Number 23, The

Aroview: Enigmatic, strangely engrossing rabbit hole thriller for Jim Carrey, about a seemingly innocuous detective novel that mysteriously mirrors his life.

An unintentional comedy of numerological obsession and mental illness trapdoors, Serious Jim's strained attempts at psychological intensity bring much of dir. Schumacher’s stylish execution into disrepute; meanwhile, cohort Virginia Madsen clearly has more fun with the parallel universes at play (she takes on both the role of Carrey’s wife and a femme fatale in his projected fantasy world). Confounding, convoluted stuff, though the film’s escalating absurdity is almost a virtue if thought of in comic terms.