Sometimes the bizarre can be quite beautiful. Shane Acker's post-apocalyptic rag doll fable 9 more than meets that need. Instead of a standard review I thought a list of reasons (nine of them to be exact) might be more fitting to explain to you why this little gem deserves an audience.
9. The Gimmick. Whoever decided to release this film on 9/9/09 should be given a raise. Look how well the remake of The Omen did simply because it was released on 6/6/06. It also happens to land on my birthday, making it a fine cinematic gift.
8. How often does an animated film come around that didn't first have children in mind? 9 is what a Pixar movie would look like if kids influence was taken out of the equation. It jumps without a net hoping it will find an audience. I respect the risk.
7. The running time is 79 minutes. It is over before it has a chance to get boring. You may think that does not entitle this film to full price admission. Fair enough. It might not be worth a whole Hamilton or even 9 bucks come to think of it, but your time will not be wasted.
6. Nostalgia factor. In more ways than one. If (like me) you miss the darker fare of animator Don Bluth (The Secret of Nimh, Titan AE) you will have found a new successor. Plus as one of the few people who loved and respected the craft of Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (retro technology) I was glad to see 9 take another stab at that.
5. The brains and names behind it. This is Shane Acker's feature film, but be sure to check out the same subject and title short film he made a few years back. You will see why a feature film was made. Plus Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov add their influence as producers and you can see how the film benefits with the inclusion of their style and ideas.
4. The Cast. Voices include: Elijah Wood, John C. Riley, Jennifer Connelly, Christopher Plummer, Martin Landau, and Crispin Glover. I really think this one speaks for itself.
3. Tackles tough issues. It does everything that big summer movies like Terminator: Salvation and The Matrix Revolutions tried and failed to do. Not only does it depict an idea of machines turning on mankind, but also is ballsy enough to add the idea of inserting souls into the equation, and then makes it work on top of it.
2. The Bleakness. Mankind is destroyed, the world is a depressing and empty place, there are mechanical monsters at every turn, there is soul stealing, and (Spoiler Alert) more than half of the characters end up dead. Like I said not for kids.
1. The Look, Style, & Animation. You can tell that a lot of care and imagination went into the presentation. This move just looks so great. Lots of gritty brown, grey, and shocking neon green. The rag doll look is really awesome as well. They are patched together, some have shutter-projection eyes that play old news reel footage (or hypnotize), and each has an individual personality.
9 is a film that should not be missed due to it's uniqueness, and yet unfortunately I fear that is exactly why it will most likely be overlooked... at least for now. I feel a cult classic in the making that will be further appreciated down the road about a decade later, or perhaps only 9 years. A-
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