Now available from Lionsgate on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD is the thriller The 9th Life of Louis Drax. The film stars Starring Jamie Dornan (Fifty Shades of Grey), Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad), Sarah Gadon (Indignation), Oliver Platt (Chicago P.D.), Barbara Hershey (Insidious) and Aiden Longworth as Louis Drax.
Louis Drax considers himself accident prone. You name it, it’s probably happened to him. From food poisoning to getting electrocuted, and from broken bones to nearly being killed by a falling chandelier.
Louis is a bit of a loner. He has no friends at school and his classmates call him “weirdo.” Thankfully he is very close to his mother Natalie and adores his father Peter.
It’s clear right away that Natalie and Peter are not happily married. Peter sticks around because he loves Louis.
Louis doesn’t like his parents constant bickering. He tries to find ways to drown out the sounds when they do.
One afternoon, on his 9th birthday, Louis and his parents go for a picnic near a cliff overlooking the ocean. When his parents get into yet another argument, Louis runs off and some how slips off the cliff… or was he pushed? According to his mother, his father pushed him off the cliff and then took off. As Louis is being rushed to the hospital there is a man hunt for his father.
Louis is pronounced dead, but a short time later its discovered that he’s alive, but he’s in a coma. He is placed in a coma ward and put under the care of a handsome young doctor, Dr. Pascal.
Things start to unravel as secrets become revealed, and not everything is as it seems.
Was Louis fall from the cliff an accident… or intentional? To find out you need to pick up (or download) a copy of The 9th Life of Louis Drax. Look for it where ever movies are sold.
There is a bonus featuette which is the making of the film. It gives you insight into how they brought this film to life.
When the movie first started playing I thought it was going to be a comedy of some sorts (or even a dark comedy). The movie starts off with Louis telling viewers about his life thus far and all the accidents and bad luck he’s had growing up. It all comes off somewhat comical, including silly animations. But as the story gets going you see that it’s not really a comedy.
My husband and I watched the film together. It didn’t take me long to figure something out about Louis mother. I don’t want to give away any plot details, but if you know anything about psychology and are familiar with Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome, you’ll have an idea of what is going on in this film. As soon as I figured it out I “bet” (not a real bet of course) my husband that Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome is what was going on. Even so, it doesn’t explain the mysterious disappearance of Louis father and some strange sea monster that appears throughout the film.
I could have done without the sea monster part. I guess in a way it was necessarily, but it didn’t seem to flow right with the film.
The film was a bit weird (mostly the sea monster and the comical beginning), but overall a good film. It will keep you guessing all the way to the end. Even the ending was a bit of a surprise.
There were a few scenes in the film I could have done without – most especially the one involving a hamster and a book. I feel like film makers could have found another way to get that point across.
Overall we enjoyed the film. My husband initially set up his computer to do work while I watched the film, but after several minutes he closed his lap top and watched the film. He found it interesting enough to set aside work to watch.
Below is the trailer for your enjoyment.
Kimberly
*I received a free screener to review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.