Movie review: ‘9th Life of Louis Drax’ is more sinister than it first seems

“The 9th Life of Louis Drax” begins as if it’s going to be a sweet children’s film about the goofy life of an accident-prone 9-year-old boy. Events that should have killed him don’t, and he seems untroubled by all of his near-death experiences.

But Louis Drax quickly becomes something darker, more sinister and more surreal as it navigates issues of potential murder, domestic abuse, child abuse, collapsing marriages, and the shadow world between life and death. There’s even a hint of horror.

Based on the novel by Liz Jensen, written by Max Minghella (actor and son of the late director Anthony Minghella) and directed by Alexandre Aja (“The Hills Have Eyes,” “High Tension”), it’s a long-delayed project, having been in the works for 12 years. The result, despite shifting tones, turns out to be a surprisingly watchable, intriguing, supernatural-tinged thriller.

Aiden Longworth is Louis Drax, a precocious kid whose constant accidents never seem to dent his spirits. It’s all fun and games until he falls over a cliff and is at first thought to be dead but miraculously is not. As it turns out, he’s in a coma, a situation that brings his doting mom (Sarah Gadon, “Indignation” and “11.22.63”) into the orbit of Dr. Allan Pascal (Jamie Dornan, “Fifty Shades of Grey”), a specialist who works with children in comas.

Her husband (Aaron Paul) is missing, the doctor’s marriage is failing, and it slowly becomes clear – through flashbacks and Louis’ coma experiences – that everyone involved has deeper secrets than they care to admit. And it’s these secrets that detective Dalton (Molly Parker) is determined to plumb in order to determine whether Louis’ fall was an accident.

“The 9th Life of Louis Drax” may be all over the map stylistically, but its cohesion in the face of its own near-death and rejuvenation is something of a miracle, too.