The 9th Life of Louis Drax is one of the stranger films you won't ever see. Adapted from the 2004 novel by the UK's Liz Jensen, Louis Drax opens like a family film with its young, titular protagonist (Aiden Longworth) describing just how accident-prone he is. He's been bit by spiders, poisoned, electrocuted, and pushed to the brink of death multiple times. His latest experience is falling off a cliff into water. He is pronounced dead, but hours later startles a mortuary worker and is later upgraded to comatose.

The film jumps around to share the experiences of Louis (pronounced "Louie") with his pretty mother Natalie (Sarah Gadon) and father Peter (Aaron Paul), a former boxer. Peter, who has been missing since Louis' cliff fall, is suspected of having pushed the boy. But there's more to the incident than initially meets the eye, as Louis' esteemed doctor Allan Pascal (Fifty Shades of Grey's Jamie Dornan) and the viewer both discover through the nonlinear progression.

There are some domestic disputes between Louis' parents and Louis also opens up to the therapist he calls Fat Perez (Oliver Platt). Meanwhile, threatening notes seemingly in the comatose boy's voice and addressed to his mother and his doctor begin turning up, confounding both medical professionals and the authorities (Molly Parker and Terry Chen) investigating the cliff push.

9th Life is adapted for the screen by Max Minghella, a young British actor better known for his work in films like The Social Network and The Ides of March than for being the son of the late writer-director Anthony Minghella (The English Patient, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Cold Mountain). The younger Minghella, who also picks up only his second producing credit, does not make the most inspiring of screenwriting debuts. But it's not material anyone could easily pull off with grace and tact.

Those two qualities are in short supply here with seasoned horror helmer Alexandre Aja (Piranha 3D, Mirrors, The Hills Have Eyes) directing. Louis Drax wants to be a procedural, a psychological thriller, a romance, an Odd Life of Timothy Green-type family fantasy, and a mystery. It succeeds at exactly zero of those tasks. Your interest is held, but your empathy and trust are soon and irrevocably lost. You might wonder just how bizarre the movie is willing to get, but you've probably figured that out once you have a disfigured cave-dwelling sea monster hanging around Louis and giving him wisdom. Naturally, there's a big twist and whether or not you see it coming, you won't hate it the way you do more contrived climactic bends that falter under scrutiny.

Despite a cinematically versed director and some semi-marketable talent, 9th Life did not get much of a theatrical release last September, failing to even open an official box office record. It came to Blu-ray and DVD this week, surely looking like a direct-to-video production for the few whose radars it even showed up on.

Blu-ray & DVD Details 2.39:1 Widescreen 5.1 DTS-HD MA (English) Subtitles: English for Hearing Impaired, Spanish Extras Not Subtitled; Not Closed Captioned Release Date: February 7, 2017 Suggested Retail Price: $24.99 Single-sided, single-layered disc (BD-25) Blue Keepcase in Cardboard Slipcover Also available on DVD ($19.98 SRP) and Amazon Instant Video