9 (2009 animated film)

Did You Know?

• The film's soundtrack includes "Over the Rainbow" performed by Judy Garland, which plays on a 78rpm phonograph record during a lighthearted scene.
• Crispin Glover performed the traditional "Dies Irae" chant as part of the background score.
• The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on December 29, 2009, three-and-a-half months after its theatrical release.

Plot

A scientist is commissioned by his government to create a highly intelligent robot for peaceful progress, but the government seizes it and turns it into the Fabrication Machine, which builds an army of war machines. When the machines become corrupt and attack humans, the scientist uses alchemy to create nine homunculus-like rag dolls called Stitchpunks, each labeled with a number, giving them portions of his soul via a talisman. He dies after completing the final Stitchpunk, 9. 9 awakens after the machines have destroyed all organic life and gone dormant. He meets 2, an elderly inventor, who gives him a voice box. The Cat Beast attacks, abducts 2, and takes the talisman. 5 rescues 9 and takes him to Sanctuary, a cathedral tower home to leader 1, bodyguard 8, and clairvoyant 6. Against 1's orders, 9 and 5 follow the Cat Beast to a factory and rescue 2, but 7 kills the Cat Beast. 9 connects the talisman to the dormant Fabrication Machine, reviving it; it kills 2 by sucking out his soul. 7 takes 9 and 5 to a library, where mute twins 3 and 4 reveal the war's history. 9 draws the talisman's symbols, which match 6's drawings. The Machine builds new robots, including the Winged Beast, which burns down Sanctuary. The Stitchpunks destroy the Winged Beast with a bomber engine. At the library, 1 admits he sent 2 to his death. The Machine uses 2's corpse as a lure for the Seamstress robot, which captures 7 and 8. The Stitchpunks return to the factory; 8's soul is absorbed. 9 saves 7 and destroys the Seamstress, and the others blow up the factory, destroying nearly all machines.

Marketing

A trailer for 9 was released on Apple.com on December 25, 2008, featuring The Knife's "The Captain" and Coheed and Cambria's "Welcome Home". 9 is the second animated feature film released by Focus Features, after Coraline. The trailer for 9 preceded Coraline in theaters and on DVD. A second trailer appeared on G4's Attack of the Show and later before Land of the Lost, including background story. In April 2009, the film's Scientist began journal entries on a Facebook page called "9 Scientist", with essays about each creation. A viral campaign website for 9 launched, shedding light on the film's world. Trailers featured machines: the Cat Beast, Winged Beast, Seamstress, Steel War Behemoths, Fabrication Machine (formerly B.R.A.I.N.), and Seekers. Later trailers revealed small spider-like machines. The film's release date of September 9, 2009 ("9/9/09") was part of the marketing strategy.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, 9 has an approval rating of 57% based on 185 reviews, with an average rating of 5.90/10. The critical consensus states that although the story is familiar and less complex than some might wish, the film is visually spectacular, and director Shane Acker's attention to detail draws viewers into the universe. On Metacritic, it holds a weighted average score of 60 out of 100 from 31 critics, indicating mixed or average reviews. Roger Ebert gave the film three stars out of four, contrasting it with Hayao Miyazaki's works and calling the visuals entrancing. The general critical sentiment is that the film is long on imaginative design but less substantial in narrative. Variety's Todd McCarthy said the picture's impact derives mostly from its design and assured execution. The film underperformed at the box office, opening at No. 2 behind I Can Do Bad All By Myself with approximately $10,740,446 for its opening weekend and $15,160,926 for its five-day opening. It grossed $48,559,999 worldwide.

Possible sequel

As of 2009, director Shane Acker and producer Tim Burton were open to a sequel to 9, depending on how audiences received it. That same year, Acker noted on the DVD commentary that a sequel was possible, and he also said he planned to keep making darker animated films, since most animated movies at the time were G or PG rated with few dark elements. He mentioned he might do this through a sequel to 9 or through original ideas. After the film’s home release, however, no further sequel talk surfaced. Acker instead worked on several projects aimed at older audiences, announced in 2011, 2012, and 2013, none of which were released until the short film Crusoe came out in 2021. In January 2017, the Facebook page for the character “the Scientist,” which had been inactive since 2009, posted a cryptic update. This led some fans to wonder if it was hinting at a sequel, though no official plans have ever been made.