Be Italian: Trailer for Rob Marshall's 'Nine'
Filed under: Music & Musicals, The Weinstein Co., Remakes and Sequels, Nicole Kidman, Trailers and Clips
Now I know I'm not the only one who is fascinated by the prospect of watching the great Daniel Day Lewis singing and dancing in Rob Marshall's Nine. But the first trailer has been released on Apple for Marshall's adaptation of the Tony-nominated play of the same name, and if you were hoping for a glimpse of Lewis doing jazz-hands, then you're going to be disappointed. But, jazz-hands aside, after watching this trailer I think I may have to change my opinion of the directing talents of Mr. Marshall -- because Marshall's musical skills look better without Renee Zellwegger doing '3/4 shot' dance numbers while warbling her heart out.Nine is based on the classic Fellini film, 8 1/2, and centers on the famous film director, Guido Contini. The story is set in early-1960s Venice, and on the eve of Contini's 40th birthday he is struggling to complete his latest film, and attempting to balance the women in his life. Those women include his wife Luisa (Marion Cotillard), his mistress Carla (Penélope Cruz), his muse Claudia (Nicole Kidman), his producer Liliane (Judi Dench), and his mother (Sophia Loren). But that's not all, because as Monika told us back in 2008, Stacy Ferguson (better known as Fergie) will play a whore from Contini's youth, and Kate Hudson also has a small role as an American fashion journalist. It's not often you get this many big name actresses in one film, but I'm sure Lewis won't have any trouble handling all that estrogen.
So to the strains of 'Be Italian' we finally get our first glimpses of the big-budget musical, and it looks like Marshall may owe a small debt to the style of Bob Fosse's production numbers once again. But that doesn't mean Nine won't be a good time at the movies for fans of both Broadway, and classic cinema. So take a look, and tell me what you think. Oscar contender?
Nine will arrive in theaters on November, 25th.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-15-2009 @ 5:12PM
David said...
Well, on the one hand it's a great-looking trailer, and everyone I've shown it to has gasped at the exact same moment -- and you'll know it when you see it. But on the other hand I'm discouraged by the suggestion that it's going to be filmed, shot, and especially edited in the same way as "Chicago," with all the dance numbers being so flashingly and dazzlingly cut that we're going to have no chance to see the actual choreography. I'll never forget Richard Gere proudly saying that he learned that entire tapdance number, but it was so microscopically edited and photographed so closely and fragmentally that it could have been ANYBODY doing it, and didn't even have to do three consecutive steps. I hope I'm wrong with "Nine," and I know trailers can be different, but this doesn't bode well for me.
And I'm looking forward to the poor people at the box offices this fall who are going to have to keep asking "Do you mean Nine-The-Musical or 9-The-Tim-Burton-Cartoon"?
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5-16-2009 @ 1:11PM
ames said...
lol, agree with your last comment...
i'm looking forward to this purely based on the curiousity of seeing everyone sing, with the exception of kidman and fergie, cause i've heard them before. speaking of which, fergie's rendition of 'be italian' -- very impressive.
5-16-2009 @ 3:35PM
MarcDom7 said...
Correction: Tony-WINNING musical, both in its debut run (Best Musical among many others) and its recent revival (Jane Krakowski).
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5-17-2009 @ 12:15AM
Anthony said...
and let's not forget who the author of "nine" is: a great dramaturgist in his own right, mario fratti!
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5-16-2009 @ 9:45PM
Alfio Chieffallo said...
Having been a professional dancer I am very excited to see this film. I had no idea that Fergie sang "Be Italian". I concur with the previous comment. And Sofia! Mamma Mia Sofia! This will, I hope, be a feast for the eyes.
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5-17-2009 @ 8:49AM
Rose said...
I absolutely LOVED Renee in "Chicago" and thought Marshall did a wonderful job with that musical. I am a little concerned, however, about this effort . Chicago was great, but we do not want to see a copycat of that here. That has already been done. I sincerely hope this movie uses a totally different angle. I cannot tell for sure from the trailer if that will be the case. (also not thrilled at Nicole Kidman singing again!)
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5-18-2009 @ 11:10AM
Nellie said...
I don't think this looks anything like Chicago. Jazz clubs and italian villas do not look the same to me, And I disagree about the comment about the choreography; judging by the trailer, the biggest numbers will be filmed in wide-shot, giving us a great view of the numbers. Especially looking forward to what Marshall did with Penelope Cruz and "A Call From the Vatican".