The Nines (2006)
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64% of critics liked it
(61 reviews) -
60% of users liked it
(44,107 ratings)
Writer/director John August ponders the metaphysical aspects of life and art in an episodic allegory that follows three artists as they embark on a soul searching journey of fate versus free will. When a troubled actor is placed under house arrest in "The Prisoner," his imagination begins… More Writer/director John August ponders the metaphysical aspects of life and art in an episodic allegory that follows three artists as they embark on a soul searching journey of fate versus free will. When a troubled actor is placed under house arrest in "The Prisoner," his imagination begins to run wild due to the fact that his spirited publicist and cynical neighbor provide his only link to the outside world. Later, after the planes of reality fold in on themselves during the production of a Project Greenlight-style show which documents the filming of a popular sitcom in "Reality Television," "Knowing" follows a successful video game designer and his family as they become stranded in the middle of nowhere due to automotive issues. Ryan Reynolds, Hope Davis, and Melissa McCarthy star in a drama that peels back the layers of reality to ask whether or not mankind really has any control over his ultimate fate. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Directed By
- John August
- Written By
- John August
- Genres
- Drama, Art House & International, Mystery & Suspense, Comedy
- In Theaters
- Aug 31, 2007 Wide
- Studio
- Newmarket
Critic Reviews
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David Jenkins, Time Out
This overreaching, Lynch-lite comic drama is the mediocre directorial debut of screenwriter John August ('Charlie's Angels', 'Big Fish') and, if nothing else, demonstrates why some writers should stick to their laptops.
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Gene Seymour, Newsday
The cosmic "resolution" that ties the stories together proves less interesting than the stories themselves.
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Lou Lumenick, New York Post
The Nines, which in real life began as a TV project, wavers uncomfortably between satire and dime-store existentialism on the big screen.
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Jack Mathews, New York Daily News
The dialogue snaps, crackles and pops. And confusing as they may be, the stories are never boring.
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Carina Chocano, Los Angeles Times
Bright and vicious, desperate and cruel, the characters of the first two stories pop with a kind of nihilistic joie de vivre that makes you want to hug them and kill them at once.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
Cast
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Ryan Reynolds
as Gary/Gavin/Gabriel
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Hope Davis
as Sarah/Susan/Sierra
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Melissa McCarthy
as Margaret/Melissa/Mary
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Elle Fanning
as Noelle
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Dahlia Salem
as Herself
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David Denman
as Parole Officer/Agitated Man
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Octavia L. Spencer
as Streetwalker/Woman on Sidewalk
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Ben Falcone
as Himself


