“Nine Lives” stars Kevin Spacey as Tom Brand, a workaholic who has chosen his pursuit of wealth and power over spending time with wife Lara (Jennifer Garner) and daughter Rebecca (Malina Weissman). When he misses Rebecca’s 11th birthday party, he tries to make amends by buying her a cat, even though he hates felines.

Every once in a while, a movie comes along that makes you scratch your head and ask yourself, “What were they thinking?”

“Nine Lives” is one of those movies.

It’s really amazing to see so much talent in front of and behind the camera come together to make a film that is essentially direct-to-video quality. It’s an oddball attempt at a family film that gets a few points for its weirdness but is pretty easy to dismiss.

“Nine Lives” stars Kevin Spacey as Tom Brand, a workaholic who has chosen his pursuit of wealth and power over spending time with wife Lara (Jennifer Garner) and daughter Rebecca (Malina Weissman). When he misses Rebecca’s 11th birthday party, he tries to make amends by buying her a cat, even though he hates felines.

He purchases the cat from an eccentric pet store owner (Christopher Walken) and winds up getting more than he bargained for when a series of events leaves Tom trapped inside the cat. Tom desperately tries to reverse the curse, with the pet store owner being the only person who can help him return to his human form.

I really would like to hear the conversations that took place to convince Spacey, Walken and Garner to agree to this project. This script is so listless (and such a direct knock off of other films like “The Shaggy Dog”) that I’m not sure what about the story made any of these three feel like it was a good idea.

Maybe it was seeing Barry Sonnenfeld’s name attached as the director that drew them to “Nine Lives.” Sonnenfeld’s resume, which includes “Men in Black” and “Get Shorty,” is solid, but there is really nothing he can do to save “Nine Lives.”

I’ll admit there were a few moments that cat owners might get a chuckle from and just seeing Walken basically play Christopher Walken is a bit of guilty pleasure.

But the tone is all over the place, with some dark tones scattered about in what is supposed to be a family movie (A hint of suicide in the final act is a little unsettling for the PG-fare this tries to be).

Maybe “Nine Lives” should have gone dark and let Spacey go full Frank Underwood from “House of Cards.” It certainly wouldn’t have made “Nine Lives” any odder than it already is.

DVD dandy of the week

If “Nine Lives” doesn’t catch your fancy, then the comedy “Keanu” (B-) might fit the bill.

Comedy Central’s Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key make a pretty good transition from small screen to big screen in this comedy that is a bit uneven at times, but when it fires, it’s as funny and smart as anything in recent memory.

Peele and Key play Rell and Clarence, cousins who set out to recover Rell’s kitten after he is kidnapped. While rescuing the cat, they are mistaken for ruthless killers and soon find themselves right in the middle of a gang war.

I’ve never seen the duo’s sketch comedy show, so I can’t compare this film to what fans have come to expect. As an outsider, however, I can say that I found their chemistry quite enjoyable – and their humor worked pretty well in a feature film.

Peele co-wrote the screenplay, which plays with a lot of absurd ideas (one being how this kitten can basically make even the most hardened criminal turn to putty). There is some really smart social commentary at times with the script taking some very nice chances at getting laughs in uncomfortable places.

Not every joke sticks, however, with some bits not as inspired as the rest. For every misfire, though, there is something pretty brilliant (my favorite involving Clarence imagining himself in the middle of the iconic George Michael music video “Faith” during a drug-induced haze). I may not have laughed at everything in “Keanu,” but I laughed enough to enjoy myself.

“Keanu” is rated R for violence, language throughout, drug use and sexuality/nudity and is now playing at the Regal Bowling Green Stadium 10 and Highland Cinemas in Glasgow.

— To read Micheal Compton’s thoughts on more movies, visit his blog at bgdailynews.com/blogs/reel_to_reel or follow him on Twitter @mcompton428. Email him at mcompton@bgdailynews.com.

Starring: Kevin Spacey and Jennifer Garner

Director: Barry Sonnenfeld

Rating: PG for thematic elements, language and some rude humor

Playing at: Regal Bowling Green Stadium 12

Grade: C-