look for the nines…

the nines is a largely neglected drama that comes from the prose of a considerably overlooked writer. john august has penned many a modern classic, including tim burtons charlie and the chocolate factory, the corpse bride, big fish, and even the wildly adventurous titan a.e. with the nines, august had his chance to not only compose a superior simplistic production but also had the chance to conduct it as well.

the film stars a small cast which is nice to see in days of late. ryan reynolds [just friends, amityville horror], hope davis [proof, the matador], melissa mccarthy [gilmore girls] and elle fanning [babel and sister to dakota fanning] round out the main personae and they are realistically all that’s needed. august keeps the production uncluttered, which becomes a pleasant present later on, as the story gets more complicated, the presentation is very stable and simple to follow.

reynolds and most all the other main players portray more than one figure in the film, rounding out at three characters per actor/actress. reynolds is a personal favorite and does nothing to deviate from the norm. his performance is the essential and central act and he plays it off perfectly. the movie is broken into three acts and reynolds is the lead performer all three times; once as an actor, again as a screenwriter, and lastly a videogame designer. the plot seems elementary at first glance but with every act it gets more abstruse as it plays out.

august does a superfluous first job in the directorial chair and is visually refreshing. each act is done in a different format; the first a standard movie, the second from a reality show perspective, and the last in a blue overtone, but each piece has the same formula. reynolds is a considerably normal person that starts experiencing bizarre things. by the end of each routine you find yourself asking “what the fuck?”. this, however, is not a problem, for the film forms together neatly at the end, like a rubiks cube you’ve spent about two hours on.

to put it simply, the movie is a nice break from the standard criterion, and plays out smoothly with no hitches. unlike other abstract and peculiar playacts, their are no unanswered questions in this movie. august does a great job as does every actor involved in the project. also, since the acts are brief and simple, the movie has a lucid pace that makes nothing drag.

bottom line: rent the movie and watch it. make sure you aren’t distracted during it because it’s not that simple. it could easily become a cult classic and is a great portrayal of reynolds versatility. it’s a great little flick that was largely overlooked by the general populous.

the movie is comparable to: identity or vanilla sky [but only subtly], a play, a new and fresh experience that is easily lovable to the constant moviegoer.

do you know the barber, man? the one who slits on fleet street, daily?

i am a tim burton fanboy.

there. i admitted it. even with such depositions, sweeney todd: the demon barber of fleet street is more than your garden variety burton escapade. in todd, burton explores the macabre horror that he touched upon in sleepy hollow; and with doing so, creates a compelling and quirky off-beat dark comedy.

burton is known for his uncommon brand of directing and the stories he tells [or retells] with his photoplay. with sweeney todd, his outre sense of direction takes every viewer for a fantastic ride. the dark exterior, sprinkled intermediately with dainty and purposely bright settings, is a natural setting for this novel project.

in burton and depps sixth outing together, they mesh in perfect rhythm. depp captures the essence of a sad and vengeful coiffeur, at times encompassing so many emotions at once he becomes what he is playing: a mad man. with a passing glance, sweeney todd seems like an standard burton flick; but look deeper. the story is an overlooked classic.

sweeney todd has been a horror musical for decades, made classic with the astounding musical renditions of stephen sondheim. sondeheims music is remixed for this updated chiller. the singing parts of the music were surprisingly well done. rickman [dogma, the harry potter movies] and depp do their best, standing strong in a cast of more talented melodists, but the warbler who steals the show is the young ed sanders [in his film debut.]

even sacha baron cohen, the irritating borat, is charming as an italian entertainer. the strength and foundation of the movie is in it’s cast; a perpetual all-star line up under the guidance of a balls out director. the grim general overtone of this cinematic wonder is constantly given breaks with clever and subtle humor, done so precisely that it becomes an expected [and looked forward to] twist in the film.

it’s truly a beautiful scene: a musical-horror-dark comedy-tragedy played out by talented and revered actors. the gore splattering lyrical adventure is magical.

bottom line: see it. buy it. deny to love it or embrace it. tim burton hits another home run, an upward glance from his less than stellar works as of late.

the movie is comparable to: edward scissorhands, sleepy hollow, moulin rouge, a romp through england encountering every eccentric and nearly terrifying character on the streets of the city of industrialization