gothic_a666 '9 Souls' is a title that fits the movie's psychological slant very well. The plot revolves around a group of prison fugitives so the narrative touches upon the flight itself but there is more of device to explore the inner realities of the characters and how these relate to the world at large. This explains the moments of surreal oddity that interrupt the linear flow of events at pivotal points.This aspect of introspective lyricism is steeped in several social contexts, some of which are typically Japanese like the yakuza orphan or the hikikomori. So that the movie never loses a sense of structure even as it progresses further into character study territory. And tragedy is at the heart of each of these criminals. True to its calling this movie is gritty, violent and has no qualms in disturbing the viewer. There is more to freedom than simply escaping from behind bars and reconnecting with life on the outside is fraught with difficulties that some simply cannot handle. A sense of dark fatalism seems to motivate these prisoners and their fanciful fantasies are but a result of this.Its one great flaw is that the cast is somewhat bloated. Nine complex characters are bundled together and it is not easy to give them all the required screen time to flesh out properly so a few fall by the wayside. The same goes with the relationships between these but here the pair of a father who killed his son and of the young man who killed his father emerge naturally as counterparts of sorts. They form an uneasy bond that results in a somewhat perplexing ending.'9 Souls' does not settle for illusions of regeneration but it does not deny a desire for betterment. Torn between this two extremes and enlivened by a great cast it is a movie that is off beat and intense. Well worth watching.

nerd_punk21 A great film. Every moment masterfully conducted by Toyoda and his crew. The actors give credible performances all around.The visuals are haunting,beautiful and sometimes hauntingly beautiful shots of the Japanese country and city landscapes.The sounds,courtesy of Japanese band 'Dig', are never overly edgy as one would expect from band-made soundtracks. It's strangely atmospheric and well suited to the scenes they're on. All in all, they worked everything out perfectly....Well, if they were to give any justice to the story, perfection is the only thing anyone could have accepted. The real greatness of 9 Souls is the compelling story. The prison break movie maybe something of a lost genre these days, and road trip movie losing it's appeal due to the way the world is getting smaller. But this story easily mixes something fresh to those two genres.9 convicts are given freedom and possibly the opportunity to regain their places in society. will society accept them? will they be truly free of their dark pasts? and can they stick together long enough to stay alive and find out? Each convict has an interesting history. Their crimes are as varied as their apparent fates. A sense of brotherhood among them keeps the story high on drama and supplies it with hilariously comedic situations. And due to the nature of their backgrounds, violence is always something waiting to happen.After all that, all i can say is go give it a watch.

movieman_kev The third film I got to watch at the philly film fest was this outstanding drama from Japan. After breaking out of prison nine escaped convicts plan to find the "key to the universe" that a tenth convict who didn't break out told them about. Along the way we get to know each of these men fairly well. Each has their own dreams. For much of the movie it seems to be mostly a comedy, but a shift takes place that the film ends up a tragedy. All of the actors give great performances. I can't say much more without spoiling the film, but suffice it to say that you end up feeling for some of these individuals. At 2 hours, this film is a tad to long, but good none the less. I have no qualms recommending it with the warning that it does have a bit unsettling violence for the tender-hearted. Toshiaki Toyoda hit a home-run this time out, and it makes me want to search out his prior films as well as look forward eagerly to his future ones.My Grade: A

salewit There were a few disturbing scenes in this movie. One early in the beginning, and most in the later parts. I'm the type of movie viewer that goes out of my way to avoid violence and gore, and I didn't see this one coming from the description and being that it is billed as a comedy.But having said all that, I found it to be an interesting look into Japanese life that we never see including scenes of run down neighborhoods and poverty. Also the way the gang communicated to each other goes against everything we were taught or shown about Japanese culture.I think it's a good movie. The gore and the one disturbing scene was totally unnecessary in my eyes. If that had been omitted, I would probably have given this a rating of 8 or 9.