MOVIE REVIEW: "The Number 23" is a cliched mess

REVIEW BY JOSH WEST

Director Joel Schumacher (?The Lost Boys,? ?Phone Booth?) re-teams with ?Batman Forever? cohort Jim Carrey to bring us this dull, gimmicky thriller about an ordinary man who becomes obsessed with the mysterious number 23.

This happens after Carrey's character discovers a book about the cryptic digits that closely parallels his own life.

Walter Sparrow (Carrey) is your everyday family-man/dog catcher whose mundane existence is turned upside down when his wife Agatha (Virginia Madsen) buys him a bizarre second-hand novel called ?The Number 23? for his birthday. Played as a mystery-noir, the book uncoils the tale of a detective who becomes obsessed with (you guessed it) the number 23 and all the coincidences and tragedies that can be traced back to it.

As Walter reads the novel, he, too becomes deliriously engrossed with the number and discovers a terrible secret that could forever alter his life.

?The Number 23? is already one of 2007?s worst offerings, hoping to blind us with enigmas and coincidences to disguise the fact that the film?s story is absurd right from the jump. The number itself is intriguing and it?s mildly interesting to note how many times it occurs throughout history, but the film too often uses this one-note gimmick as a narrative crutch. Rather than successfully incorporating this into a palpable screenplay, first-time screenwriter Fernley Phillips uses the numerological hokum as a hook, apparently convinced that there?s no reason to ever give the audience more or even pay off on what little is being presented.

Take, for instance the willingness with which Walter instantly accepts the idea that the novel is telling his life story. Only a person already prone to flights of obsessive behavior would be so quick to jump to this conclusion. Are we supposed to be surprised, then, at his descent into insanity? Does it matter that this aspect of the film has nothing to do with the number 23 at all and could just have easily been told without the numerology gimmick? These are the ludicrous plot holes we?re forced to deal with.

The film?s ending is twisty, dry and late-coming, reeking of last-minute script changes and poor reviews from test audiences. Unintentionally hilarious moments slip in as the film strains credibility and by the time the closing credits roll (with yet another wink toward the 23 mystery) we?re left with one giant mess from start to finish.

While Carrey gets some credit for trying something new, one wishes he would?ve shown a little more grace in selecting scripts, perhaps a sign of developing Nicholas Cage-like ?I?ll take anything? syndrome due to a string of poorly-received flicks that brought lukewarm box office (?Fun with Dick and Jane? anyone?). Madsen is grating as ever as Agatha and her character isn?t much better as a late-in-the-game twist has her becoming an integral part in the film?s ?gotcha!? device.

?The Number 23? ranks right up there with ?Batman and Robin? as one of Joel Schumacher?s worst films. At no point is this film anything more than a mangle of clichéd plot twists and lack of narrative invention. The film?s smug attitude of self-importance only salts the wound, as if we?re to regard this film as some sort of allegorical morality tale and leave the theatre having learned some sort of important life lesson. The only lesson learned here is that once-respectable actors and hit-and-miss directors are a gamble at best.

Steer clear. --JW