23 Skidoo

Rating: 6/10 (15 March 2008)

The movie's pacing was too slow and pedantic for my taste perhaps, relying too much on visual gimmickry. I did, however, enjoy Jim Carrey -comedians tends to have a dark side to them and in this way he gets to play it out (maybe that'll prevent him from sinking into a deep depression, psychosis or suicide). I was not crazy about Virginia Madsen in either of her roles - she seemed too matronly for the femme fatale and too old for the wife. She is wonderful but a tough one to cast because she looks so steady, stable and mature which ages her. In fact, while lying on her side on the bed sleeping at the end of the nightmare scene, she looked like Bette Davis in All About Eve.
What I was really impressed with was the introduction where the significant events encompassing the number 23 are flashed. I would bet there were 23 flashes as well, but I could not count during this viewing. The 23 stabs that was flashed? Ceasar was stabbed 23 times. Dr. Sirius Leary (seriously?) is interesting because Sirius the Dogstar rising from behind the sun on July 23 signifies the start of the dog days of summer. In Airport, the mad bomber sat in seat 23. There are lots of '23' referrals (for more 23's,see http://www.geocities.com/fairyoflyonnesse/ as well as other sites).
And let's not forget 23 Skidoo, the 23rd Chapter called Skidoo in Aleister Crowley's Book of Lies in which the commentary says 23 Skidoo means "get out" and the chapter describes "a man ridding himself of all his accidents". I believe that Walter Sparrow says something of the sort. It almost seems as if the movie was based on that chapter.