It was the worst of (movie) times... Another 9 1/2 Weeks

Ok.  So.... Everyone that I have talked to about this movie has said some variation of "There's a sequel to 9 1/2 Weeks?"  Yes.  Yes there is.  And I watched it.  I wish that I could leave it at that.  But, I committed to writing about these movies, so, I will suck it up.  This entry is gonna be a little different, as I will just editorialize about the movie as I try to summarize, otherwise it will kind of long and messy. Well... It still may be, but indulge me.

This (obviously) is the sequel to 9 1/2 Weeks starring Micky Rourke and Kim Bassinger.  Rourke reprises his role as John, a stock trader.  Bassinger is not in this movie.  I do feel like I should say something about the first one, as this is a sequel.  9 1/2 Weeks is the story of Elizabeth, a painter and recent divorcee struggling with her feelings after the break up.  She begins an affair with John, who is a stranger to her.  Things get strange as her dependence on him increases, yet she knows nothing about him.  He has strange appetites sexually, some bordering on abuse.  Elizabeth struggles with the fact that he won't really share himself with her, and finally decides to leave.  John does try to tell her about himself at this point, but too late, she walks out.  Leaving him saying he loves her, and to please come back by the time he counts to 50.  But... She's gone.

Another 9 1/2 Weeks starts after a period of time has elapsed.  The movie opens with John in a hotel room with a prostitute.  His attention is dragged outside where a horse has fallen, and is apparently really hurt.  His encounter with the woman is cut short by his fascination with the drama unfolding below.  The prostitute leaves.  Confused?  Yeah.  Thought so.  I will say that this is the main reason that this movie fails so badly.  I think the writers and director were trying to be deep.  However... It's not deep when it makes no sense.  If you loose your viewer after only ten minutes (not kidding, that quick) your movie becomes nothing more than a waste of time.  Not deep.

Alright.  So, John wants to find Elizabeth so the wrongs done by the relationship can be made right... I think. And hunts down an auction of her paintings in Paris, so goes.  He buys all of the works by Elizabeth, and in the process meets Lea (a friend of Elizabeth's) and Lea's assistant, Claire.  He asks Lea about Elizabeth, but Lea refuses to answer right away.  When she finally does tell him, she says that Elizabeth married a nnice man and is in Tangiers.  After a few strange scenes at Lea's office (she is a fashion designer), the heat gets turned up between them.  Abruptly.  No lead up.  The first "sexy" scene is at a tourist attraction with a dungeon.  The Bastille, maybe?  Lea kisses him, and he starts to undress her.  However, voices carry through the hall as a group of people are coming.  Lea starts saying, then yelling "No, no, stop." Just in time for an American family to "catch" him.  (Yeah, the entire family, 2 young-ish kids and Mom and Dad.  Thanks for that, movie.)  After the family is (i guess?) satisfied that she is alright (I say I guess because they also seem skeptical, but leave anyway) Dad says one of the funniest lines I have heard in a movie in a long time.  "You're American!  You should know better!"  Just let it sink in.  Funny, ain't it?

Now is the point of the movie that we are supposed to start forming attachments to these people.  I didn't.  Mainly because this part is so much more fragmented than the first part.  I know.  I really am still confused.  Claire and John hang out and become friends.  At least I think they become friends, he gives her advice while sailing toy boats.  There is a discotheque scene in there where John saves Claire from being assaulted by her boyfriend... At least I think it's her boyfriend.  I guess it may have just been some guy in the club...  There's some introduction to Lea's business partner, Vittorio.  He is upset about Lea's blooming relationship with John. I have to be honest here, I feel like the movie set him up to be gay, and them changed it's mind at the last minute.  I GUESS what they went with was that he is actually in love with Lea and his upset about John comes from jealousy.  Lea and John get closer, and actually form a relationship (the movie didn't SHOW me this, it TOLD me this.  A very frustrating thing about this screenplay.)

So this fragmented series of scenes leads up to a fashion show for Lea's line.  John attends and after, accompanies Lea to a party.  Ummm... This party is at a sex club, strip club, something.  Lea and John go to be "by themselves," bringing Claire with them.  Lea uses Claire to seduce John, but before it really gets started, John seems to suddenly remember that he is here to find Elizabeth and bolts up and asks what happened to her.  Lea maintains that she is in Tangiers.  Also reminding him that Elizabeth left him and he should just let it go.  John doesn't believe Lea, and Vittorio is suddenly in the room in a really jarring WTF moment.  Vittorio FINALLY tells John the truth.  Elizabeth is dead.

Evidently, she started using drugs in Paris and died of an overdose (??  I think??).  John confronts Lea after an "emotional" scene of him visiting Elizabeth's grave.  Lea explains that she didn't "have the heart" to tell him. As he doesn't want to be alone, they spend the weekend together.  Lea tells him that she read Elizabeth's journal about their relationship, and expresses that she always wondered what he was like.  She continues to try to recreate scenes from the first movie with him, but he is unreceptive, at one point yelling that she "just doesn't get it!"

They return from their weekend.  John finds Claire in his room.  I guess she broke in.  She tells John she didn't know about Elizabeth.  Her mini plot with John ends when he hugs her after she tells him her boyfriend hit her.  Vittorio talks to anyone who is in his presence that Lea's relationship with John is unacceptable.  John sends a hotel key to Lea with a note to meet him.

In the hotel room, John sets up an elaborate scene to show Lea that she really doesn't want what Elizabeth and him had, and then they spend one last night together.  This scene is more confusing and upsetting than any that have come before, because it gets rape-y, John is really a bastard to her, and YET Lea STILL makes love to him.  *sigh*  Anyway... In the morning, John leaves.  Lea is left asking HIM to come back by the time she counts to 50.... Ahhhhhhhh full circle and stuff!

Ok.  This movie is confusing.  REALLY confusing.  Plots start, and very hastily end.  I think the writer forgot about them, and then decided to try to tie them up before he was done... Like these blog entries.  This movie was a direct to video release, and no wonder.  Admittedly, I have not seen the first one.  Because of that, I did research it so I could at least know where this was starting from.  In reading about the first movie, in talking to those who had seen it, I think that maybe this continuation is insulting to what the first one was supposed to be saying.  Even though Elizabeth got sucked in to this unhealthy relationship with John, she had the strength to walk away at the end.  That looses power when you find out that she fell into drugs and died after.  Seriously!  Some stories are meant to stand alone.  I hate that a drive to milk more money from a movie allows Hollywood to ruin strong statements made. We have seen Disney do it over and over again.  I guess Another 9 1/2 Weeks just proves that kids movies aren't the only victims.

Even with all that said, this movie REALLY fails because it was written and filmed in such a way that it comes off as pretentious.  But vapidly so,  There is nothing there to back ANY of the emotion for anyone in this movie.  I mostly feel sorry for that horse at the beginning.  Not because he died, but because THAT actor was convincing, I felt for him.  I believe that it is time for him to get a new agent.

GGC