Gen¹³: The Movie is a 1998 Direct to Video animated film based upon the comic book Gen¹³.
In the film, teenage Caitlin Fairchild is offered a place in an institute for gifted children. She soon learns that the school isn't really a school, but rather a military project to turn children with a special genetic structure into super soldiers. After developing incredibly enhanced abilities, Caitlin rebels against the program that created her. But all is not what it appears; there are some in the military who want to help her, and a deadly enemy is actually a long lost sibling.
It should be noted that Disney, of all companies, financed the film and intended it to be releasing during its direct-to-video days (albeit through its Touchstone Pictures banner). It is much Darker and Edgier than its other direct-to-video projects and borders between PG-13 and R with intense action violence, profanity, brief nudity, and blood and gore. The film ultimately wound up being shelved, as during its production, Wild Storm was sold to Warner's DC Comics, and Disney no longer wanted to market a film with ties to a rival company. It did get a limited video release in Europe and Australia, courtesy of Paramount.
Tropes:
- Animated Adaptation: Of the comic book Gen¹³.
- Adapted Out: Burnout aka Bobby Lane was a major member of the team in the comics but he doesn't make an appearance here.
- Blood from the Mouth
- Big Bad: Ivana
- Body Horror: With human experimentation aplenty this is a given.
- Breast Expansion: When Caitlin first transforms, this happens.
- Cain and Abel: Threshold is Caitlin's brother Matthew, having been turned into a weapon for the military. He tries to get his sister onboard, but she refuses.
- Clothing Damage: When Caitlin's powers activate her muscles obliterate her clothing.
- Composite Character: Caitlin is given Bliss' role as Threshold's sister, or in this case, his half-sister.
- Darker and Edgier: For Disney direct-to-video films. It's also darker in tone than the original comic series itself.
- Demoted to Extra: Sarah Rainmaker was a major character of the team in the comics. Here, she only has a few scenes and even less lines to the point of getting captured without much fanfare.
- Every Car Is a Pinto: In the opening scene.
- Family-Unfriendly Death: A pilot's head is blown up by a telepathic attack. Cue blood, brains and his eyeballs splashing across the cockpit window. It is NOT a pleasant scene.
- Family-Unfriendly Violence: Considering that Disney produced it.
- Flirtatious Smack on the Ass: Caitlin's college roommate receives one off-screen while telling her, through the crack in their dorm room door, that she's hooking up with her boyfriend.
- Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: Threshold was kidnapped as a child, experimented upon and forced into becoming a soldier. This still earns him the barest minimum of sympathy from his sister, seeing as all atrocities he had done up to that point put him well Beyond Redemption.
- Genius Bruiser: Caitlin.
- Good Smoking, Evil Smoking: While Roxy, one of the protagonists smokes, two of the villains also smoke.
- Gorn: In the spirit of the comics there's no shortage of grotesque violence.
- Gory Discretion Shot: The film tries to do this by filming the pilot's head explosion from the back, but that makes it only worse.
- Pet the Dog: Helga, when tasked to retrieve Caitlin after her powers manifest, seems extremely reluctant to do so and is actually crying, stating Caitlin was "Her favorite."
- The Reveal: For viewers not familiar with the comic, Roxy's powers are revealed during the climax of the film.
- Shower Scene: Both Caitlin and Roxy have one, but it's so misty that you can't see anything below the neck.
- Smoking Is Cool: For Roxy, at least.
- Toilet Humor: Yes, fart jokes are in the film.
- Traumatic Superpower Awakening: Caitlin's powers manifest when she, Roxy, and Grunge are caught in the computer room by a guard with a very threatening attitude.
- Vomit Discretion Shot: Catlin's transition to superhero abilities end up giving her intense migraines and nausea, to the point that on the night of her final transformation she vomits over the side of her bed.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Rainmaker is knocked out and carried off half-way through the film, never to be seen (or mentioned) again
