Overview
Nine women's lives intertwine as they navigate the complexities of love and resilience.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- melancholic
- intimate
- naturalistic
- quiet evening
- reflective viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film’s strong ensemble cast, insightful portraits of women, radical realism, and cumulative power despite its sketch-like episodic form.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Nine distinct women’s stories unfold as separate dramatic segments whose emotional force builds across the whole film.
The women’s relationship crises, disappointments, and private suffering are rendered through understated performances and ordinary behavior.
The central premise portrays nine women as captives of relationships that both define and sustain them, emphasizing endurance amid hardship.
The episodic stories connect through thematic and human continuities, stressing how strangers can touch one another indirectly.
Films like Nine Lives, and why
Short Cuts
interwoven women’s stories, understated realism, and empathy for ordinary emotional crises
Magnolia
episodic ensemble structure, intimate relationship drama, and cumulative emotional resonance
The Hours
women-centered interconnected narratives presented through naturalistic performances and quiet social observation
Happiness
Chekhovian episodic storytelling and psychologically detailed domestic relationships
Movie Details
- Director
- Rodrigo García
- Release Date
- 2005-09-02
- Runtime
- 115 min
- Rating
- 6.1 / 10 (97)
Cast
- Kathy Baker
- Amy Brenneman
- Elpidia Carrillo
- Glenn Close
- Stephen Dillane
- Dakota Fanning
- William Fichtner
- LisaGay Hamilton
- Holly Hunter
- Jason Isaacs
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Nine Lives about?
- Nine women confront the private wounds and sustaining ties of contemporary life in a formally distinctive mosaic of intimate dramas.
- What is Nine Lives like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Nine Lives as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Nine Lives violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Nine Lives as mild.
- What did critics think of Nine Lives?
- Critics broadly praised the film’s strong ensemble cast, insightful portraits of women, radical realism, and cumulative power despite its sketch-like episodic form.
- Which films are like Nine Lives?
- Films with a similar feel include Short Cuts, Magnolia, The Hours, and Happiness.
- How long is Nine Lives?
- Nine Lives runs 115 minutes.
- Where can I watch Nine Lives?
- In United States, Nine Lives is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
