9 (2009/I)

User Rating:

(awaiting 5 votes)

Director:

Shane Acker

Writers:

Pamela Pettler (screenplay)
Shane Acker (story)

Release Date:

9 September 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

Plot:

A post-apocalyptic nightmare in which all of humanity is threatened.

Plot Keywords:

Digit In Title | Number In Character's Name | One Word Title | Number As Title | Based On Short Film

Cast

Elijah Wood	...	9 (voice)
John C. Reilly	...	5 (voice)
Jennifer Connelly	...	7 (voice)
Crispin Glover	...	6 (voice)
Martin Landau	...	2 (voice)
Christopher Plummer	...	1 (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Fred Tatasciore	...	8 (voice)
Helen Wilson	...	Radio Announcer (voice)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence and scary images.

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #45249)

Filming Locations:

Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Company:

Focus Features

Quotes:

[from trailer]
7: We... awakened something.
9: Something terrible.

Movie Connections:

Version of 9 (2005)

Soundtrack:

Welcome Home

Visually interesting, original premise, bad characters, short movie.

I got to catch this film at a test screening, and it sounded really good. The trailers made it look very original, and considering it's Focus Film's second animated movie, it seems like it would be good, especially following the amazing Coraline. This was not amazing in any way. The animation and sets were cool, but that's all this film ever accomplished, was looking cool. Cool action scenes and interesting battle scenes, and that's about it.

When a scientist eventually built a synthetic brain, it would mean the end of mankind. All that's left are nine little robot/sack creatures and a corrupted synthetic brain that builds other creatures to destroy the world. It's up to these little sack creatures to defeat the robot and save the world.

For a movie named after a title character, this movie had almost no character development. There are some individual characteristics, like bravery and stubbornness, but not anything that makes these characters likable or original in any way. The movie never lingers to develop the characters either. The movie is several long climaxes, with only brief breaks to introduce (not develop) characters.

The sets and animation were neat. The post-apocalyptic world had a bleak, but imaginative look to it. The creatures all had unique and cool looks to them too. But then we go back to that "cool" factor, and that's all that can really be said...that and originality. This was pretty original.

Tim Burton's name will be thrown around in the trailers of this film, despite only being on board as producer. This is an original movie, but not particularly good, and it was very, very short, with a preposterous ending, which I'm not going to give away. It's supposed to be a either a sad or happy ending (not giving it away), but with just some thought, you'll realize it's the opposite of what they want it to be. It just wasn't very good.

My rating: ** out of ****. 75 mins. PG-13 for violence.