Aliens? Check.
Action? Check.
Blood and gore? Check.
Intelligent social commentary, originality, creativity, and outstanding special effects? Checkity check check.
Phenomenal new sci-fi movie? Super check.
These are all the workings of what surpasses the realms of a cheesy-yet-fun sci-fi flick and enters the extraterrestrial levels of true, awe-inspiring filmmaking. Coincidentally, these are all the workings of Neill Blomkamps breakout feature film, District 9, produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson.
What makes District 9 more than just an alien shoot-em-up popcorn popper? It has a soul. District 9 is a movie that plays off several cinematic styles and masterfully interweaves them together into one feature that's sure to please the general public audience as well as intriguing the minds of those who really expect bigger things out of today's movies.
District 9 starts off as a documentary-style film, showcasing the mysterious UFO that hovers above Johannesburg, South Africa. Initially, military troops are flown in to investigate, and they find horribly malnourished life forms residing in the ship. After migrating them to Earth, the area they inhabited known as "District 9" soon becomes somewhat of a ghetto, with anti-alien extremists causing riots and starting a large campaign against the new citizens. 20 years later, a Multi-National Union member named Wikus van de Merwe (Sharlto Copley) is sent to District 9 to relocate the aliens to a concentration-camp style area over 200 kilometers away from Johannesburg.
As you can imagine, chaos ensues. Wikus is unintentionally sprayed by strange black fluid inside a tube found within an alien's shack. Progressively, he shows symptoms of being infected with something, and is soon hospitalized and found to have alien DNA in his body. This is where the documentary style of the film, opening with various interviews followed by camera footage of Wikus' operation, turns to the more narrative, traditional film style. However, you probably won't even realize it by how tightly the film grips your attention.
District 9 never lets you go, throughout the entire film. Imagine any good suspense or action film, and multiply its pull on you by about 1000, and you may be able to grasp the magnitude of District 9's influence on any given viewer. Quite honestly, the formula used for the screenplay is quite brilliant; giving you a back story on the present situation through realistic spectator commentary then switching to the actual events unfolding before your eyes then attacking your senses with exciting and energetic filmmaking, there exists no dull moments during the entire film. Even at its lowest points, you will be kept enthralled and entertained, wondering what will happen next.
While District 9 is a sci-fi funfest for any alien fanatics out there, it also serves as a more profound film, building upon aspects of real life problems like racism, apartheid, immigration, genocide, rioting, slum life and government power. It really makes you wonder how the world would take such an event as aliens coming to Earth on relatively civil grounds.
Alongside its deeper roots, though, lies what everyone is expecting: the action. And there is plenty of it. If you're a fan of aliens, robots, guns, explosions and blood/gore, you've picked the right movie. Limbs flying, firefighting, vehicles crashing...District 9 has it all for your viewing pleasure, and while the film does hold true to its "more than your average sci-fi" attitude, it still gives plenty of crowd-pleasing moments to get you even more involved in the already deeply-involving plot.
Also, kudos to actor Sharlot Copley who plays the main protagonist; he gives such an astounding performance that its hard to believe he's barely known in the film-world. To add to his magnificent and spellbinding act, most of his lines were improvised throughout the movie...yes, meaning he made up, off the top of his head, most of what he was saying, and pulled it off brilliantly.
What's more, Blomkamp made such great characters out of the alien race as a whole as well as the main alien you get attached to, Christopher. They feel incredibly real, which only adds to the overall feel of the movie: everything feels real. Besides their actual character and interactions, their rendering is exceptionally well done, given extremely detailed skin and facial expressions to make them uber-realistic. The plot is definitely plausible and District 9 tackles the ultimate "What if?" question with flying colors.
Hands down, District 9 is the best film of the Summer. It retains all the qualities of films like Transformers or G.I. Joe for the fun aspects, but still has a brain and a heart to embed it within the confines of sci-fi classics. 20 years from now, District 9 will still be heralded as the bar that needs to be raised in order for any new sci-fi film to hold even a dim light to it. Although some things are left unexplained, and a few holes lie within the overall plot, District 9 more than makes up for its shortcomings with a spectacular performance by Copley, exemplary special effects and a new, original story. These aliens are welcome...consider me a sympathizer.
9.5/10
Kyle Shelton
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