With a cast list that screams awards recognition and from the man who directed Chicago, this is a musical with a difference. The plot is genuinely interesting blurring the lines between fact and fantasy creating a dreamlike environment that allows the stars some room to play but the problem is the genre which requires extravagant song and dance numbers to interrupt the flow.

Arrogant but talented filmmaker Guido Contini is struggling to follow up the earlier successes in his career. With producers and journalists hounding him around Rome he decides to escape to a quiet little hideaway to find inspiration. However his chaotic private life soon follows him as his mistress arrives (Cruz) followed by his loving but weary wife Luisa (Cotilliard). Guido constantly seeks counsel from his mother (Loren) as well as another maternal figure in the form of Judi Denchs costume designer but its international movie star Claudia (Kidman) whom he looks to for creativity. Adding to the chaos is determined American journalist Stephanie (Hudson) who is hunting down a story and the man himself. The cameras are set to roll in a week and with no script finalised the filmmaker even seeks pine intervention but it could all be to no avail.

Based on a popular stage production, the inspiration being the semi-autobiographical Federico Fellini Oscar-winner 8 , Nine sticks to the period of 1960s Italy with faithful authenticity. You are immediately thrust into this world thanks in no small part to the excellent cinematography and the overpowering sense of being in the action of a film set.

The performances are all very good with Daniel Day-Lewis proving that he can carry a tune as well as a film. You get the sense of someone working and wrestling with inner-demons and although Guido shouldnt garner any of our sympathy given his bed-hopping antics, you still feel for him as much as anyone else on screen. Marion Cotillard as the devoted wife who gave up her own career is also a stand-out giving you a very real and believable introduction to the lifestyle the characters lead.

Unfortunately the other female performances tend to get lost in the pack with varying degrees of success. The matriarchs as portrayed by Dame Judi Dench and Sophia Loren could easily have been one character and although Penelope Cruz is fiery and passionate as the mistress she burns out to quickly to make a lasting impact. Kidman and Hudson look fantastic and their song and dance numbers are fun but amount to little more than extended cameos.

The direction is a touch pedestrian failing to make full use of the locations and energetic performances. For a film which should focus on the art of filmmaking it seems as if precious little innovation has gone into this aspect of the process. The conventions dictate that characters break out into random show tunes at the most dramatic moments, but it could have been handled better. As one of the characters in the film prophetically says:

Directing a movie is a very overrated job, we all know it. You just have to say yes or no. What else do you do? Nothing. “Maestro, should this be red?” Yes. “Green?” No. “More extras?” Yes. “More lipstick?” No. Yes. No. Yes. No. That’s directing.