Review: The 9th Life Of Louis Drax
It has never been thought much about, but the perspective and imagination of a child has always been something that parents and other adults have conveniently stereotyped and dismissed. The 9th Life of Louis Drax brings us through what young little Louis (Aiden Longworth) has on his mind.
His accident-prone history and tendency might be a fascinating selling point of the film, but what really intrigues viewers to watch on with interest is the gradual unraveling of the mystery behind Louis’ series of accidents. After eight major mishaps, the ninth incident places Louis in a coma and attracted the attention of the Police.
Treating Louis’ state of coma is Dr Allan Pascal (Jamie Dornan), a soft personality who seems to easily fall prey to temptations. For a renowned medical professional, Dr Pascal appears to jump to instant conclusions based on superficial observations. It is probably this weak personality type that attracted the attention of Louis’ mother Mrs Natalie Drax (Sarah Gadon).
Behind Gadon’s graceful poise and good looks is a set of unknown character traits that is well portrayed by the actress. If not for Gadon’s performance along with Longworth’s peculiar depiction of Louis, the film helmed by Alexandre Aja would be much less accomplished.
As a genre filmmaker who has made Piranha 3D and The Hills Have Eyes, the direction adopted in The 9th Life of Louis Drax is a pleasant surprise to behold. Visually charged, the onscreen narrative goes back and forth in terms of narrative timeline and character perspectives too easily and quickly. Nevertheless, this love-hate approach has convinced a positive opinion by this reviewer given Aja’s track records as a horror genre-maker.
Looking past the fanciful façade of this film, which might be intentionally made to resemble a child’s interpretation of tragedy, there is a dormant sense of sadistic horror. One that is awoken the moment it is suggested to be present within entities that appear to be so innocent and benign.
People would easily assume the best of the gorgeous Mrs Natalie Drax and presume the worst of her husband Peter Drax (Aaron Paul) who was an ex-boxer (and thus impressed upon all as one with past history of violence). The way how the world operates based on appearances and false impressions – it’s simply amazing.
“It will never happen”, Louis’ response to his psychiatrist’s question on whether he is looking forward to becoming an adult proves to be disturbing. The distraught nature of his parents could be discouraging Louis from looking forward to life ahead. No child should ever think that way of life and its potential.
Aja’s shifty storytelling technique might be opined as a superficial treatment of what could potentially be deeply inspiring material (based on the novel by Liz Jensen). His intentions to highlight the sadistic terrors that adults are capable of do however remind all of the impact of their severe consequences.
The 9th Life of Louis Drax attempts to bring out the wicked nature of humanity by juxtaposing it against calming appearances that can be deceiving. Never judge a book by its cover. - Jason Lin
