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District 9 (2009) – Original Short Film Included
The Brundle Fly enters an Alien Nation to transform into Enemy Mine.
District 9 Poster
Director: Neill Blomkamp
Writer: Neill Blomkamp & Terri Tachell
Starring: Sharlto Copley, Nathalie Boltt, Willam Allen Young, Jason Cope
"When dealing with aliens, try to be polite, but firm. And always remember that a smile is cheaper than a bullet." - MNU Annoucement
Dark and witty, District 9 lovingly salutes the films of Sci-fi past while retaining a fresh originality. Avoiding traditional beats, the character driven work is ripe in social commentary. Brutal, invigorating and decidedly ‘real” when viewing, this is an exciting, emotional and suspenseful sci-fi horror experience.
Trying to remain spoiler free - In 1982 an Alien race was stranded on earth. 28 years later the “Zoidberg” (Futurama) like arthropod E.T’s have learnt the concept of currency, communication and oppression. Imprisoned in a refugee camp known as “District 9” they are forced to scavenge and steal for sustenance and survival with a predilection for cat foot and rubber tyres as their primary source of nourishment.
Wikus is on a quest to find his missing contact lens.
"Get your fokkin' tentacle out of my face!" - Wikus
Promoted beyond his abilities, Wikus is placed in charge of an operation that will relocate the 1.8 million crustaceans’ miles outside of Johannesburg to a new detention centre, “District 10”. A diplomat, he understands the alien language and must notify them of imminent eviction, a concept that they do not fully comprehend.
"Could you go a bit slower with the clicks there, it sounded like you said *three years*... " - Wikus
Along with serving legal documents, Wikus is also searching for any weaponry or new technology that may be hidden inside the shanty town. It is this second mission directive that leads to Wikus becoming a marked man, hunted and exploited by his own species and forced to hide within the alien colony.
Excuse me Mr Goldblum, we want you out of here now Bug Boy!.
John Doe says:
First time Director Neill Blomkamp’s expansion on his 2005 short film Alive in Joberg, opts for an angle which effectively renders most previous alien invasion movie plots as redundant. The 29 year old, South African born filmmaker draws on the darker side of human prejudice and the corrupted intentions that he witnessed during years of Apartheid.
The mockumentary style helps us believe what we are seeing, and the V like shots of the disabled mothership over Johannesburg immediately carries weight. This style of filmmaking also allows the script to avoid heavy exposition.
Let me outta here! I'm not an animal I am a human being!
Shot for a mere $30 million dollars, which was provided by Peter Jackson once their joint “Halo” project fell through, the FX are astonishing. It is difficult to dissect where the artificial graphics begin and end. The aliens themselves are all CG yet testament to the skill of the animators they manage to make emotive insectoids without anthropomorphizing.
The “prawns” technology also showcases the imaginative visuals. Gravitational weapons, bioengineering fuel cells and pulse rifles all come equipped with something strikingly unique. Harking back to Jackson’s early splatterfests like Braindead, the carnage often demands buckets of blood and fleshy bits flying towards the camera, again with enthusiastic prowess.
As stated several times previously in this review, the core of the story is Wikus and first time feature actor Sharlto Copley (Alive in Joberg) elicits our empathy while the writers are steadfast in keeping his negative traits consistent. Representing a human full of frailties, he makes bad decisions, is often selfish, needy and even weak. Committed, he is never transformed into the traditional hero despite the films third act action frenzy.
Reinvigorating the genre right from the first frame where the U.F.O arrives, not as Hollywood cliché has us repeatedly believe in the U.S.A but instead South Africa. From there the films influences may be easy to spot but in the context of the story it all seems to be a strikingly new perspective. John Doe was immensely satisfied, drawn into this alternate history. In the end with the exception of a few minor quibbles District 9 is certainly a superior science fiction blockbuster that blends popcorn fun with a substance that triggers dissection upon cinema departure.
The original short film Alive in Joberg
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