Comparing 9, the short, and 9, the full length movie

 

Short film: My first impression of this movie was weird to be honest. The way the characters were designed was already a bit odd to me. I had to rewatch it again to truly understand what was being told. When I watched it for the second tine I noticed the creatures were rag doll like creature that have their own distinct numbers. What I noticed about the plot was that it was centered around a creature called nine that awakens. The creature 9 finds another creature who calls himself 5. What confused me the most was trying to understand what was being delivered because there is no dialogue. While the two of the creatures, 9 & 5 are exploring, they get attacked by a mechanical beast and 5 is captured by this beast. 9 is ultimately left alone, as it seems he’s try to devise a way to get away the beast. It seems to me at least that 9 captured the beast in some hole and is able to escape. Towards the end, the souls of the other numbers are shown, possibly showing those who have died by the beast. I think this showed the significance of the other rag doll creatures, and that they are more than what the seem. The most character development i’ve seen in this film was when 9 was just awakening and didn’t look like he knew much about the new world. He seemed naive and just followed what 5 did and was very cautious, especially when it came to hiding when the mechanical beast came around. Towards the middle and end of the film, he seemed a lot mote brave. Now that 5 was no longer there to protect him, he stepped up and showed much bravery, defeating the mechanical beast.I believe he also realized the dangers being in the world he now lives in. The special effects were also very interesting to me as well, considering it uses CGI. It is very high detailed and is surprising knowing that it was made in 2005. The different lightings and shadows show a dramatic mood, emphasizes the darkness and eeriness of the world. The glow also adds an spooky effect when the mechanical beast shows up. The design of the environment is also very intriguing, as it is ruined and has debris and worn texture, emphasize the destruction of the world itself. The directional style was also nice to witness as well. Acker relied much on visuals rather than actual dialogue. They use the actions, body language and expressions to convey the meaning or emotions. The angles, such as a low angle emphasizes vulnerability, or close ups that show the fearful faces of the rag-doll creatures. Different conventions were also like ambient sounds, like metal creaking and distant loud winds, emphasizing the atmosphere itself. The colors it self, like gray and brown emphasize darkness and decay. The human characteristics put onto the ragdoll creatures is also another convention used.

Full- Length Film:

My impression for the full length movie was pretty similar to the short, just a broader perspective now that the whole plot was described.in this film, it is where humanity has been wiped out by machines and small rag-doll creatures exist. One of the rag doll creatures name nine is awakened, and he finds himself in the ruin world after he awakens. Similarly to the short film, 9 is unsure of his purpose in the new world. He encounters 2 who tells him about the world’s history and how machines wiped humanity. As 2 is telling  9 about the world, he captured by a mechanical beast known as the Cat Beast. 9 eventually runs away from the Cat Beast and is joined by 5, as the find other members of the Stitch-punk group, including 1, 7, 3, 4, and 6. Each of these have unique personalities they all serve a distinct role in the struggle of survival in the dark. Towards the middle as the group comes together, they learn about the Fabrication Machine. It was designed to help humanity, however it came corrupted and was responsible for the making of mechanical beasts like the Cat Beast. These stitch-punks tried to stop the machine and rescue 2, the suffer losses like 6 & 8. They eventually are able to take down the machine, ending it’s destructive chaos. This machine was crucial as the stitch-punks were earlier to be revealed to be fragments of the scientists soul, that bring life to the talisman. Towards the end the rag doll creatures reflect on the victory of their victory, of how several comrades dies and the struggle itself. Glowing souls are shown, of those who have made sacrifices, representing the peace and release from the world they once were apart of. 9 is similar to the short film how he starts out curious and unsure of what he is made for. Sooner he becomes more brave and less dependent, understanding the importance of teamwork and sacrifice. At the end, he is a more courageous and confident figure, leading the survived Stitchpunks. 1, the leader is very fearful and not very trustful. His leadership is questioned, often scared to take action. He soon dies and allows 9 to step up as the leader. 5 also had character development and started off as cautious and caring, always thinking about the safety of others. Towards the end of, he sacrifices himself, helping the group to escape. Similarly to the short film, the CGI is used amazingly. The setting is full of decaying debris of civilization like machines and ruins of buildings. The character development is detailed texture of the rag-doll characters, giving each character different and unique physical traits. The setting is very dark, shadowy and are occasionally shown lights like the glowing souls of the Stitch-punks who have died. The souls of the rag-doll like characters showed their souls being free. The directional style is also very unique as well. The mood and atmosphere is very prominent as the color is somber with the palette of grays, browns, and non very vibrant colors. The use of silence is a very powerful o f just building tension and suspense in general, allowing for the atmosphere to speak for itself. The notices of the Cat Beast and the Fabrication machine also give off mechanical noises, noting the contrast of noise of the Stitch-punks. The closeups often focus on their emotions, helping viewers to understand what they feel, highlighting their vulnerability and strength. Different camera angles also help create tension. When the Cat Beast was chasing the Stitchpunk, the camera uses low angles, making it the mechanical monster seem larger and much more threatening. Different movements are also used to emphasize the story. Quick movements are used to show urgency and quickness of the situation. 

Comparison: The full length definitely had more conventions and accomplished the overall storytelling in general. Unlike the full length film, the short left us with many unanswered questions, and a cliffhanger of some sort. The short film had the quality of a cliffhanger in general because the story was unfinished. The full length had a lot more character delvelopment, expressions, and emotions than the short film. It delved in deeper of the story and highlighted each of the characters unlike the first. In my opinion, I enjoyed the shorter film more. I enjoy both, but I like shorter films in general. The conventions were a lot similar, such as close ups, expressions, noises made by the monster, and the eerie atmosphere brought about. A lot more characters were introduced in the full length film, allowing for a lot of more emotion and distinct personalities. A lot more action and movements are shown in the full length film, as they tried to destroy more than just the Cat Beast itself. However, the short film, I believe shortens the full length and still gets the “idea”. Which is how the this lost, destroyed world that the Fabrication Machine destroyed because of corruption.