9 Songs (2004)

Director:

Michael Winterbottom

Writer:

Michael Winterbottom (writer)

Release Date:

20 January 2005 (Germany)

Genre:

Drama | Music | Romance

Tagline:

2 Lovers. 1 Year.

Plot:

In London, England, love blooms between an American college student, named Lisa, and a British glaciologist, named Matt, where over the next few months in between attending rock concerts, the two lovers have intense sexual encounters.

Plot Keywords:

Extreme Sex | Nude Girl | Smiling | Woman On Top | Penetration

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Kieran O'Brien	...	Matt
Margo Stilley	...	Lisa
Huw Bunford	...	Himself (Super Furry Animals)
Cian Ciaran	...	Himself (Super Furry Animals)
The Dandy Warhols	...	Themselves
Elbow	...	Themselves
Franz Ferdinand	...	Themselves
Bobby Gillespie	...	Himself (Primal Scream)
Bob Hardy	...	Himself (Franz Ferdinand)
Dafydd Ieuan	...	Himself (Super Furry Animals)
Alex Kapranos	...	Himself (Franz Ferdinand)
Mani	...	Himself (Primal Scream)
Nick McCarthy	...	Himself (Franz Ferdinand)
Michael Nyman	...	Himself
Guto Pryce	...	Himself (Super Furry Animals)

Also Known As:

Ice (UK) (working title)
Nine Songs (UK) (alternative spelling)

Runtime:

71 min | USA:67 min (DVD version)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:X (South Australia) (original rating) | Mexico:D | France:-16 (edited version) | Argentina:18 | Canada:R (British Columbia/Ontario) | Singapore:(Banned) | Netherlands:16 | Canada:18 (Nova Scotia) | Taiwan:R-18 | Italy:VM18 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Zurich) | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Finland:K-18 | Australia:R (re-rating on appeal) | France:-18 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:III | Iceland:16 | Ireland:18 | Japan:R-18 | Switzerland:18 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:18 (canton of Vaud) | UK:18 | USA:Not Rated | New Zealand:R18 | Brazil:18 | Spain:18 | Portugal:M/18

Filming Locations:

Brixton Academy - 211 Stockwell Road, Brixton, London, England, UK

Company:

Revolution Films

Trivia:

'Kieran OBrien and Margo Stilley did not communicate with each other between filming so that their off-screen relationship would not affect the one they had on screen.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: While driving along the dual carriageway, the rev-counter of the car (the large left hand dial on a Mk. 2 Ford Granada) is at 0 showing the engine to be switched off. (In mitigation, it's a very old car so the rev counter could just be broken.)

Quotes:

Lisa: Sometimes you have to have faith in people.

Movie Connections:

References The Dreamers (2003)

Soundtrack:

Whatever Happened To My Rock and Roll

Gutsy disappointment from an interesting director and two brave actors

Saw this 16-09-2004 at the TIFF... While I am an admitted fan of mainstream films that feature explicit sexuality, I was disappointed in this film -- as it stands now. I say "as it stands now" because, although I may be wrong, the film has the feel of an unfinished work. Clocking in at a mere hour and five minutes, however, it still manages to feel long somehow -- essentially, we are watching either one of four types of scene: The lead actor reminiscing about the now-ended affair (from his walking trip of... Antarctica!), the couple attending concerts (always, apparently, at the same venue), the couple cooking and eating, or the couple having sex. There is relatively little dialog. The film feels fragmentary, as the scenes tend to repeat without much of a contextual base; perhaps these scenes are intended to represent the lead characters' memories, implying that we only remember those things that were most important to us from a relationship. The actors are game in their roles, although Ms. Stilley -- who has the long-limbed, small-chested appearance of a runway model -- comes off a bit weaker next to Mr. O'Brien (indeed, this appears to be her first film). I give both actors a lot of credit for baring themselves so unabashedly to the material, but am a bit disappointed that, even though Ms. Stilley has supposedly been offered another role in Mr. Winterbottom's next film, she is said to be "distancing herself" from this picture, apparently especially after her mother in North Carolina was alerted to its graphic nature.