The Nines

The directorial debut of screenwriter John August (Big Fish, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) begins promisingly enough with a rent-a-hunk TV star (Ryan Reynolds) placed under house arrest after burning down his home and going on a crack binge, only to become convinced that his temporary domicile is haunted and that his PR minder isn't all she seems. In the second story, a writer (Reynolds again, as each tale features the same cast) endures development hell as his TV series collapses around him; while in the third instalment a video game designer finds himself stranded on a deserted country road with a mysterious woman for company. Initially, August is in control of his material and the movie has some of the energy of his writing debut Go. Disappointingly, what begins as an intriguing and atmospheric mystery rapidly degenerates into nothing more than a middling episode of Tales of the Unexpected, as the concluding part becomes burdened by laughable philosophical pretensions.