Welcome to the world’s most disturbing health spa, or one of them at least. Nine Perfect Strangers on Hulu is definitely one of the creepier movies to come along in a while and Nicole Kidman appears to play it off quite well as the hostess/tormentor/healer that apparently selects her guests for a purpose, even if it would appear that they’re selected in a very random manner considering who they are and what their lives are all about. Nine individuals, not all of them strangers to each, are invited to the health resort as Masha, played by Kidman, makes it known that they’re there to heal in some crucial manner. The only issue here is that the ‘healing’ looks like psychological and even physical torture as the individuals go through an ordeal that is mean to break them down and reinvigorate them in a few ways. If this were how resorts were run, however, it’s fair to say that a lot of people might go on being miserable or would find an alternative that didn’t involve lying in a shallow grave or getting physical with one another to release pent-up aggression. On top of that, the mind games that Masha will no doubt be doling out are bound to mess up a person far worse than anything else ever could.
What’s really here to be learned is bound up in the entertainment of it all since the disturbing, psychological aspects of the movie are likely to be seen as troubling to many people and might even put a notion in the heads of some that some health resorts and boutiques might not be as healthy as they think. The upside is that the fictional nature of this movie is easy to see, as is the fact that if a resort ever condoned such actions without full disclosure, it’s easy to think that they would be facing lawsuits that would end up ruining them. The movie plays upon the secrecy and mystique of such practices that will no doubt make many people wonder if such a thing ever has or could happen.
The only issue is whether or not we’re seeing the most intense moments in the trailer or if there’s more to come since the whole idea behind creating something like this is that the best stuff will be hidden from the viewers before it’s released, rather than handed out for free. The idea of a retreat that tortures its guests while calling it healing is something that many people might want to debate over since the fact is that some people can’t be reached by conventional methods when it comes to healing. But going too far as to risk damaging one’s psyche in the process does feel like pushing the line a bit. It does make for a good story though and one that many people might want to watch since one can only imagine the drama that’s about to unfold in this story and how the characters will react to each other. It’s already been seen in the trailer that they’re bound to go after one another now and then and will likely close themselves away from each other as well.
It’s possible that a few risky behaviors will also be present as the individuals continue to find out more about their inner selves and unlock things they might not have wanted anyone to know. In some ways, this story gives the impression that while the individuals, all apparently quite wealthy and well-off but suffering from their own various problems, will be seeking a way to unwind and sort out their issues, they’ll also be presented with a host of other issues that they hadn’t addressed in too long. To be fair, it looks like something that will be giving people nightmares and might make a lot of folks swear off health spas for a while if they’re paranoid enough to think that there’s even a shred of truth to this type of story. People are funny that way, they tend to believe that the grain of truth in every piece of fiction is bound to be worth paying attention to.
The work of fiction that this project is based upon is available for those that might want to take a look, as it might bring the story into perspective a little more and allow them to breathe a little easier. But for those that are down for a chilling tale, Nine Perfect Strangers is already looking like something that will give a person a great thrill and make them shake just a little by the end to think about what they just watched. On top of having a very recognizable cast, the story looks to keep people on their toes with plenty of WTF moments that might inspire nightmares or another story at some point.
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