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PRODUCER: |
Fernley Philips (first credit), Beau Flynn (The Guardian, The Exorcism of Emily Rose), Tripp Vinson (The Guardian, The Exorcism of Emily Rose) |
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The Number 23 . . . of course, the long awaited sequel to 22.
Starring Jim Carrey and Virginia Madsen, this is definitely no comedy. Even though you wonder if they wanted to make the audience laugh by making Jim Carrey’s character (Walter Sparrow) an Animal Control Officer so you’d have flashbacks to Ace Ventura Pet Detective. But the movie does definitely have a serious vibe about it. It somewhat tries to be intriguing like the Da Vinci Code and present the audience with twists like The Sixth Sense. Agatha (played by Virginia Madsen) buys a book for her husband Walter called The Number 23. Walter is convinced that the main character in the book is based on his life. The main character’s life is ruled by the number 23 and in turn, Walter becomes obsessed with the number 23 and sees it everywhere (like his birthday is Feb. 3rd…23). His obsession puts him right in the middle of an unsolved murder mystery that the book describes in great detail.
The fascination and paranoia in the movie with the number 23 is an interesting concept, and the filmmaker does an excellent job of creating suspense and apprehension. However, all the excitement and tension is actually the result of crafty filmmaking, not a gripping plot. The score is perfect, the cinematography is all very dark and sometimes bizarre, and Jim Carrey perfectly portrays the likable but scary main character. With a far fetched, somewhat senseless storyline, though, the film seems to drag, and the climax almost really isn’t. The Number 23 is an excellent execution of a novel idea and a mediocre story. |
