2.5/4  9.... more like a 5
You know I was waiting A long time to see this movie the previews looked really good and they had A good director tim burton was involved but seeing it fell flat ,they did not focus on the character's enough with any backstory it all ust ... (read full)

2/4  9
The feather thin story doesn't hold a candle to the amazing visuals (which is a shame). The story is so full of plot holes, that it makes the viewing experience a bit frustrating.

Well it's not all bad. At times the movie is actually p... (read full)

3/4  Make the Time for 9
The film 9 is something that's become a rare commodity lately: an original film. It's not a remake, not a sequel, not based of a comic book or TV show - it's entirely from the mind of Shane Acker. The story may take here and there from oth... (read full)

2/4  9 Quick Review
Amazing animation, very beautifully done. I loved the idea of the story, but it was told so blandly. The film was only 80 minutes long and yet it kind of dragged. I expected more, but still the animation was truly great.

2.5/4  9 Quick Review
This movie was really beautiful and had really interesting animation. The story started off really strong, but I feel the ending was really not executed well, which make me not like the entire movie as much.

5/5 A little shore but great story
  by J. Thomas
Its quite interesting how 9 little things can do so much, the story is quite toutching and entertaining, it was kind of shore but overall great story!

3/5 A largely misunderstood but very average animation
  by buru buru piggu (New York, NY USA)
Released on 9/9/09, 9 is computer animated film about 9 rag dolls, the sole "survivors" of a war-ravaged alternate universe, given life through a magical talisman invented by an aged scientist. Termed "stitchpunk" by its fans, it blends the aesthetics of a steampunk world (resembling WWII-era Western Europe) with science fiction, action, and some mysticism/ancient metaphysics. At 80 minutes, it is short.

Yes, the CG-work is absolutely fantastic and masterfully crafted, but what about the story? The story of technology turning against us is a familiar one. A well-meaning scientist invents an artificially intelligent robot capable of creating other machines, but it is soon made to create machines of war by an evil chancellor. World war starts, and the machines soon start exterminating humanity. The art direction is taken directly from Nazi-era Germany, depicting a corrupt and technology-obsessed military regime, complete with red, white, and black flags and insignias. The robot walkers are shaped like German infantry helmets. This part of the story is shown way too quickly, only as a flashback and a film news reel lasting a few minutes. More time could've been spent explaining this plot element and why the machines started killing all of mankind, and the resistance against them. There is not enough story development here and I feel this is a real weakness of the film. It's presented as a given that the machines just took over and destroyed the world, without showing you the protracted struggle against them by military forces.

Instead, all we know is the world is destroyed somehow and all that's left are the dolls and some machines hunting them down. What follows is one battle scene or chase after another as they try to find sanctuary. They're cool battle sequences with some fantastic mechanical design, but they don't flesh out the characters. I would've liked to see how they survived during the war before 9 came.

9 didn't do very well at the box office or with critics, and I can see perhaps why. Maybe it was the mishandled marketing strategy that left people confused. Some viewers mistook the film as being directed or designed by Tim Burton and were disappointed, an easy thing to do from casually glancing at the movie poster and seeing his name in big letters at the top, or because of the Oogie Boogie-like (doll 8). Being a first-time feature director, few moviegoers have heard of Shane Acker and the marketers tried to ride Burton's coattails and to a lesser extent, Russian director, Timur Bekmambetov's (Wanted, Daywatch, Night Watch).

Maybe it was CG fatigue on the part of the audience, who are tired of the endless streams of CG animations every year. Certainly, the movie poster didn't do anything to pique my interest or differentiate it from a sea of other CG/sci-fi films produced every year. Because of its apocalyptic wasteland setting and artificial lifeforms, some people also unfairly compared the film to Wall-E. And for its ragdolls and dark vision, 9 suffered comparisons to Coraline as well (from steampunk icon Neil Gaiman). Or maybe it was just the character design of the dolls. 9 looks like Sack Boy from the popular PS3 game LittleBigPlanet, right down to the zipper and burlap cloth texture, but he's not cute at all. This film is definitely not for kids. All the dolls are a bit creepy looking. For example, 5 has a metal plate sewn over half his head from a wound. We have dark, apocalyptic landscapes, and depictions of humans getting mowed down and gassed by the machines. Half of the dolls die in the film, shown in a visually disturbing manner. We also see their corpses.

All in all, 9 is a competently produced and highly detailed world, but the alone doesn't sell the story, which is just a notch above average. Voice acting is done very well, with the exception of a dull John C. Riley. Worth a look if you like dark sci-fi and action-filled animation, but otherwise totally skippable.

3.5/5

5/5 Great Film
  by Andrew Salmon (Vancouver, British Columbia Canada)
This was a great movie that kind of came and went in a flash in theaters.

The tone is dark and apocalyptic but the story is engaging with enough fantasy elements to keep the wonder factor high.

9 revolves around an world where a ruthless dictatorship straight out of 1984 has unleashed thinking machines that have touched off a war with humanity. During which, apparently, all of mankind has been wiped out. However one scientist was able to create a set of dolls and infuse them with his spirit and they are all that is left of us as a species.

The machines still hunt through the ruins looking for enemies to destroy and these living dolls are on the menu. But when doll #9 finally awakens, it may be time for the status quo to change.

I really enjoyed this film and recommend it highly. I would say the film is suitable for teens and older. There's nothing of a graphic nature but the themes and tone is a bit dark for younger tastes. All in all an enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours.

5/5 Great Movie. Nevermind the People Who Got Bored and Felt 9 Was Rushed or Anti-Climactic.
  by Damon Smith (USA)
WARNING: I'm about to spoil a message at the ending of the movie, 9. I've moved my old review hear because the theatrical release site got deleted.

The scene when the souls of 1, 2, 5, 6 and 8 leave to the sky and burst into the clouds to make it rain, you would see omoebas forming from the inside of the rain drops. That simply is telling you 1, 2, 5, 6 and 8 are starting evolution and life all over again. Its an amusing scene to watch and intriguing. Makes you think for yourself.

9 is visually stunning. Its a post-apocalyptic world of machines turning against humanity and slowly killing every human being on the planet. One scientist is left to create 9 rag dolls. The machines (B.R.A.I.N., stands for Binary Reactive Artifcially Intelligent Neurocircuit) were originally created by humanity to serve peace and protect them but the government forced the Scientists to let them use it for war, and that eventually went beyond B.R.A.I.N.'s limits and the machines turned against them slowly killing every human being on the planet, leaving the last Scientist to transfer his life force into 9 rag dolls to save humanity from total extinction (Scientist's voiced by Alan Oppemheimer).

A Talisman is a device the Scientist (voiced by Alan Oppemheimer) created so that it would collect the souls (spirits, or alive energy) from the stitchpunks (rag dolls). Its the device that has those 3 cryptic symbols on it and it glows green if there are souls traped inside. The scientist explains to 9 (voiced by Elijah Wood) how the talisman works in this movie. I hope this explains a little more about what is going on in 9.

1 (voiced by Christopher Plummer)
2 (voiced by Martin Landau)
3 & 4 are unable to speak so there is no voice overs for these characters.
5 (voiced by John C. Reilly)
6 (voiced by Crispin Glover)
7 (voiced by Jennifer Connelly. The only female of the 9 rag-dolls)
8 (voiced by Fred Tatasciore)
9 (voiced by Elijah Wood)
Director: Shane Acker
Producers: Tim Burton
Timur Bekmambetov (director of Wanted)
Written By: Shane Acker (Original Story)
Pamela Pettler
Ben Gluck

9 the movie might be a little too short for some people. Its run-time is approx 80 minutes. Although all the visuals are well crafted and unique then other filmaking's vision of the extinction of humanity. The machines are well made as well and can be too scary for children ages 7 and up (or maybe not, I have underestimated children because some of them do enjoy these half scary and action/PG-13 movies and 9 is actually a fairly clean movie). There are good reasons for 9 to be rated PG-13. Its rated PG-13 for Violence and Scary Images. Its rated 12A in the U.K. by BBFC for Moderate Sustained Threat. Overall, 9 the movie is amazing to me and can be amazing for other people if they like these post-apocalypic/extinction futuristic movies. Personally, I am giving 9 a full price. Its exciting, amusing and it will make you think for yourself near the ending of this film. 9 is not boring at all, I don't understand whats all the complaining about. Yea, so what if there was an attraction with 7 (Jennifer Connelly) and 9 (Elijah Wood), Honestly, I don't care. Yes, they don't have private parts. I don't think they were meant to. The ending of this movie fits well together if thats you understand what Omoebas are. If you don't like movies that make you think, you are better off not seeing this. I thought 9 was one of the best movies of the year, the visuals of the crafted machines and what would happen if humanity become extinct visuals is amazing to watch alone. Full price movie all the way.

I almost forgot to say something else. The reason why all these Stitchpunk characters has no background stories is because they were just born in this movie. The only background story is the Scientist who gave life to the 9 stitchpunks and when the machines turn against humanity, that was it. If you don't understand, then you just don't get it. Not my problem. Watch the ending of this movie carefully without any high expectations because I think thats the biggest downfall of the audience and what leads them into hating the movie. Its not anti-climactic at all, people were simply expecting the movie to satisfy what they wanted to see from it. 9 is still a fantastic film as it is. But I am not truely forcing ANYBODY to understand this film. I can understand if its not really your cup of tea. I did like it a lot better when I was learning all the emotions of the 9 stitchpunks because it made the movie look more original and fun that way. The message at the end was not so harsh or disturbing. It was actually more interesting. Again, people just expected way too much from Shane Acker's latest creation. Again, 9 was an excellent film. If you are looking for something with a lot of background stories, then you should skip this movie completely because everyone who had the same expectations end up hating the movie. Though if you are looking for an original post-apocalypic film about the extinction of humanity that has no limits or rules, then 9 is for you.

5/5 Simply Awsome! Dark atmospheric fantasy!
  by N. Williams
Finally a big budget animated movie for grown ups! I saw this movie twice in the theaters and I wish I had gone to see it once more. Simple story that makes you think and also leaves you to wonder. Each character serves a purpose and you immediately become immersed in the dark forbidding setting. The eerie setting and chilling creatures are unsettling and fascinating. This is a visually mesmerizing and thought provoking film that may not appeal to all audiences but certainly appealed to this movie goer!