Official Movie Website Theatrical Release 09/09/09 Home Video Not Available MPAA Rating Rated http://filminfocus.com/focusfe atures/film/9 Running Time 1 hour 19 minutes Genre Sci-Fi,Action Director Shane Acker Writer Pamela Pettler Cast Elijah Wood, John C. Reilly, Jennifer Connelly, Crispin Glover, Martin Landau, Christoper Plummer Studio Focus Features |
9 (2009)
SYNOPSIS
An action-packed adventure, director Shane Acker’s
animated fantasy epic is the feature-length expansion
of his Academy Award-nominated 2004 short film of
the same name. The screenplay for the feature is by
Pamela Pettler (“Monster House”); directors Tim
Burton (“Beetlejuice”) and Timur Bekmambetov
(“Wanted”) are among the feature version’s
producers. The time is the too-near future. Powered
and enabled by the invention known as the Great
Machine, the world’s machines have turned on
mankind and sparked social unrest, decimating the
human population before being largely shut down. But
as our world fell to pieces, a mission began to salvage
the legacy of civilization; a group of small creations
was given the spark of life by a scientist in the final
days of humanity, and they continue to exist post-
apocalypse. Another of their own, #9 (voiced by Elijah
Wood), emerges and displays leadership qualities that
may help them survive and possibly even thrive. The
conflicted but resilient tribe already includes #1
(Christopher Plummer), a domineering war veteran and
the group’s longtime leader; #2 (Martin Landau), a
kindly but now-frail inventor; #3 and #4, scholarly twins
who communicate nonverbally and mostly with each
other; #5 (John C. Reilly), a stalwart and nurturing
engineer; #6 (Crispin Glover), an erratic artists beset by
An action-packed adventure, director Shane Acker’s
animated fantasy epic is the feature-length expansion
of his Academy Award-nominated 2004 short film of
the same name. The screenplay for the feature is by
Pamela Pettler (“Monster House”); directors Tim
Burton (“Beetlejuice”) and Timur Bekmambetov
(“Wanted”) are among the feature version’s
producers. The time is the too-near future. Powered
and enabled by the invention known as the Great
Machine, the world’s machines have turned on
mankind and sparked social unrest, decimating the
human population before being largely shut down. But
as our world fell to pieces, a mission began to salvage
the legacy of civilization; a group of small creations
was given the spark of life by a scientist in the final
days of humanity, and they continue to exist post-
apocalypse. Another of their own, #9 (voiced by Elijah
Wood), emerges and displays leadership qualities that
may help them survive and possibly even thrive. The
conflicted but resilient tribe already includes #1
(Christopher Plummer), a domineering war veteran and
the group’s longtime leader; #2 (Martin Landau), a
kindly but now-frail inventor; #3 and #4, scholarly twins
who communicate nonverbally and mostly with each
other; #5 (John C. Reilly), a stalwart and nurturing
engineer; #6 (Crispin Glover), an erratic artists beset by
© 2003 St. Louis Movie Review Weekly. All rights reserved, except where indicated.
All movie titles, pictures, etc...are the property of their respective studios.
All movie titles, pictures, etc...are the property of their respective studios.
| ST. LOUIS MOVIE REVIEW WEEKLY |
visions; #7 (Jennifer Connelly), a brave and self-sufficient warrior; and #8 (Fred Tatasciore), the none-too-
bright muscle and enforcer for #1. With their group so few, these “stitchpunk” creations must summon
individual strengths well beyond their own proportions in order to outwit and fight against still-functioning
machines, one of which is a marauding mechanized beast. In the darkness just before the dawn, #9
rallies everyone of his number to band together. While showcasing a stunning “steampunk”-styled visual
brilliance, the film dynamically explores the will to live, the power of community, and how one soul can
change the world. --© Focus Features
bright muscle and enforcer for #1. With their group so few, these “stitchpunk” creations must summon
individual strengths well beyond their own proportions in order to outwit and fight against still-functioning
machines, one of which is a marauding mechanized beast. In the darkness just before the dawn, #9
rallies everyone of his number to band together. While showcasing a stunning “steampunk”-styled visual
brilliance, the film dynamically explores the will to live, the power of community, and how one soul can
change the world. --© Focus Features