$9.99 (2008)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Tatia Rosenthal

Writers:

Etgar Keret (screenplay)
Etgar Keret (short stories)

Release Date:

29 April 2009 (France)

Genre:

Animation

Plot:

A stop-motion animated story about people living in a Syndey apartment complex looking for meaning in their lives. |

Plot Keywords:

Money In Title | Number In Title

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Josef Ber
Tom Budge	...	Bisley
Joel Edgerton	...	Ron
Leon Ford	...	Stanton
Samuel Johnson	...	Dave Peck
Claudia Karvan	...	Michelle
Jamie Katsamatsas	...	Zack
Anthony LaPaglia	...	Jim Peck
Ben Mendelsohn	...	Lenny Peck
Henry Nixon	...	Drazen / beanbag / radio announcer (voice)
Barry Otto	...	Albert
Geoffrey Rush	...	Angel
Leeanna Walsman	...	Tanita

MPAA:

Rated R for language and brief sexuality and nudity.

Runtime:

USA:78 min | Canada:78 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

Israel | Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:R | Singapore:M18

Filming Locations:

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Australian Film Finance Corporation (AFFC)

A Fairy Tale for Grown-ups

A man steps out of an apartment block and is accosted by a vagrant who pulls out a gun and politely requests for a dollar to buy a cup of coffee. The man refuses saying he is feeling manipulated and the vagrant promptly shoots himself. Yes, kills himself! This is the stunningly surreal opening sequence of the film. This stop motion animation film is populated with more such oddballs. . There is a drug addict who has for his buddies three Lilliputians straight out of Gulliver's World. We have a supermodel who likes her men so smooth that she can tolerate neither hair nor bones on their body. There is a little kid who gets a coin every time he drinks milk, which he saves in a piggybank; yet when it gets full does not have the heart to break it.

The one common thread that binds these disparate characters staying in the same apartment block is their deep melancholy. They are bored by the monotony of their lives and are in search of a meaning. We can readily empathise with these characters despite the comic book feel of the film.

The film takes a dig at the self help books available for $9.99. Despite shot in vivid colours, this is a grim film asking some uncomfortable questions about the meaning of life and happiness. The film ends on a positive note though with two of its characters teaching themselves to swim like a dolphin from a self help book. They have managed to discover their happiness. A fairy tale for today's grown-ups.

The animation is a treat for the eyes