District 9 (2009)

District 9 is not only a sci-fi movie; it's a smart movie. And it's intense - really really intense. Around ten minutes in it grabs you and won't let go, building momentum along the way until it's time to roll credits.

In the film, twenty-some years ago a massive alien ship stopped over Johannesburg, South Africa. An exploratory team found many unhealthy extraterrestrials inside and brought them down to live in a camp - District 9. Eventually it's a highly-secured slum and several "prawns" (as they're sometimes called derogatorily) are involved in violent protests and crimes.

So in 2010 Multinational United (MNU) is contracted to relocate the aliens to District 10, 200 km outside the city. In documentary style, the audience follows Wikus Van De Merwe (Sharlto Copely), a bureaucrat on the team serving eviction notices. After an accident, Van De Merwe learns what it's like to be on the other side of MNU's armored vehicles. Don't let what happens to Van De Merwe turn you off, and you'll be glad you stayed.

We get to see the district through a blend of filming styles that also includes security camera footage and traditional Hollywood style filming. Eventually it totally gives way completely to that last style. That transition is just one of the many smooth, thought-out aspects from Neill Blomkamp and his team in this movie. This is not mindless entertainment.

There is never just action for action's sake. There are motion-capture CGI aliens and violent explosions but they are used sparingly. It's clear the film isn't about how well they can make alien special effects - it's about the story. But the sparse use also helps make it all seem more realistic. There's this gritty, dirty feel to the whole thing. The production filmed in an impoverished neighborhood where residents had actually been relocated to a government-run housing district.

District 9 deals with many of the same issues in South Africa during the Apartheid - such as racism (rather speciesism here) and forced relocation. The treatment of refugees is another embedded element. These layers are woven in thanks to Blomkamp's own experience growing up in South Africa, but it's not a parable. You could be entertained by this film without knowing about the history in which it's entrenched.

Neil Blomkamp had the opportunity of a lifetime in making this movie. It was his first time directing a feature-length film and Peter Jackson as his producer just let him run with it. The finished product is fantastically made and very interesting to see.

Rating: 4/5

Recommended for: Those who don't mind a shot of world history with their sci-fi

(not recommended for small children)