House of 9 is a
2005The year 2005 in film saw many new films released worldwide, including several major mainstream sequels, prequels, and remakes as well as original films.-Top–grossing films:...
horror
filmFilm encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects....
directed by Steven R. Monroe and starring
Dennis HopperDennis Lee Hopper is an American actor, filmmaker and artist, with a career that spanned half of the 20th century. Hopper became interested in acting and eventually became a student of the Actors Studio. He made his first television appearance in 1955, and appeared in two films also featuring...
. The film was first released in
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
at the
Cannes Film FestivalThe Cannes Film Festival , founded in 1946, is one of the world's oldest and most prestigious film festivals. The private festival is held annually at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, in the resort town of Cannes, in the south of France.The 62nd edition started 13 May and ended 24 May 2009...
on 20 May 2004, followed by a
limited releaseLimited release is a term in the American motion picture industry for a motion picture that is playing in a select few theaters across the country ....
in the United States.
Premise
The film commences when nine unconnected strangers realize that they are locked inside a deserted house. As they begin to wonder why they are there, The Watcher (voiced by Jim Carter) who's viewing everything on surveillance cameras hidden throughout, tells the house guests through an
intercomAn intercom , talkback or doorphone is a stand-alone electronic communications system intended for limited or private dialogue. Intercoms can be portable but are generally mounted permanently in buildings and vehicles...
that they've been brought there to play a game of survival for The Watcher's entertainment. The last person left alive after this game will receive an award of 5 million dollars.
Each of the nine people captive in the house try different methods of getting out but all attempts are doomed to fail. When they see no way of escape, the house soon turns into a killing fest, until the final survivor remains; unaware of the twist in store for them.
Plot
The film opens up with views of the mansion from camera screens, showing bedrooms, a kitchen, bathrooms,and a dining hall. These screens alternate with images of the 9 being kidnapped. The film then picks up with Lea, the heroine, waking up and finding herself in one of the bedrooms. She gets up and at first is confused, asking if anyone is there. Noticing others in the adjacent bedrooms, Lea begins to panic and runs to the main door, banging on it and shouting to be let out. when nothing happens, she runs to the windows and pulls back the curtains, only to find the windows bricked up. Going into hysterics, Lea runs all over the House, including down in the
basementA basement is one or more floors of a building that are either completely or partially below the ground floor. Shallow foundation buildings do not have basements...
, where she finds a door that is bricked up as well. Going into a
panic attackPanic attacks are very sudden, discrete periods of intense anxiety, mounting physiological arousal, fear, stomach problems and discomfort that are associated with a variety of somatic and cognitive symptoms. The onset of these episodes is typically abrupt, and may have no obvious triggers...
, she runs back to the front hall and breaks down, passing out on the floor.
Lea is woken up by Father Duffey, who is concerned about her. Jay, nearby, tells Duffey not to worry, because she'll be fine, as all she had was a panic attack. Lea looks around and sees (in addition to Jay and Father Duffy) 6 other people. As they all wonder what they are doing in the House, the Watcher's (voiced by Jim Carter) voice comes over the speaker, informing them that he has had them all brought them to the House to play a game. The Watcher then tells the 9 that all of their families and friends are being "taken care of" and that the 9 won't be found. The Watcher explains that it is no use trying to figure out where they are, or who he is: he chose them randomly: not based on who they are, but what they are. Finally, the Watcher announces that they are part of something like a reality show, only much graver. The Watcher claims that the winner of the game will be the last one left alive: to win, one must ensure that the other 8 "players" are dead. The winner is free to leave the House, and, as "compensation" for their participation, they will receive 5 million dollars.
After The Watcher stops talking, the players all start arguing about what to do. Several players get into arguments, and Jay and Father Duffy break them up. When discussing how to get out, They first try to use the dining table as a
battering ramA battering ram is a siege engine originating in ancient times to break open fortification walls or doors.In its simplest form, a battering ram is just a large, heavy log carried by several people and propelled with force against an obstacle; the ram would be sufficient to damage the target if the...
. When that fails, they break up and try to find other ways out. Jay, Duffey, Lea, and another player try to dig when they find what appears to be a hole in the basement, while 4 other players try to break through a
trapdoorA trapdoor is a door set into a floor or ceiling .Originally, trapdoors were sack traps in mills, and allowed the sacks to pass up through the mill while naturally falling back to a closed position....
. Neither attempt works. The players come back to the
foyerA foyer [IPA: fwa'je] is a large, vast room or complex of rooms adjacent to the auditorium...
, where one player is sitting and drinking from a crystal bottle of wine.(In the house, there are two functioning bathrooms with water, as well as an upper foyer with a CD player and a wine cabinet, fully stocked.) One player argues with her, telling her she is doing nothing to help them. The other player shouts back, but they are interrupted by a noise from a small room like a kitchen, only without any food. In it is a small
dumbwaiterDumbwaiter may refer to:* A Dumbwaiter , a freight elevator or lift between building floors* Lazy Susan, a small rotating table or set of cabinets used for serving food* The Dumb Waiter, a one-act play by Harold Pinter...
, which opens to reveal some chicken and potatoes.
Taking the food to the dining table, the players, at first are ready to grab as much food as they can. However, Jay insists that they each only have one piece of chicken and one potato, and save the rest. As they prepare to eat, Lea says that she will give up her chicken, as she doesn't eat meat. One player, Shona, reaches over for it but Jay stops her, and divides the chicken into equal portions. he then gives Lea his own potato.
In order to break the silence, Father Duffey introduces himself, and has everyone introduce themselves in an effort to create a connection, saying that everyone can get through this.
Jay introduces himself as cop, and reveals he has a gun, but he says he will not use it.
Lea (
Kelly BrookKelly Brook is an English model, actress, occasional swimwear designer and television presenter. She is the daughter of Sandra, a cook, and Ken, a scaffolder...
) is a dancer.
Claire is the player who wasn't helping the others find a way to escape. A tennis player and kind of self centered, though seems to be sometimes kind to others. (Susie Amy)
Francis is a musician who is also Cynthia's husband.
Cynthia is Francis's wife.
Al B. is a rapper who insists that he will win the game, wants Jay's gun, and believes everything said to him is intended to be a racial comment.
Shona (
Morven Christie-Biography:Morven Christie grew up in Scotland, splitting her time between Glasgow and Aviemore. She travelled and worked a series of jobs including teaching skiing, before studying acting at the Drama Centre London, graduating in 2003. Christie has worked on stage, film and television drama since...
) is a drug addict, Shona has an ankle monitor which the other guests hope might lead someone to find them.
Max is a clothes designer.
After dinner, the guests decide to pick bedrooms. There are 5 rooms with 2 beds each. The group decide that Cynthia and Francis, as a married couple, will get one bedroom, and Father Duffey, as a
priestA priest or priestess is a person having the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities. Their office or position is the priesthood, a term which may also apply to such persons collectively.Priests and priestesses...
, will also get his own room. Al B. doesn't like this, claiming "I won't sleep with no white person" eventually, it is determined that Jay and Lea will share a room, as will Max and Al. B., and Shona and Claire (much to their disgust). Later, when everyone goes to bed, Jay and Lea talk about their families. Jay reveals he is divorced and has a 6 year old son. When everyone goes to sleep, an intruder sneaks into Jay's room to try to steal his gun. Jay prevents this, and along with Lea, runs out into the hall shouting. Everyone else runs out and Jay wildly starts shouting and accusing people. Al B. and Jay almost get into a fight. As everyone goes back to bed, since no one confesses to the attempted theft, Jay tells Lea that the only ones he trusts are Lea and Father Duffey: Lea because she was with him at the time, and Father Duffey because he was upstairs praying and would have had no time to run back after. While arguing, they hear a sound they believe to be coming from the main side of the main door. After making a lot of noise to try to get someones attention, Jay gives over the key to the wine cabinet.
In order to lighten their spirits, the players, except for Lea and Father Duffey, open the wine cabinet and begin to have a drink. Lea goes off for a walk, while Father Duffey goes to his room to pray. Jay leaves to sit on his bed, while Francis also steps out of the foyer, and, having pocketed the stopper to one of the bottles, breaks it in the bathroom, and pouring most of it into the top of the toilet, takes one large shard and hides it in the door sill for later use. Shona, Claire and Max get drunk and leave to go throw up. Meanwhile, Al B. and Cynthia, drunk begin flirting. Francis comes back and sees this, and runs at Al B. Fighting, the two men land on the couch, and as Cynthia tries to stop them as everyone else runs up, Al B. accidentally pushes her back, and she hits the back of her head on the stone railing killing her. As everyone gasps, Francis runs over and begins sobbing, while Jay "arrests" Al B. and locks him in a room by using a pipe found in the basement.
As everyone deals with the shock, Al B. screams in his room, telling Jay to let him out in an expletive laden rant. As father Duffey goes to let Al B. out to give him some food, Al B. bursts out and knocks over Father Duffey, and he picks up the pipe. As everyone runs over to see what the commotion is about, Al B. hits Jay, who was taken by surprise, over and over again, beating him to a pulp. As Max and Francis wrestle him off, Jay, with his dying breath gives Father Duffey his gun. Al B. runs back in the room and shuts the door. The next day, after having taken Jay down to the basement, the 6 remaining players,(not counting the locked up Al B.) find more food (several plates as opposed to last times single one) and bottles of wine with a card that says "Good Work". Confused, the 6 players run to Al B's room, and removing the pipe, open to find Al B. has hung himself. Shocked, Father Duffey and Lea stand in horror while the other players run back to grab as much food and wine as they can. Meanwhile, Francis begins to go through a mental breakdown out of sight of everyone else. he puts on his wife's lipstick and talks to himself. As Father Duffey goes to talk to Max, Shona and Claire get into an argument in their room, and Claire, in a fit of rage, stabs Shona in the neck with a corkscrew killing her. Meanwhile, Francis(now completely insane) goes to the bathroom and finding Lea washing her face. Smiling sadistically, he punches the light into the sink,
electrocutingAn electric shock can occur upon contact of a human body with any source of voltage high enough to cause sufficient current through the muscles or hair. The minimum current a human can feel is thought to be about 1 milliampere ....
and killing Lea (apparently). Hearing Claire's scream at having killed Shona, he (Francis) runs into the basement to hide.
Claire runs out to the foyer, and insists to Father Duffey and Max that she killed Shona in self defense. Father Duffey, fearing for Lea, runs off to find her, while the Watcher says "1 in 4 now". Claire turns to Max, and insists that if they work together, they can finish off Father Duffey and whoever else is left, then trick the Watcher and get out and split the money. Max agrees but begins undoing his belt: his condition is that Claire has to sleep with him. Claire, desperate to win, agrees. Max then quickly begins to strangle Claire with his belt. Meanwhile, Father Duffey finds Lea, and, while he begins to sob, is attacked by Francis. Duffey, pleading with Francis, eventually gets away by shooting Francis in the arm. As Father Duffey runs back to the foyer to find Max strangling Claire, because "she was stealing food". Begging Max to stop, Father Duffey finally shoots Max in the head, killing him. The Watcher shouts "1 in 3".
Back in the bathroom, Lea suddenly wakes up in time to hear the gun go off. She did not die and was only knocked unconscious. Terrified, she
barricadeA barricade is any object or structure that creates a barrier or obstacle to control, block passage or force the flow of traffic in the desired direction...
s the door and runs to the shower to hide, only to find the glass shards Francis hid in the toilet. She grabs one to protect herself, and hides behind the curtain. Back in the foyer, Father Duffey is asking Claire if she is okay when he gasps. Behind him is Francis, who stabbed him in the back with his glass shard. Claire begins crawling away while Francis retrieves the gun, and pulls the trigger, killing Claire. Then he walks over to Father Duffey, who still wasn't dead yet and shoots him. Flushed with his victory, Francis begins shouting "I Win! I Win!!!!" over and over.
Lea, upstairs, tries to find a better hiding spot, but slips, making a thud. Francis, realizing that someone is left, begins to go upstairs. Calling out Lea's name. Lea hides under the bed and Francis walks in the room. as he stands around looking for her, Lea stabs him in the leg and runs out of the room. As Francis limply gives chase, Lea runs upstairs to the balcony, where Francis finds her hiding behind a couch. He tries to shoot her, but the gun is out of bullets. Screaming and crying, Lea tries to run away, but Francis grabs her. As they struggle, they fall over the edge, and Francis lands head first, dying instantly, while Lea only suffers a bruised shoulder.
Lea, crawling over to Father Duffey's body, gently retrieves the glass shard and wraps it up in her scarf, crying. As she lies on the floor in despair, the Watcher announces "Congratulations Lea, you win. I must say I am very impressed." The front door opens, revealing a bright light with a bag on the floor. Lea walks over to the bag and opens it. In the bag is the five million. As she picks up the bag, she walks out the door.
Alternate endings
The film has two endings, after Lea walks out the door.
In the first ending, Lea is knocked unconscious by a stranger as she is blinded by the sunlight outside the house. She later wakes up in bed, at her apartment, and confused, she sits up. At first she begins crying, thinking that everything was a dream. She then notices the bag and a small TV set hooked up to the wall, along with a tape. As she looks in the bag in shock, she finds the 5 million. She then plays the tape, and the watcher tells her, over a picture of the foyer in the house (all the bodies are gone and everything is cleaned up), that she just became a member of the world's most exclusive survival club, and he is very proud. The picture then goes to the bedroom, where there are 9 new people lying on the floor. The film ends with Lea staring at the screen in shock, with the watcher saying "Happy viewing..."
The second ending has Lea emerging out of the light into another House: an exact replica of the last one. In the foyer are 4 people watching her, each with their own bag of 5 million dollars. The camera zooms in on Lea, as she, grips the shard of glass through her scarf, a resigned and sorrowed look on her face, as a single tear forms in her eye.
Cast
- Dennis Hopper
Dennis Lee Hopper is an American actor, filmmaker and artist, with a career that spanned half of the 20th century. Hopper became interested in acting and eventually became a student of the Actors Studio. He made his first television appearance in 1955, and appeared in two films also featuring...
- Father Duffy
- Kelly Brook
Kelly Brook is an English model, actress, occasional swimwear designer and television presenter. She is the daughter of Sandra, a cook, and Ken, a scaffolder...
- Lea
- Hippolyte Girardot
Hippolyte Girardot is a French actor.He is not related to the actress Annie Girardot.-Filmography:* 1973 : La Femme de Jean, directed by Yannick Bellon, Rémi...
- Francis
- Susie Amy
Susie Amy is an English actress most famous for her role as Chardonnay Lane-Pascoe in the first two seasons of Footballers' Wives.-Biography:...
- Claire Leevy
- Morven Christie
-Biography:Morven Christie grew up in Scotland, splitting her time between Glasgow and Aviemore. She travelled and worked a series of jobs including teaching skiing, before studying acting at the Drama Centre London, graduating in 2003. Christie has worked on stage, film and television drama since...
- Shona
- Peter Capaldi
Peter Capaldi is an Academy Award and BAFTA Award-winning Scottish film director and actor.-Personal life:Peter Capaldi was educated in Glasgow at St Teresa's R C Primary School in Glasgow's Possilpark, St Ninian's High School in Kirkintilloch , and the Glasgow School of Art...
- Max Roy
- Asher D - Al B
- Raffaello Degruttola- Jay
- Julienne Davis
Julienne Davis is an American actress, singer, and model. Her acting credits include the pivotal role of "Mandy" in Eyes Wide Shut, Tabloid, House of 9, The Bill, as well as being a main cast member of the television series Too Much Sun...
- Cynthia
- Jim Carter - The Watcher (voice)