9 Songs

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9 Songs

Standing in one of the most controversial and daring corners of Michael Winterbottom cinema, this work paints a fragmentary portrait of a relationship that extends from noisy concert venues in London to quiet, private moments. The narrative is presented within a framework: In the freezing whiteness of Antarctica, a scientist named Matt remembers the woman he left behind and the temporary but deep bond he shared with that woman. Memory is a selective tool; only the brightest moments and most intense feelings remain. Winterbottom is experimenting with an unorthodox form of conveying a relationship. Nine live performances, nine songs, make up the skeleton of the film. The scenes of names such as Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Franz Ferdinand, Elbow do not only serve as background music; they synchronize the mood of the characters to the rhythm of the relationship. The tension between the anonymous sense of freedom within the concert crowd and the moments when two people are left alone forms the emotional backbone of the film. To describe this work merely as "a film with explicit scenes" would be both incomplete and unfair. Yes, Winterbottom is taking a path that very few directors dare to go in the name of realism, and he is doing it not with aesthetic recklessness, but with a conscious choice. The aim is to transform physical intimacy from being an abstract part of the relationship into a concrete and honest element. This choice makes the film both disturbing and unique. The chemistry between the characters played by Kieran O'Brien and Margo Stilley often transcends words. The question that lingers with the audience is not how the two strangers came together, but how they parted ways, or whether they parted ways at all. The relationship between them does not follow a linear progression; it is more like a sum of momentary intensities. A concert night, a morning, a silence. Time is not linear; it flows according to an emotional logic. This film, which may disappoint some viewers with its overly simple narrative, is impressive to others precisely because of its starkness. It speaks a completely different language than the love stories reheated and re-served by popular cinema. This experience, oscillating between noise and silence, contact and distance, chooses to make you think rather than condition you.

Rating: 5.5/10
Vote Count: 583
Release Date: July 16, 2004
Runtime: 1 hr 10 min
Original Name: 9 Songs
Languages: English
Country:

GB

United Kingdom
Production Companies:

Revoluti...

Popularity:34.4919
Budget:1.000.000,00 $
Revenue:1.574.623,00 $

Media

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w780//qU7tNIMpRqkizIObXfkJY3haTqh.jpg
9 Songs
9 Songs
9 Songs

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Cast

Writers & Directors

Reviews

tmdb28039023

August 28, 2022

5/10

Lisa is an exchange student in London. Her affair with Matt has the urgency of the ephemeral. They are enjoying an extended, unofficial honeymoon; we see them dancing, drinking beer, doing drugs, hanging out, having irrelevant conversations and, above all, going to rock shows (all nine of the titular songs are performed live) and having sex (Matt and Lisa have intercourse the same way they talk; ie, like real human beings as opposed to movie characters). There is generous nudity, and the sex ...

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Frequently Asked Questions

9 Songs was released in 2004.

9 Songs has a runtime of 1 hr 10 min (70 minutes).

9 Songs belongs to the following genres: Drama, Music, Romance.

9 Songs has a rating of 5.5/10 from 583 votes on TMDB.