We know that the so-called "conspiracy theories" have become popular. To their fans, there is virtually no detail of our everyday life that isn't likely to be associated with any weird conspiracy. In this case, the film associates this idea with numerical obsessions and the search for patterns and relations between totally distinct occurrences. The concept explores the surreal, and is quite original, in that it's uncommon in thrillers (at least, I don't remember any thriller with this recipe before).The screenplay tells how Walter, a perfectly ordinary man, begins to feel threatened and chased by a number after reading a disturbing book. He seeks, and finds, these number attached to different facts and situations, and we begin to question ourselves about his sanity. The film starts well: the initial credits, graphically elegant, were an original way of introducing the theme to the audience and giving it some credibility. I also liked the way Walter is introduced, and how the film emphasized his normality. He's just a guy just like any other, with values and integrity, trying to get his life, who ends up getting caught up in an obsessive whirlwind. His transformation is evident and, at that moment, we're already attached to him because we gain some sympathy for Walter, and our curiosity is fed by every discovery.However, certain things become too predictable... for example, it's clear from the outset that Fingerling will be a negative alter-ego of Walter. Predictability should have been avoided and corrected, but it's still a minor problem... the biggest problem is the end, which leaves the guiding line too long and ends up having a disappointing and anticlimactic result. A more built and less conventional ending would have made this movie exceptional. At that point, it was a missed opportunity.I have nothing to say about Joel Schumacher's direction. He's far from being a very good director but has succeeded here. On the other hand, I have a lot to talk about Jim Carrey. I am increasingly convinced that this actor has been underestimated. He became popular thanks to comedies and got very attached to them in our head, so we were surprised when we realized that he can also be a great dramatic actor. But let's be honest: it wasn't his first dramatic film, on the contrary. He seems to be making an effort to show us versatility, and it's up to us to realize that. He was very good here, made a solid and well made work... and I believe I realized, I can see better the potential of this actor. Harder to swallow were the sex scenes. In fact, I felt that, sometimes, they were left in the film. But it's alright. Virginia Madsen also did a good job here, as a dedicated wife and companion or a fiery Italian, with somewhat nymphomaniac outlines (the two actors played two characters, ego and alter ego).Technically, the film has some brilliant moments. Cinematography begins with warm tones but suffers a violent concussion with Fingerling, carrying itself of cold tones, light-dark, emptiness and shades. From then on, as the obsession progresses, everything becomes colder. I also noticed some excellent camera shots, including the intelligent use of reflexes.This movie is one of those that can get us mad... it had everything to be very good. An original idea, excellent actors, an able director and good production values. The script started well and was convincingly developed... but when they should have put the cherry on the top, everything collapsed like a house of cards. Frustrating.

I never write reviews, but this movie prompted me to.There is some pretty bad writing in The Number 23:Carrey, Narrator: "Time is just...numbers with a meaning attached to them."Carrey, Narrator: "She said she was a good person once. But now?" Suicide Blonde: "I'm a bad person." -- I laughed here.Carrey, Narrator: "I was right. She was in danger. I just didn't realize the danger was me."Later, Carrey tranquilizes a dog in a cemetery. A priest and a groundskeeper (the dog's owner) come out of nowhere, and Carrey asks the groundskeeper why he named the dog Ned. At no point does anyone ask why this man is shooting dogs with tranquilizers (he doesn't identify himself as animal control). Instead, they answer Carrey's questions and chat with him like a casual acquaintance.Anyway, I have to mention the pacing of this movie: It's probably one of its biggest flaws. Like 25 (23??) minutes in, Carrey's character is essentially a firm believer in the whole conspiracy. That. is. WAY. too. fast. The movie doesn't try at all to get you in the main character's head-space. So at 37 minutes, when Carrey asks his friend, of the number 23, "is it God?" I couldn't help but roll my eyes.It's not only how fast Carrey "believes," it's how little it takes for him to be pushed off the deep end. Carrey's two characters are drowning in a bunch of confirmation bias, which comes across more as ridiculous than spooky or suspenseful. The Hiroshima bomb was dropped at so- and-so time, which adds up to 23. Okay? What time was the Nagasaki bomb dropped?On the topic of the plot: It's much too easy to foresee the twist ending just shy of the hour mark. In the movie's book, the murderer (Carrey) gets away because the lover senselessly picks up the knife and gets his finger prints on it. At 55 minutes, Carrey says that the killer in real life from 15 years ago was discovered because his finger prints were all over the knife, HEAVILY implying that the convict, like the character in the book, was framed.There's also a major plot hole at the end of the movie. The hospital that Carrey is committed to runs through his family history, finding out that his father committed suicide. They don't, however, find that his longtime girlfriend was recently murdered by stabbing? A nearly identical case to the one in his book?Also a bus almost runs Carrey over at the end because it never slows down, despite seeing Carrey in the street from at least half a block away. Then it speeds on by when he steps out of the way, like a train would.

Joel's Schumacher's The Number 23 is a tedious, stodgy and pompous film that rarely manages to entertain or intrigue.Jim Carrey has proved himself worthy of dramatic roles, Truman Show (1998) and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), being his two best non-goofball acts. While Jim Carrey's performance here is undeniably the most entertaining part of this mess of a film, it's appreciated for all the wrong reasons. The film practically drowns itself in it's over-seriousness and melodrama, making the often-charismatic Carrey feel drab and lifeless. Watching the film is quite literally the equivalent of listening to a deranged conspiracy theorist explain his theory to those unfamiliar with it. In fact, that IS the story verbatim. While the "23 theory" itself is quite the intriguing coincidence, it's just that- a coincidence. However, the film is so persistent in pointing out as many coincidences as possible that are completely irrelevant. It frankly becomes an annoying and distracting plot element that comes off as aberrantly stupid rather than cleverly absorbing. The film had the potential to be a fascinating and brilliantly twisted psychological tale of obsession and mental illness, but instead, reserves the majority of focus to it's laughable "conspiracy" gimmick. Schumacher sure had a knack for finding these "23 enigmas", it's just a shame that making a cohesive film didn't add up to 23.

An Off-Beat, Stylish, and Engaging Mystery-Thriller that was Universally Panned and Gutted by Most Critics. But it Contains so Much in such a Flashy Template that the Artistic Flourishes almost Dominate the Proceedings. Almost.The Numerological Mystique is Debated in Egghead and Supernatural Circles and the Number 23 is often Cited as a Recurring "Coincidence" that can't be Ignored. William S. Burroughs, the "Beat" Author was Fascinated by it.Jim Carrey is quite Good and Director Joel Schumacher is in His Cranked Up Mode, and some of His Work Reminds of Brian De Palma. Both go to Unusual Heights to make Movies that are Beautifully Bizarre the way They use the Tools of the Medium to Entertain Visually, sometimes it's Overwhelming but Artistic. This is a Sleeper of a Movie that Invites Multiple Viewings to fully Wrap Your Head around all the References concerning Numerology, specifically the Number 23. The Film's Modern Style is Dreamlike and Surreal, Exploiting the Garish "Primitive Art" of those Detective Mags and Paperbacks often containing Lurid and Brightly Colored Covers that Matches the Seedy Contents.A Good Supporting Cast all Help bring this one Home and the Journey getting there is a lot of Guilty Pleasure Fun. The Film is Thought Provoking and Interesting in its Fringe Inclusions, but not without Contrivances.Neo-Noir Fans will Admire its Gritty Surroundings and Crazy Conceits. It's a Film that Explores the Underbelly with Gloomy Atmosphere and Jim Carrey's unusual use of Underplaying the Comedic Lines add some Relief to the Bleak Storyline of Conspiracies, Murder, and a World that Exists on the Edge of the Everyday.