PARK CITY – Creativity is king at a festival like Sundance. What pops, surprises and sticks with an audience gets the acclaim and, potentially, the big acquisition dollars. There is a difference, however, between a first-time director taking creative risks and the imaginative swing that Edson Oda takes with his directorial debut, “Nine Days.” And after the drama’s premiere at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, we’re happy to report the Brazilian filmmaker pretty much smashed it.
READ MORE: Steven Yeun hold on in the exquisite “Minari” [Sundance Review]
The concept of the film’s world takes a bit to explain itself, but Will (Winston Duke), spends his days watching specific people explore their lives from their own point of view via a stack of different television screens. He takes notes on each subject and records their exploits on videotapes. Every person is cataloged as though they were test subjects in a covert operation. What is initially head-scratching is that Will does this from a one-story home in what appears to be the middle of a flat desert plain. When the upbeat Kyo (Benedict Wong) knocks on his door, what both men are doing in this empty wasteland starts to come to light.
It’s unclear who they report to or how many others are in their same position, but both Will and Kyo spend their days gauging candidates to become the souls of newborn human beings. These new souls arrive almost fully formed in this unnamed “limbo.” If they are chosen they will forget their interview experience but still be “themselves” as they grow into adults. The difference between Will and Kyo, however, is that at one time, Will walked on earth as a human being. Whatever experiences he had in his physical life has made him almost stoic in conducting his duties now.
As the film begins his suppressed emotions are at a fever pitch following the unexpected death of one of his favorite subjects, Amanda (Lisa Starrett), a celebrated concert violist. It turns out Amanda was the only subject who “remembered” him as a child, a revelation that touched him. As he looks for clues that could explain her passing, he is given a slew of new candidates to consider as a replacement subject. And there are just nine days to determine which new soul will be lucky enough to be chosen because if not, their fate is to fade into nothingness.
The candidates that stick around the longest include Anne (Perry Smith), Kane (Bill Skarsgard), Maria (Arianna Ortiz), Mike (David Rysdahl), Alexander (Tony Hale) and Emma (Zazie Beetz). They are instructed to spend time watching the previously chosen subjects on the TV screens and are grilled with “there is no wrong answer” questions from Will afterward. The new souls are profoundly distinct (a credit to both the actors and Oda’s screenplay), but there is something about Emma’s inquisitive pushback that unnerves Will the most.
Granted, the almost daily eliminations moves the story forward considerably (although you could argue there are perhaps a bit too many of them), but what Oda really wants to convey is the portrait of a one-man, Will, who cannot come to grips with the dangers of his own mental state. Even in their newborn existence, a number of his candidates realize something is wrong and Kyo has been deeply concerned about it for some time. Whether Will can make peace with his own existence is the heart of the film and its why Duke’s phenomenal performance is key to its artistic success.
The breakout “Black Panther” star showed his range in “Us” almost a year ago, but what he accomplishes here is on a completely different level. Will is a complex character, to say the least, and it’s up to Duke to convey his rigid exterior while making his compassion believable when it manifests itself. This is a figure who will coldly tell a soul they will be discarded within hours and then offer them a chance to choose a moment they would have wanted to experience on earth before they depart. A moment he’ll craft with his own hands whether it’s creating the sensation of the ocean water on your feet or riding a bike through a picturesque Brazilian village. Without Duke’s presence, the film simply wouldn’t work.
Duke is assisted, however, but a wonderfully warm turn by Beetz and Skarsgard playing decidedly against type. Sure, Hale brings some additional comic relief beyond Wong’s yeoman like efforts, but he makes sure to remind you of his dramatic chops as well.
Oda’s vision comes to life thanks not only to his ensemble but, first and foremost, production designer Dan Hermansen as nothing on his resume even comes close to his work on this picture. The innovative concepts Hermansen makes use of to make Will’s “moments” come to life are absolutely stellar. Wyatt Garfield does impressive work in the limbo world as well as a tremendous number of POV perspectives from different subjects on Earth. The director’s celebrated compatriot, composer Antonio Pinto, crafts a score that is wonderfully sublime.
“Nine Days” is the result of Oda’s personal passion to share a story such as Will’s in a manner that makes you pay fierce attention. In its description of the film, the festival itself remarked that Oda was the “spiritual child of Charlie Kaufman and Michel Gondry.” There may be some very, very minor similarities connecting their work to date, but that’s more of an insult than a compliment to what Oda has achieved here. This isn’t just creative. It isn’t just imaginative. “Nine Days” is the sort of original cinematic art that, these days, is few and far between. [A-]
