9 (directed by Shane Acker)

[Weapon X]

http://www.joblo.com/big-poster-images/nine.jpg

http://www.joblo.com/big-movie-images/nine3.jpg

http://www.joblo.com/big-movie-images/nine24.jpg

http://www.joblo.com/big-movie-images/nine10.jpg

Directed by Shane Acker

Written by Pamela Pettler

Genre: Animated / Sci-fi

Plot: In a mission to salvage the legacy of civilization, a group of small creations were given the spark of life by a scientist in the final days of humanity. Surviving past the apocalypse, one of their own, #9 (voiced by Elijah Wood), emerges and displays leadership qualities that may help them survive and possibly even thrive.

Starring: Elijah Wood, Jennifer Connelly, Christopher Plummer, Martin Landau, John C. Reilly, Crispin Glover

Rated PG-13 for violence and scary images.

Runtime: 79 min


I've been looking forward to this one since I saw the first previews for it. It kind of reminds me of Labyrinth or The Dark Crystal; both movies that were seemingly kids' flicks on the surface, but had a pretty dark heart underneath. 9 seems to wear its darkness on its sleeve, which could prevent it from drawing business, but hopefully it will do okay at the BO. Critics are so far divided on it (http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1205483_nine/), while Joblo's own JimmyO awarded it an 8/10. (http://www.joblo.com/index.php?id=28102)

On a personal note, the timing of the release is impeccable; the 9th is my Mom's birthday, so taking her to see this is kind of my present to her...good thing she's into stuff like this.

Also, for the artists out there: DeviantArt is holding a contest to design a creature from the 9 universe; basically, you can draw/paint/photograph a monster made out of found objects. The sweet part? Finalists will be chosen by director Shane Acker! Details on the contest are available HERE (http://news.deviantart.com/article/91399/), and my entry is viewable HERE (http://shokxone-studios.deviantart.com/art/9-Luxo-the-Destroyer-136254871). (Shameless plug? Oh no I didn't!)

[overwatch]

Looks good, but i wish....oh how I wish it was done in stop motion. That would have been incredible.

[ilovemovies]

I'm so glad it's not stop motion. Not a fan of that style. I didn't like Nightmare Before Christmas or Corpse's Bride.

This looks pretty cool. Looking forward to it.

[drc5145]

I'm pretty excited right now. I just received a screening pass for a screening of 9 here in DC tonight. What makes me happy is that it's at a later time so I stand to have a better chance of getting in.

The start time for the screening is BTW, 9:09:09 PM. ;)

[bigred760]

This looks freakin' awesome. Will be seeing it the day it opens.

[Strider]

I don't remember when I first saw the teaser trailer, but I've been looking forward to 9 ever since. It looks fucking awesome! I only hope the story is as good as the animation. I'll probably see it on the weekend.

Strider

[drc5145]

I'm chiming very late on this review but I'll just say for now that while the story for the most part, was light, and did not go too deep, it still remained simple and interesting enough to be carried be some great visuals and pretty well made action. I'm floating between an 8 and 8.5 rating. More likely an 8 for now...

[NuclearMisfit]

Ive been wanting to see this movie for quite some time now so I might just head to the theaters this week.

[LordSimen]

A fun, cute and surprisingly dark little movie. 8/10

[CMAGUS]

went to check this out tonight after waiting a long time to see this and I gotta say I was pretty dissapointed.First I will give props to Shane Acker for getting his film made.Overall there wasn't much here though.The story was completly pointless, some of the animation was a little sloppy and just overall it was just meh.

[Weapon X]

First impression: Terminator meets The Dark Crystal, with a hint of The Secret of NIMH.

The movie moves at a quick enough pace, barely running 80 minutes in all, and the imagery is absorbing even when the animation isn't up to Pixar or even Dreamworks standards. The voice actors blend right into their characters for the most part, thanks in part to some clear typecasting (for example, Elijah Wood is the noble, inquisitive adventurer, while Crispin Glover is crazy one), and help the characters rise above their archetypes. The machines meanwhile are Skeksis-scary, the creepiest of which is a worm/spider-like contraption that takes hostages in freaky "arachnophobia nightmare" fashion.

9 wears its darkness on its sleeve, from its cast of nightmare creatures to its not-so-subtle drug reference (it's a hoot). Thematically it can stand proudly next to films like Dark Crystal, Labyrinth and The Nightmare Before Christmas, but I imagine it was always sit below those films because 9 is CG-animated. Nonetheless, 9 travels off the beaten path of mainstream animated flicks; it's bleak, humorous, thrilling, and just fun to look at.

I also recommend viewing Shane Acker's original animated short (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IQcMeNh7Hc) as a semi-primer.

[SpikeDurden]

I was so swept up in the visuals and the character design that I wanted to absolutely love this film. Acker has created a marvelous playground and sublime characters to inhabit it. As a visual feast, the film is a marvel, and the action sequences are kinetic and fluid. The voice work is also tremendous and in a short time Wood and Reilly and Connelly and Plummer create multi-dimensional characters. Unfortunately, though the film is barely 80 minutes long, there is simply not enough story to tell and things get confusing towards the end. There is clearly a big heart here and a great message of hope, I just wish there was more of a plot to compliment everything else. Still, I plan on seeing this again and I know it will only get better with age. I'd love to see a sequel.

[KCJ506]

The only I was disappointed was is the runtime and the lack of character development. I mean this wasn't even an hour and a half.

[LordSimen]

Edit: Wrong thread.

[CMAGUS]

The only I was disappointed was is the runtime and the lack of character development. I mean this wasn't even an hour and a half.

I think this was the biggest problem this film had it just kinda felt like you had walked into the theater half way through the movie and missed the begining part of the film.

[ToasT]

I wanted to like it but was disappointed.

The visuals are excellent but the characters are extremely boring. You've seen all of them before and they all fit each of their molds. This one is a coward, this one is brave, this one is big and dumb, this one is curious... etc. Combine them into one character and you may have gotten something. Yes, i can hear it from you guys now, "each may have represented a different part of the scientist's soul." Yes, probably, but they needed to be used a bit more creatively. They all fell into the typical pitfalls that represent each characterization. Predictable. Boring.

Also, the plot wasn't very strong. Towards the end, the point of the whole film was lost on me. Why? What is the purpose of their mission? To destroy the brain machine? Why in such a convoluted method? Why did the scientist create 9 tiny muppets to defeat a giant brain machine and its army of smaller creations? Why did the scientist create such a strange "on-switch" (the talisman) for the brain machine? Why did he give the brain machine the ability to suck out souls through the talisman? Did the scientist have the forethought of the coming destruction of man and built this complex fail-safe plan?

... I'm sorry but all of this seems a bit weak and not thought out. This film had much potential and lived up only to a small bit of it (effects).

5/10

[bigred760]

The story isn't anything to brag about, but I did enjoy watching it. The animation is awesome, the character's interesting, and I really enjoyed the ending. There are a few action scenes that are exciting and well done that help keep the movie going. Like I said, the story is nothing spectacular and while there is little character development, the characters themselves are interesting and fun to follow. Overall, not the most original movie, but fun nonetheless.

7/10

[JoeCool]

This movie lived up to the high standard that the academy nominated short set. The paints a vivid picture of a post-human world, i found myself constantly pulled away from looking at the characters to just trying to take in as much of the surrounding landscapes as possible.
The movie doesnt waste any time and keeps up a quick pace the whole movie. Surprisingly i found myself very involved with the characters, particularly 5. This is in large part thanks to the amazing voice acting of John C. Reiley (sp), he plays an innocent simpleton to a perfect t. This movie is going to be one of the most unappreciated movie of the year, and thats too bad, i hope that it finds a cult following.
Be on the lookout for more of Shane Acker, he is a force to be reckoned with.

9/10

[ToasT]

funny, I thought John C. Reily was the worst of them all.

[anakinsrise]

9
I do appreciate all of the hard work that went into making 9,but aside from looking amazing there really wasnt much to the story.Just one chase scene after the other.The sapient ragdoll,storyline was original but i guess i was just expecting more.
Scale of 1-10 a 5

[MightyCelestial]

On a scale of 1-10, I give 9 an 8.

[InvaderZim]

One of my most anticipated movies of the year and one of the biggest letdowns (including Terminator)

No plot whatsoever.. So Convoluted and characters that have absolutely no personality.. Wolverine made more sense.

4/10

[Common Sense Man]

I almost went into this movie without reading any reviews, other than the Joblo one. But I thought I would check it on RT and see what was up, and saw it was not fresh.

So I read a few reviews and the same thing kept coming up, no storyline.

WTF!

Sure its not War and Peace but there is a very easily followed complete story to the movie. People that say they cannot understand what happened or what was the plot just baffle me. Do we have to water down things so far now a days that it all has to be spelled out in braille?

As far as the run time, yah it was a bit short but the movie had no slow parts either it was all meat basically, so the run time did not bother me. If the story is good you don't need 2 hours to tell it.

Honestly it did not live up to what I expected of it but I want to see it again and I did enjoy it.

I have to say the voice acting was so smooth that the only person I even recognized was Frodo..I mean Elijah Wood. At the end when I watched the credits I was like..whoa all those peeps were in it, nice.

I think my favorite character was the female ninja adventuress who swoops in and steals the show, I forget her number, you know who I am talking about.

And I have seen people talking about the ending and what does it mean, its too confusing...come on! If they explained it any clearer you would have had Acker in the seat next to you holding your hand.

This will be a great DVD pleasure for me once it comes out, and I agree it will be underappreciated, but I have a feeling that won't matter too much as Acker has proven himself to people that matter, like Burton, already.

You should really check it out, its still better than 60 percent of what I have seen this year at the theaters.

7 of 10

Out............................................... .........

[ToasT]

So I read a few reviews and the same thing kept coming up, no storyline.

WTF!

Sure its not War and Peace but there is a very easily followed complete story to the movie. People that say they cannot understand what happened or what was the plot just baffle me. Do we have to water down things so far now a days that it all has to be spelled out in braille?


I am one of the few who've complained about the plot. It's not that it's confusing, it's that it is very weak and pointless. For clarification of my meaning, check my review earlier in the post. Same goes for the ending. I understand it but pointless.

[FireCaptain4]

Somehow, this movie snick its way into my local theater and I checked it out. It was a great surprise, short and spectacular--one of my favorites of the year. Acker has one helluva imagination.

[Badbird]

Visually spectacular and extremely creative, yet, very shallow.

It was a very fun movie, but a bit disappointing when it was all said and done.

7/10

[Cosimo]

watching 9 at mo

loving it so far :)

[filmguy450]

This was, ultimately, disappointing. It looked great, but it's too short to have interesting characters, it was a hodgepodge of several other movies, and in it what it wanted to say, it was really muddled, in my opinion. Sad!

[Cosimo]

after watching two disgraceful films in the form of transformers 2 and gi joe i found 9 real refreshing. it may not be the greatest film of the year, but it could be the most fun

i aint ashamed to admit the ending almost brought a tear to my eye. ah sugar puffs!

8