Animated Film Catch-Up: 9

For those just joining us, I'm in the middle of another "Animated Film Catch-Up."  This is when I rent all the animated movies I had a vague interest in seeing over the past year and a half, and watch them all in one Dr. Pepper and Doritos fueled lost weekend.  We start day 2 with....

9

Animation Studio and Best Known Franchise:  Starz Animation.  Umm...VeggieTales, believe it or not. 

Directed by Shane Acker

Starring the voices of Elijah Wood, John C. Reilly, Jennifer Connelly, Christopher Plummer, Crispin Glover, Martin Landau, and Fred Tatasciore.

The Source of my Mild Interest:  Just like the last one in this series, Fantastic Mr. Fox, this is a film where I'm very mad at myself for having missed it in the theatre.  Dark, gritty, sci-fi tales are still a rarity in North American animation, and it's that rare occurance that you should really make the time for.  Based upon a critically acclaimed animated short film (also called 9), and with one of my favourite directors, Tim Burton, in the producer`s chair to help make this happen, everything about this film just looked like it could be something special.



Plot:  In a post-apocolyptic wasteland, a sentient rag doll named 9 awakens and tries to make sense of his surroundings.  The only thing he finds near him is a mysterious glowing talisman.  As he explores the wasteland, 9 discovers others of his kind, and also some strange mechanical beasts.  But, in his explorations, 9 inadvertantly awakens an ancient evil.  Can 9 and his new found friends stop this evil, and solve the mystery of what happened to humanity?

What I Liked:  The film is dark.  Danny Elfman contributed to a very good score.  This truly is a unique world that director Shane Acker created.  And it was nice seeing veteran voice actor Alan Oppenheimer, still best remembered as Man-at-Arms and Skeletor on He-Man all those years ago, stepping out of retirement to voice the scientist who sets the whole thing in motion. 

What I Didn't Like:  The plot does get a little repetitive after a while.  You can feel the padding, which is a common complaint for short films expanded into feature-length productions. 

Final Verdict:  I'm walking away from this one going, "Meh.  It was alright." 

3 Nibs

We're almost at the end!  Last one is Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.