Animated cinema is a mixed bag. Like animated TV, it seems like a lot of outlets are still struggling to embrace the medium for varied and interesting projects outside the usual genres. Some of the most engaging horror, action, and science fiction films of the past few decades happen to be animated. It's just that most of those entries either never come to theaters or struggle to turn a profit. Shane Acker's 2009 film 9 is a great example, and it's worth looking back to see what happened.