NINE

NINE has an impressive foundation: it adapts a hit Broadway musical based on the classic Italian film 8-1/2, and it surrounds its troubled director with lavish, full-scale musical numbers. The cast is also filled with major stars. But the film’s episodic structure keeps the story from fully taking off, and its dance sequences fall flatter on screen than they might onstage.

The larger problem is Guido himself. Rather than feeling like a tortured artist, he comes across as a whining man who chases women, lies to his wife, and expects forgiveness. The film also contains strong anti-God sentiments, pervasive sexual suggestiveness, adultery, revealing clothing, brief foul language, alcohol use, and much smoking.

Because the source finds real but limited entertainment merit alongside adult-only content, wait to watch NINE at home, if you choose it at all.

Celebrity film director Guido is preparing to shoot a major movie in only 10 days, but he has neither a script nor a story. As professional pressure closes in, he retreats, lies to his wife, and turns to other women for comfort.

Guido’s wife, mistress, mother, journalist, former prostitute, and costume designer each receive a musical number reflecting on their relationships with him. Their stories gradually expose a man caught between artistic ambition, romantic entanglements, and the consequences of his choices.

Three stars means NINE has substantial production value and some appealing musical ambition, but it does not fully succeed as a film. The extravagant, Bob Fosse-inspired musical numbers could work well on Broadway, yet they fall somewhat flat onscreen.

The episodic dance numbers also weaken the cohesion of the story. More importantly, viewers may struggle to sympathize with Guido, whose repeated infidelity and lying make him seem less like a tortured artist than a whining man seeking forgiveness without earning much connection with the audience.

NINE’s dominant worldview is strongly Romantic in the philosophical sense. It centers on emotional states, artistic expression, and relationships with women, treating romance and personal artistic fulfillment as major sources of meaning. The story also includes strong pagan elements, an immoral lifestyle, and an almost worshipful attitude toward art.

The film contains strong anti-God sentiments. Guido remembers being beaten by a priest who tells him God will punish him, while later Catholic clerics try to offer moral and spiritual advice. Guido says he would believe in Christ, Buddha, or Mohammad if he did not have to believe in God. He also hides a crucifix before having sexual relations with his mistress, a pointed rejection of the symbol of Christ’s atonement and God’s love.

Guido’s eventual lesson is that none of the women in his life can help him find his way and that he alone must do so. Yet the source notes that he does not seem to learn very much. The film’s emphasis on self-discovery falls short of the biblical call to submit our lives to God: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).

NINE offers lavish musical numbers and a distinguished cast, but its episodic storytelling and unsympathetic protagonist limit its impact. Its sexual content, anti-God sentiments, and other adult material make it unsuitable for children and young teens. Our answer is WAIT FOR HOME — ADULTS ONLY. For another choice, see.