Sometimes, trying to figure out what Jim Carrey is thinking is more entertaining than actually watching his movies. Always eager to reinvent himself, the chameleon actor has tried his hands on everything from gross-out comedies to dreary melodramas. This time, he gets himself into the suspense/thriller genre (no, it's not a horror, as the marketing geniuses would want you to believe).
Walter Sparrow (Carrey) is a happily married animal control officer with a loving wife, Agatha (Madsen), and a teenage son, Robin (Lerman). His life takes a strange turn on his birthday when Agatha gets him a self-published book entitled The Number 23 by someone named Topsy Krett. Bitten by a bulldog that seems to be following him around, Walter gets a day off and starts reading the novel. He gets the willies when he realizes the story and characters speak to him personally. And then he starts to see the number 23 popping up everywhere as well.
Soon, Walter is having nightmares about the number 23 and, specifically, about killing his wife, and he becomes extremely obsessed with the number. Everything about him seems to revolve around the number. Walter becomes paranoid and starts to suspect Agatha for having an affair with his friend, Isaac (Huston). Walter believes that whoever Topsy Krett is, he really did commit the murder he described in his book, and that he's still out there, free. Walter sets out to find the mystery writer, and in turn, finds the biggest secret in his life.
Jim Carrey (Fun with Dick and Jane) is a good actor, but sometimes he gets so wrapped up in proving himself that he forgets what he does best. I don't mean to say Mr. Carrey should stick with comedy forever. However, he needs to find something that fits his strengths and not just something "different." This role doesn't work for him. Carrey's edginess and neurosis don't always come across as convincing. Perhaps the problem is that his public persona is so huge that it's hard for him to disappear into his characters. Here, I feel like we're watching Jim Carrey playing Jim Carrey going nuts.
Virginia Madsen (Astronaut Farmer) needs to find better materials. Except for A Prairie Home Companion and Sidways (which earned her an Oscar nomination), Madsen has done stinkers after stinkers such as Firewall, always reduced to playing a distraught, helpless mother. She's a better actress than that. Logan Lerman (Hoot) does an okay job, but his role seems to only function as someone who says "Hey dad, look what I found." Danny Huston (Children of Men) also is much too good an actor to waste his talent on a character so bland and trivial.Carrey, Madsen and Huston also play Detective Fingerling, Fabriza and Dr. Miles Phoenix respectively, characters in the novel materialized in Walter's imagination.
The Number 23 boasts a script, by new writer Fernley Philips, that is convoluted, overblown and nonsensical. The premise has such potential that I am heartbroken to see it go to waste like this. The story first unfolds in a non-linear way, making it a little difficult to decipher. Also, it moves relatively slowly with not much going on. The first half of the film is nothing but set up for the final half hour. The dialogue is your garden variety cliches. And what's it with the names: Fingerling, Agatha, Topsy Krett? It's almost infantile. The deadliest blow is that the story turns into an illogical mess that lacks credibility, not to mention the final reveal is so obvious that only the half-asleep wouldn't have figured it out.
Director Joel Schumacher (Phantom of the Opera) tries to make something out of the incoherent script. I do like the atmosphere he creates throughout the film and the pacing is adequate. However, his effort simply is not enough to lift the film above its script. The sloppy editing doesn't help either.Coupled with flat performances and a confusing timeline, worsened by a story-within-story approach, the film sorely disappoints those who are eager to see Jim Carrey in something different and fresh (such as The Truman Show and Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind) or a psychological thriller that actually thrills. It's so boring and pointless I keep looking at my watch. With all the money and talents going into this production, it's amazing how bad the film is -- and I blame it on the bad script. I give this film a score of 23; and I'm being generous.
Stars: Jim Carrey, Virginia Madsen, Logan Lerman, Danny Huston, Lynn Collins, Rhona Mitra, Mark Pellegrino
Director: Joel Schumacher
Writer: Fernley Philips
Distributor: New Line Cinema
MPAA Rating: R for violence, disturbing images, sexuality, and language
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Ratings:
Script – 4
Performance – 6
Direction – 6
Cinematography – 7
Music/Sound– 6
Editing – 6
Production – 7
Total – 5.4 out of 10
FBI upstart Eric O'Neill (Phillippe) gets his chance of making agent when he's recruited by Kate Burroughs (Linney) in an investigation. The target is a veteran agent, Robert Hanssen (Cooper), who has served for almost 25 years. O'Neill is recruited for his ambition, calmness, and quick thinking. Agent Burroughs tells him they're suspecting Hanssen as a sexual deviant.
Soon, O'Neill comes to respect and admire Hanssen for his devotion to his job, his family, and his faith. In turn, he also gains the trust of Hanssen, a man who really doesn't trust anyone. When O'Neill confronts Burroughs and argues that he doesn't believe Hanssen is a sexual deviant and he's not right for the job, Burroughs reveals that Hanssen actually is a spy and has been selling classified information to the Soviets (now Russians) resulting in millions in losses as well as lives. As the greatest security breach in U.S. history weighing on him, O'Neill must decide whether to fulfill his duty, and if so, how he's going to outsmart Hanssen.
Chris Cooper (
In comparison, Ryan Phillippe (
With the exception of Laura Linney (
Billy Ray (
Billy Ray does a good job keeping the pace tight and the suspense taut. As a psychological thriller, the film is light on action but heavy on character interactions. There are some key scenes with many things going on, creating great nail-biting moments and make us squirm in our seats: How will Eric O'Neill pull this one off? The final confrontation is a bit of a letdown, however, even though Chris Cooper is fascinating to watch. We wonder how a man like him would become so messed up. They get away with it by stating that "once we get the what and how, the why doesn't really matter, does it?"
Norbit (Murphy) is an orphan who is raised by Mr. Wong (also Murphy), a Chinese man who dreams of retiring and whale hunting some day. Norbit is shy, kind-hearted, and meek, and he has a close friendship with Kate (Newton) until she gets adopted and moves to Atlanta. Norbit yearns to have a family of his own. When a big, mean girl, Rasputia (also Murphy), lays eyes on Norbit and takes him into her family, Norbit latches on to it without knowing what he's getting into. Rasputia's brothers warn Norbit never to break her heart. All grown up, Norbit reluctantly marries Rasputia and settles in a dysfunctional marriage.
Years later, Kate returns in an effort to take over the orphanage as Mr. Wong is ready to retire. Norbit realizes he really loves Kate and is stuck in a loveless marriage with Rasputia. Unfortunately, Kate is engaged to handsome Deion (Gooding). Soon Norbit discovers that Deion is a con artist, and he's working with Rasputia's brothers to scam Kate and turn Mr. Wong's orphanage into a strip joint. Norbit must warn Kate while fighting off Rasputia's abuse. He must learn to become a man.
Eddie Murphy (
Thandie Newton (
The script by Eddie Murphy et el. isn't the best thing in the world. There are, of course, a lot of plot holes and inconsistency. And the jokes are all based on stereotypes, which may seem offensive to everyone from ethnic minorities to overweight people. But the writers keep the jokes coming and the story moving, and in truth, there are many hilarious moments, and we laugh even though we're also squirming in our seats knowing how offensive some of these jokes are. Mr. Wong has a good line, though, about being racist. I think he somehow sums up what the movie is about.
The movie appeals to the lower common denominator by latching onto the stereotypes -- they are by nature funny, even though they are not politically correct. I think Murphy and company aim at offending, much like the 
Director Brian Robbins (
The story opens with a prologue at the Rollins farm. Something awful is happening -- the family is being butchered by something sinister, unseen. Years later, Papa Roy (McDermott) and Mama Denise (Miller) and their two children, teenager Jess (Stewart) and baby Ben (the Turner twins), move into the farm. Of course, they don't know anything about the history of the farm, which they've just bought with their entire life's savings. Roy wants to grow sunflowers, a highly profitable crop.
The family settles in just fine until strange things start to happen. Ben is always staring or pointing or laughing at something around him. Crows start to attack people, until a drifter, Burwell (Corbett), shows up and scares the crows away. Seeing that Burwell knows a thing or two about farming, Roy hires Burwell to help around the farm and offers him a place to stay. Quickly Burwell becomes part of the family.
The paranormal phenomenon escalates when Jess is attacked by the "spirits" or "ghosts." Her family doesn't believe her, of course, but she knows Ben can see these spirits -- he just can't speak about it. The only person who believes her is a new friend, Bobby (Milligan). Jess doesn't know what the ghosts want -- they don't seem to want to hurt her or Ben -- and she urges her family to leave the farm. They decide to stay -- that is, until it's too late.
Seventeen-year-old Kristen Stewart (
Penelope Ann Miller (
The major problem with the film is its script by Mark Wheaton (
But the biggest offense of the film is the lack of real horror or suspense. Its predictability would have worked if the writers and the directors, Oxide and Danny Pang (