From visionary filmmakers Tim Burton (The Nightmare Before Christmas) and Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted) and Academy Award®-nominated director Shane Acker comes this visually stunning and original epic adventure. In the final days of humanity, a dedicated scientist gives the spark of life to nine of his creations. The world has turned into an unrecognizable landscape of machines and spare parts, but this group of nine finds that if they band together, their small community might just be able to change the course of history. Featuring the voice talents of Elijah Wood, John C. Reilly, Jennifer Connelly and Crispin Glover, it’s a thrilling, suspenseful story critics call “Spellbinding!” (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times)Nine small rag dolls, stitched together from burlap and clock workings and lenses, are all that stands in the way of the world being overtaken by the Machines. Actually, as 9 begins, it looks like the Machines have already had their way with Earth: this is one of those post-apocalyptic landscapes without life, hope, or sunlight. Clearly 9 director Shane Acker is willing to make an animated film that doesn’t soar with Disney colors or Pixar cheer–in fact, main characters are killed off before the movie’s halfway through. Our hero is 9 (voiced by Elijah Wood), so dubbed for the number on his back; after awakening to very confused consciousness, he bumps into other puppet survivors, such as the imperious 1 (Christopher Plummer), the warrior-like 7 (Jennifer Connelly), and the one-eyed comic sidekick 5 (John C. Reilly). They do battle with the Machines in a relentless (and eventually monotonous) series of battles, and the exploding hardware and endless warfare has a tendency to crowd out whatever character development might have been set up in the opening minutes. No question the movie’s design is impressive, and the characters have a wonderfully expressive quality at first. But at some point it seems the Machines have taken over the moviemaking here, with tedious results. –Robert Horton
February 6, 2006
#1
I’d love to be able to have anything to say about this piece of garbage but the disc won’t even run in my player. Does everything but play the movie. So I’m the owner of a $25 coaster. I’ll be seeking a refund on this ASAP. If anyone got the disc to work I’d love to know how.
btw, would have given it “0″ stars but Amazon wants a rating, so I gave it 1 star.
February 6, 2006
#2
Dark depressing ,of world coming to a end,robots hurting robots, I wish it was more bright and collarfull,I rather watch goonies or a joane crowford movies, terrible movie ,
February 6, 2006
#3
I seriously can’t believe Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov, two people I LOVE, signed on to produce this dreck. Tim Burton is a brilliant director, but to be honest I’ve been losing interest in him for a while since his last few movies were either remakes or adaptations. He did produce the brilliant “Nightmare Before Christmas”, which is one I’ve watched multiple times, and directed movies like “Beetlejuice” and “Sleepy Hollow”, which are awesome films. Bekmambetov directed 3 films that I LOVE: Night Watch, Day Watch, and Wanted. I’ve only seen those three of his, but they prove he’s an awesome director.
Those two people producing one of the many reasons I was excited to see 9. So today I went to go see it at the theater. I was so excited to finally have seen it. I had waited 7 months for the movie to come out.
This movie is the first time I’ve walked out of a Tim Burton-related movie and said “I enjoyed almost NONE of that”. I felt heartbroken to even have felt that way. I mean, with him and Bekmambetov at the production helm you’d have expected this movie to be a good watch. Right now I still can’t get over how let down I was by this movie. I hadn’t even heard of the original short film before seeing it but now, I can successfully say that this movie should have remained a short movie. Hell, Neil Blomkamp made an AWESOME full length remake of Alive in Joburg entitled District 9, what was so hard to get right about 9??? I really wanted to think this movie was awesome. I really did. But no, it failed on so many levels.
The plot was extremely confusing and disjointed. I had no idea what was going on, let alone what it was about. Basically it’s about a bunch of ragdoll robots trying to save the earth. Well, OK, that’s what I got from it. But the writing here is extremely poor. The whole film jumps around like a 6 year old with A.D.D. telling a story. There’s this big, giant clanky monster robot that 9 awakens, causing destruction and stuff. That’s the main villain. However, what else is wrong with this movie is that EVERYTHING COMES OUT OF NOWHERE. There were too many monster robots, most of which have no logical explanation behind them. They have 0 development whatsoever. I mean, that flying pterodactyl like monster just rips out of nowhere, we have no idea where it comes out of and Acker just expects us to know what it is. What was even more retarded was that snake-like creature with the strobing eyes that hypnotize. I dare you to give that description to someone else out loud and expect them not to laugh. All of the 3 people I told about it burst out laughing. Oh and it wraps victims up and sews them inside it. I’M. NOT. KIDDING.
*WARNING- HERE BE SPOILERS*
The twist in Act III is the most retarded aspect of the whole movie. So basically 9 goes back to the room he woke up in, finds this box with a hologram from the scientist in it for 9, and he tells him that the big scary machine robot was designed to bring robot life to earth, but then evil humans use it for war, and it was supposed to help protect the earth, but then the scientist gave his life to 9 so that it could help protect the world with it. And HE ONLY MENTIONS GIVING HIS LIFE TO 9. But what about the other robots? WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES TO THEM???????? This is the perfect example of poor, rushed writing. There’s only one of the life taking device thingy that exists so how did the other 8 get life given to them??????? The characters are not likable at all either. They risk their lives for no reason at all. The only good character is 7. 6 annoyed me with his “GO BACK TO THE SOURCE!!!!!!” ramblings, 1 is an overpowering idiot, 2 we don’t know ANYTHING about, 5 kept annoying me with his “Are you sure…” or “Can I stay here instead…?” questions. And that ending? UGH. I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks that the ending was a huge WTF moment.
*END SPOILER*
There’s nothing redeeming about this turd except for its beautiful animation. Everything looks realistic and beautiful, I love the gloomy and depressing look of everything. However, beauty can’t save a good movie.
While it’s true that this movie is very pretty looking, pretty is as pretty does, and 9 does squat. I’m sure Burton fans will be flocking to the theater to see this movie without a doubt, in fact with his and Bekmambetov’s names being thrown around the promos, people will be flocking to the theater to see this movie. I know I may be making a big deal out of nothing, but watching this movie made me realize how much I hate movies with unlikeable characters, nonexistent plot and just pure style over content. And this movie is one of those movies.
February 6, 2006
#4
This is not an animated movie for children. It has a darker backstory about the death of humanity. The movie seemed like the story painted itself into a corner and tied its hands from what could have been amazing. I will give examples further into the review.
The plot of this post apocalyptic sci-fi movie is about 9 little dolls made of hackysack material (that are really robots underneath) try to stop an evil machine that makes twisted little, evil machine animals using old parts. Basically, this evil machine has destroyed all life on Earth along with every human. There is nothing alive on Earth but these 9 “sack boys.” The scientist that created the evil super machine to win a war also made these 9 sack dolls. The evil machine creates a single twisted robotic creature at a time to find and kill all of the living dolls. Once one twisted robotic creature is destroyed, another is created. So its lather, rinse, repeat.
There are a wide variety of evil robotic creatures sent out to destroy the heroes (one at a time of course). Each creature seems to have something taken from the movie “Toy Story.” Things like doll heads, bird skeletons and tinker toys that made up the bodies. It really felt like someone saw “Toy Story,” had a nightmare about it and wrote the movie. Because of this fact, the movie just doesn’t feel very original.
There is a rich back story that it seems like has been done before (and better) by other movies. The back story is divvied bit by bit, all while introducing the 9 sack boys one at a time until the twins. First is 9, “the unknowing hero,” then its 2, “the informant,” 1, “the leader who is strict in not facing the evil machine,” 4 is the brutal thug of a sack boy puppet with a giant blade that enforces the wishes of 1, the list goes on and on. Their personalities were stereotypes with no deviation, but how can there be deep personalities when their sole purpose for existence is to survive?
The visuals are good, but it really lacked life. Of course how much life could there be when killer robots destroyed all life on planet Earth? The entire movie is devoid of blues and the color pallet seems to consist of mostly browns. There are bright greens, but not with plants, instead with the souls that get stolen out of the sack boy puppets. The “sack boy dolls” themselves seemed stolen from the Playstation game “Little Big Planet,” only the video game has more charm with its “sack boy” of a main character.
You can skip this movie, its okay! You are not missing much. When I saw it in theaters with my two friends, one of them thought it was a very “meh” movie. My other friend felt like she had seen the story before. Tim Burton’s name was plastered all over the commercials, but in reality, he is 1 of 4 producers. I have a feeling that he gave nothing more than money for the movie.
February 6, 2006
#5
I watched this movie two days ago after renting it on my cable network. And I was very glad afterwards I had only spent $3.99 to do so. I watched it once and that was more than enough for me and my partner. The soundtrack did not include the band used for the ads which would have worked for the storyline. Or should I say lack of the storyline. No climactic moments in the is film it is a drag due to lack of good music and interaction. The rag dolls premise keeps no one guessing, I figured it out within 15 minutes of the movie. However, it does not make sense, *THIS IS A SPOILIER AND IF YOU REALLY WANT YOU CAN STOP READING HERE* The premise is that the inventor splits his soul in to dolls to bring down what he created. The inventor’s soul is not and should not be designed as the psychological mind. For example, 9 himself is the courage while 8 is the brute sense of the personality and 6 is the inventor’s genius side and so on. The soul as stated by all major religions can not be split as such for three reasons, one that is God or higher powers domain that we can’t transcend to, two we have never really tried and every attempt toward such with black alchemy or witchcraft or any other magik in that area had not failed but epically failed. And third, it goes against natural laws. We are in this body and only this body for reasons not disclosed to us. So okay let’s say for fun sake you could spilt the soul. It would be tainted or all the pieces would be alike not different like the Jung based psychology. We have our souls forever and therefore they would have to be the same all the way through due to how the possible transcendence occurs. Like the Dalai Lama, though he keeps coming back he is basically the same other than his personal likes and dislikes which are cultured psychological elements. So it’s make believe and not good make believe. By the inventor doing this rag doll thing he is in fact braking not just man’s laws now but God(s)’s as well. It’s a flawed film and I don’t want to ever watch it again.