9 Souls

by Rick Curnutte

Richard A. Curnutte, Jr. is the Editor of The Film Journal. He has studied English and Film at Ohio University and The Ohio State University. He is a founding member of the Central Ohio Film Critics Association and a member of the Online Film Critics Society.

Toshiaki Toyoda's 9 Souls is one of the most confounding, troubling and ambitious comedies I've seen in quite a while. Essentially the story of 9 escaped convicts traveling together on the road, searching for a treasure that may or may not exist, 9 Souls attempts a tricky feat: tell, through this frame story of escaped convicts, the stories of 9 individual criminals in the space of 2 hours.

Playing like an Eastern equivalent of O, Brother, Where Art Thou?, the first quarter hour of 9 Souls gives us a gleeful, exciting introduction to the characters, a downtrodden bunch of miscreants if ever there was one. These are, of course, not simply lovable n'er do-wells like those in the Coen Brothers film. Many of these convicts are ultra-violent offenders. Eventually, they get an RV, change their clothes and head out in search of the treasure, all the while ducking the authorities.

Like many recent Japanese films, the tone of 9 Souls shifts dramatically from moment to moment. At times uproariously funny, then excruciatingly sorrowful, Toyoda's film can be uneven and off-kilter, but he never fails to bring it back into focus.

Two stories stand out, those of the youngest in the group and the oldest in the group.

The youngest boy was imprisoned for murdering his father. We've seen in the film's opening how abusive the father was. What we learn later is that the boy's brother assisted him in some capacity with the killing, then has condemned his imprisoned brother to the mainstream media (he's a celebrated young entrepreneur). This Cain and Abel story is perhaps the film's strongest storyline.

A close second would be that of the oldest, wisest of the group. His only goal seems to be to get to his daughter's wedding. When he brings her a present of cash (which he's stolen, of course), she rejects it, and along with it, him. Broken, rebuffed, he returns to his caravan.

Many of the members of the troupe are caught and/or killed along the way. All of them are longing for, craving for, attention or love throughout the film's duration. None of them really find what they're looking for.

Strangely, 9 Souls takes a turn towards the ethereal in its final moments. Having mostly failed or been killed, the 9 come back together in a strange, spiritual awakening that is mostly at odds with the rest of the film.

Still, Toyoda's film hits a great deal of emotional and thematic high points. It explores (if a bit hesitantly), male camaraderie and simultaneous tumult. These men would, realistically, not be together if not for their one shared defining trait: they're criminals.

9 Souls is a nice-looking film, if not especially unique in its formalism. Toyoda is a confident director, but I'm not sure he has a distinguishing aesthetic style. I'm not seen any of his other films, so that final judgment will have to wait. But on the heels of 9 Souls, Toyoda certainly has the chops and promise to blossom into a more mature and material artist.