my gratitude to Rob Marshall for finding a way to cinematize at least two classic Broadway musicals. I find myself hoping that the seemingly arbitrary dismissals by some critics and users of both Chicago and Nine (not to mention poor box office returns and perhaps low DVD sales and rentals) will not discourage Marshall from reaching for yet another musical. How about Sondheim's Follies? Please.
What is to dislike about the film Nine? I suppose it depends upon the viewer's expectations--a peculiarity of the dramatic arts, perhaps especially cinema. My expectations were at least 95% fulfilled. I had only a casting problem. As talented and as beautiful as Nicole Kidman may be, she does not evoke the haunting, angelic perfection of the original Claudia: Claudia Cardinale. Her beauty is, if one may say so, tough Australian, rather than ethereal Italian. But Nicole did well, as did everyone else in the film. (Is there any character Daniel Day-Lewis can't play to perfection?)
Nine says essentially the same thing 8 1/2 did: making movies based on personal, biographical visions and mistakes can absorb one artistically at the cost of "real life" relationships. It's something great directors such as Fellini, Bergman, and Scorsese just have to deal with. Thanks to Arthur Kopit, Mario Fratti, and composer-lyricist Maury Yeston, the story, the point, the dialogue expressed the theme absorbingly and intelligently.
But most of all, it was a joy to hear and see the musical numbers so faithfully presented, worked into the story, executed. As with every film adaptation of a Broadway musical, I missed some numbers that were in the show, most notably "Only With You" and "Simple". However, it was nice to hear a few new Maury Yeston songs, especially "Cinema Italiano". So, if you're expecting a musically and dramatically satisfying film version of a hit show, see Nine.
score 9/10
doctorm112002 8 May 2010
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw2246726/ |
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16-12-2019 00:38:20
