Released in 2005. Out on DVD.
This picture is a series of 9 separate vignettes, all featuring roughly 15 minutes in the lives of 9 women. There is a thin connection to the different characters, though the 'connection' is not the point of the film. Each of the 9 'lives' is extraordinarily well written in a voice that is realistic and not intentionally dramatic. The majority of the vignettes are visceral and intense, but in a sophisticated, understated and emotional way. There are several standout lives, my favorite being the last one, starring Glenn Close and Dakota Fanning. It is about loss and the absence of a loved one.
The writer/director of this movie was Rodrigo Garcia, and the executive producer was Babel and 21 Grams' Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu. Given the quality of Children of Men, Pan's Labryinth, Babel, and Nine Lives (all of which are written and directed by Mexicans), not to mention Volver and all of Pedro Almadovar's work, I think immigration is starting to work out for us after all.
To watch scenes from each vignette, you can go to the site linked below, and click on the name of the characters. Enjoy.
1 comment:
The one knockout for me Robin Wright Penn running into an ex-boyfriend at a supermarket. She shows so many emotions, many at the same time. It's made all the more impressive by being one shot (like all 9).
And indeed, with Children of Men, Pan's Labyrinth, and Babel all within my top 6 or 7 of the year, the "3 amigos" outdid themselves this year. Are the next generation of American-born directors less artistically capable because they've grown up with everything in abundance?
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