9

Animation is so much more than a child's medium or simple form of entertainment. It can tell any kind of story and can take you anywhere.

9 plays more like an animated drama than anything else. Director Shane Acker has fleshed out this harsh post-apocalyptic landscape and detailed his characters down to the last stitch. It is directed with a cinematic scope that other traditional films rarely use to their advantage.



9, the title character voiced by Elijah Wood, is the last creation made by a recently deceased scientist. Humanity has been eradicated by the machines they created. Machines that were made specifically to destroy their human enemies during war. All that survives are these hodge-podge machines and little sack covered gear-bots. Each one with a distinct personality. 9 meets 2, voiced by Martin Landau, on the day of his birth. The first of his kind he has ever met, but not the last. As these two get to know each other, they are being hunted by a motley machine with the skull of a cat. 2 is taken and 9 enlists the help of the other, um, numbers to help get him back. We meet 1 (Christopher Plummer) who is the leader and the law maker of the little survivors. His cowardice, he believes, is keeping the survivors safe. 9 convinces 5 (John C. Reilly) to join him on his quest to retrieve 2. They arrive to the machine's home base and 9 accidentally awakens the master machine. The survivors are now forced to destroy the machines or meet their demise.



The action is crazy. I mean these scenes are impeccably choreographed and thrilling. The voice work is very well done. Especially in Elijah's case as he gets most of the dialogue. Jennifer Connelly voices 7 with a bravery and fire, she is the action star of the movie. This is a technically brilliant computer animated movie. It is full of atmosphere and tension. One scene showcases an element of heart that drives the story home. These little guys have to succeed. The future depends on them. Overall: A great dramatic sci-fi film light on humor but full of detailed imagery. My grade: A-