Movie: 9 * Trailer * Official Site	In Theaters: Sept. 9, 2009
Runtime: 79 minutes	Directed by: Shane Acker; produced by Tim Burton
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for violence and scary images	Gecko Rating:

I’d like to crack Tim Burton and Shane Acker’s heads open sometime (hypothetically speaking) and peek inside to see where they get all of their ideas.

This is Acker’s first major film as a director and writer, although he’s done some shorts – including the 2005 Oscar-nominated short on which this movie is based. He was also an animator on “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”

Tim Burton, of course, is the genius behind “Corpse Bride,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” and “Edward Scissorhands,” among others. Together, they make magic with “9,” a darkly beautiful film with an inspiring message of hope and perseverance.

The story follows a group of small, ragdoll-type creatures created by a forward-thinking scientist who knew the end of the world was nigh. He made the creatures, numbered from “1” to “9,” to carry on after mankind is wiped out after a battle with robotic machines.

It begins with “9” (voiced by Elijah Wood) waking up in a dusty, abandoned room (with someone lying on the floor) and looking out on a post-apocalyptic world. The buildings are piles of rubble and the streets are littered with the remains of humanity (scattered toys, vehicles and even a few bodies, though brief).

Upon seeing another creature like himself on the street below, “9” makes his way down to the street and follows the creature, “2” (voiced by Martin Landau), who eventually gets caught by a mechanical beast.

“9” soon learns that there are others like him, holed up in a building with “1” (Christopher Plummer) calling the shots. Others in the group include fiercely brave “7” (Jennifer Connelly), shy artist “6” (Crispin Glover), skittish “5” (John C. Reilly), and young twins “3” and “4”. Part of the group wants to find and kill the murderous machine and save “2,” while the others wish to hide from it. After “9” inadvertently fires up a much larger machine, the group has no choice but to destroy it.

Although it’s an animated film, this is not for kids younger than 13. It’s dark and disturbing, but it’s also beautiful and hopeful. The animation is amazingly detailed, from the zippers and stitches on the creatures to the dusty stained glass window in an abandoned cathedral. And the reason this movie is hopeful, despite the chaos, is because the creatures have souls and some of them are really resourceful, determined, creative, and caring. “9” is in the “never leave anyone behind” camp.

At just 79 minutes, the story flows along nicely and is never boring. For kids 13 and older, this is a great film and a must-see for Acker/Burton fans.

NOTE TO PARENTS: Though it’s animated and filled with interesting creatures, make no mistake that “9” is not for little ones. This movie contains a lot of violence and disturbing images, including intense battles and chase scenes between the ragdoll creatures and robotic machines; characters getting the life force sucked out of them; brief images of dead humans (including a child) in a post-apocalyptic world of rubble and chaos; and a machine being beheaded. Weapons include spears, guns and chemical bombs (some of these are shown in flashback scenes). While it may not be for young kids, “9” is still a darkly beautiful film with a message of hope for older teens and adults.

Images: © FOCUS FEATURES LLC. All Rights Reserved

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The frequent collaborators appeared at Comic-Con’s First-Ever 3D Panel featuring Disney’s "A Christmas Carol" (Nov. 6, 2009), "Alice in Wonderland," and "Tron Legacy" (2011) on July 23, 2009 at the San Diego Convention Center.

"Alice" marks the seventh time that Depp has worked under the direction of Burton, and the sixth time for Helena Bonham Carter, who plays The Red Queen.

Image: Eric Charbonneau/Le Studio/Wireimage via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

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They were present for the First-Ever 3D panel featuring Disney’s "A Christmas Carol," "Alice in Wonderland" (watch the teaser trailer here), and "Tron Legacy" on July 23, 2009 at the San Diego Convention Center. Ok, we’ll go with that.

Photo: Eric Charbonneau/Le Studio/Wireimage via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

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The movie is scheduled for a March 5, 2010 release date, and also features Helena Bonham Carter (Red Queen), Mia Wasikowska (Alice), and Anne Hathaway (White Queen). It’s not really a sweet kid’s flick, though, is it? Not surprising, considering that Lewis Carroll was drugged up when he wrote it.

Anyway, what do you think of the trailer?

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Pamela Petter is penning the screenplay; she also wrote "Monster House" and Tim Burton’s own "Corpse Bride." Voices include Elijah Wood, Christopher Plummer, Martin Landau, Jennifer Connelly, Crispin Glover and John C. Reilly. Not a bad cast! I guess having Tim Burton behind it doesn’t hurt.

The story sounds dark: When 9 (Elijah Wood) first comes to life, he finds himself in a post-apocalyptic world. All humans are gone, and it’s only by chance that he discovers a small community of others like him taking refuge from fearsome machines that roam the earth intent on their extinction.

More after the jump, including a trailer…

9 convinces the others that hiding isn’t the answer. Instead, they should take the offensive if they are to survive, and learn why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.

It’s gloomy, isn’t it?! It’s making me think of "Wall*E" (though that had a happy overtone to it) and "Terra" I dunno … are these good movies to be showing kids? Do they need to be worried about such dark issues at a young age? I’m thinking no. "9" isn’t rated yet, and I hope it ends up with a PG-13 rating.

There was a big brouhaha at the Traverse City Film Festival last year because, though it’s rated PG-13, it was billed as a Saturday morning movie appropriate for kids. It wasn’t, and parents got a little upset.

Check out the "9" trailer. Is this appropriate for kids? 

Image: 9, Focus Features, 2009

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A “Dark Shadows” film is in the works, and Collider.com is reporting that director Tim Burton and Johnny Depp are making the film next summer. It’ll be Burton’s next project after Alice in Wonderland.

Written by John August, the film is based on the cult ’60s TV show created by Dan Curtis. Johnny Depp will play Barnabas Collins, the vampire patriarch of the series played by Jonathan Frid in the TV series. Check out Jonathan’s official Web site.

It’s amazing that “Dark Shadows,” which ran from 1966 to 1971, has an archive of more than 1,225 episodes. I loved it. Loved all the spooky goth stuff, all the vampires, monsters, witches, werewolves, ghosts and zombies. Can’t wait to see what those two do with the film.

Image: Tim Burton, Johnny Depp; Sweeney Todd; DreamWorks SKG, 2007

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