9

I don't know how much of a market there is for animated films like this but as someone who appreciates good artwork and computer animation, I enjoyed it. Yeah, the story is only so-so but the characters keep your attention - both good and bad guys, and it is deceptively involving.

The "good guys" in here are burlap-looking sewn puppets. Why they are who they are is explained near the end of the movie. The "bad guys" are the machines. Yes, this is familiar "Terminator" country, theme-wise, but the machines in this movie are brutal and scary. This movie is definitely not for little kids!

If you keep your expectations in the "fair" range, and watch it on Blu-Ray, you should enjoy it. As mentioned, the story draws you in. On the other hand, if you are looking for something fantastic, you might be disappointed.

9 is better than average... but only barely.

The movie is carried by a unique visual style and a great sense of "place." The sack-men (and woman) are refreshingly odd and fun to watch. The post-apocalyptic city is consistently beautiful and dangerous. Desolate without feeling dull.

Unfortunately, the story and characters ARE dull. Not crushingly so... but enough to frustrate. Frequent, obvious plot holes and violations of established world-rules pulled me out of the movie over and over again. Tired clichés abound. I wasn't able to shake the feeling that I'd seen and heard this all before.

And that's a shame because there's a lot of potential here. If only the writer had taken more chances. Why not challenge the audience and defy expectations? Why make a movie that's too scary for kids but too simplistic for adults? Who is expected to enjoy it?

I would watch another Shane Acker movie if one is made (hopefully after he's picked a target audience). But 9 is not a classic.

... that said, it's probably worth watching on the big screen just for the sights and sounds.

This film at it's core explores the idea of humanity and what it means to be human. It does this by exploring themes such as friendship, curiosity and discovery, family and the fundamental question we all ask "why am I here and what is my purpose?" What makes the film so unique is that it projects these onto the main characters which are small ragdoll like automatons who have been set with the task of undoing the wrongdoings of their creator. This film has heart and on a first viewing the core themes and story may be lost by the stunning visuals of the characters and the environment they interact within. So I recommend at least watching this film twice to really appreciate all it has to offer. This film is set In a post apocalyptic setting yet it still manages to feel so unique. The closest I can think as far as cinematography is The Book of Eli, yet this is much more menacing and darker. Although wrapped up like a children's film with the animation, it definitely is for a more mature audience.

I was looking forward to seeing 9, as I had already seen the original short film (also called 9) and wanted to see what they could do by expanding upon the story. Well, after seeing this full-length film, I can certainly say I liked the computer generated animation....as for the story, well, it left a bit to be desired. And the problem is that I can't strongly recommend the film, but if you don't see it in the theater, then you'll probably like the film less because the graphics are THE film.

The story is set in an alternate reality. While some of the features look very much like Earth, many of the details are different. There's been a war raging and tanks are definitely of the WWI variety while airplanes are of the WWII style--yet there are also very modern holograms as well. As for the leader, there is some similarity to a fascist dictatorship, but this guy sure ain't Hitler, Mussolini or Franco. It's like Earth, but not our Earth. Oddly, while I could accept this, in this alternate reality there apparently IS a Judy Garland and the song "Over the Rainbow"--an odd blending of the real and the fanciful.

Most of the story, you have no idea what led to this ruined world that is now devoid of all life--no animals, no people...not even bugs. Slowly, some of the details of this apocalypse come out...but never is there ever a full explanation as to what happened and why--just a dribbling of information here and there. What you positively know is that instead of living beings, there are a group of very small and oddly designed burlap covered dolls--with very high tech eyes. Why these dolls are there and their purpose is unknown to them, but some are just happy to hide and avoid the hellish mechanical creations that inhabit the rubble as well.

As for the burlap creatures, this is a shortcoming in the film. While 9 is the "designated hero", he and the rest of them really don't have any personality and a few of them seem like story clichés (such as the "strong and plucky female"). So, when one dies you are left wondering what made that one any different than the one that was killed moments earlier or you are left feeling a caricature died--not something tangible. No real character development occurs nor are their motivations particularly clear throughout the film. Nor, for that matter, does the story answer many questions at all. So, provided this doesn't bother you and you don't mind a vague story with vague characters, you'll enjoy the film very much--it certainly is a visual delight. If you demand clarity, then I suggest you see another film.

9 is a rag-doll who wakes up after a war between humans and machines that has devastated the world and wiped out humanity.He later meets a group of surviving rag-dolls and he tries to convince them to save 2.9 and 5 go to save 2, but they accidentally awaken a machine known as Brain.After they escape the dreaded machine, Brain hatches a scheme to build machines and hunt down the remaining rag-doll survivors.

"9" is like a combination of "The Terminator", "War Of The Worlds", and "Wall-e".With the war, machines, and apocalypse, there's no way you can disagree with that.The PG-13 rating is most certainly deserved.Afterall, the imagery is a bit frightening and will have young kids begging for their parents to take them to see "Wall-e" so they can get all of the disturbing images out of their minds once and for all.As for the movie, I can't say that I was disappointed.With it's spectacular visuals, great action sequences, and convincing characters, "9" is a must-see for those who want to take a visually thrilling roller-coaster.Clocking in at a brief 79 minutes( 72 minutes if you take out the end credits), "9" will take your imagination and put it into a world that will make you want for a sequel.We all know what the title would be, so I don't need to go any further."9" deserves a 9.