District 9

(2009)

Directed by

Neill Blomkamp

Review by Todd Plucknett

Posted - 8/17/09

Neill Blomkamp’s first feature District 9 is definitely the surprise of the summer. It was not that well marketed, except for putting “Peter Jackson presents” at the end of the trailer. It just looked like another corny action/sci-fi flick with an incredibly narrow audience scope. This is not that movie. Expectations were met and shattered within the first half hour, and any fan of sci-fi or film in general will thrill at the amazing characterization, innovative visuals, and message that District 9 has to offer. It is one of the best films that will likely come out this year, and it ranks with the best films in the sci-fi genre.

The story is completely original. It has been 30 years since aliens made first contact with Earth. A huge spaceship has been here for some time, hovering motionless over Johannesburg, South Africa, awaiting help from the ground. The humans initially go up to the ship and find the aliens in horrible condition. They decide to bring the aliens back down to the ground and take care of them, putting them in an isolated area known as District 9. Neither side knew, however, that District 9 would become more of a concentration camp than an actual living area. The aliens are fairly similar to humans, and over time, they began to understand each other’s language.

An agency known as Multi-National United (MNU) is more interested in experimenting on the aliens and understanding how to use their weapons than on their wellbeing. In an attempt to evict and move several of the aliens out of District 9 to a more remote location, Wikus van der Merwe (Sharlto Copley in an astonishing debut performance) contracts a virus that causes his DNA to fuse with alien DNA, which gives him a frightening alien appendage. Suddenly, he is thrust into MNU as an experimental tool. He manages to escape, but he is now the most wanted man in the world, as his body continues to mutate. From that moment on, the audience is completely captivated and glued to the screen. Try to look away. You can’t.

This film is directed in a way that is completely innovative to the sci-fi genre. It is filmed with a sort of paranoid energy reminiscent of Fight Club. Neill Blomkamp is definitely a director to watch. Reports are that he was originally slated to direct the upcoming Peter Jackson-produced Halo, which eventually fell through. This was the second option, and it is one of the most remarkable debuts in years. He directs like a seasoned veteran, and his visual style is amazing. His background in visual effects and animation has definitely aided him in creating the images in this film. His screenplay, co-written by first-time writer Terri Tatchell, is also a work of art. Its part documentary part fly-on-the-wall technique was just spot-on the right way to handle the material.  It is also impossible to not catch on to the message about apartheid and governmental incompetence and mistreatment of people of other backgrounds. It is fairly blunt, but not heavy-handed or preachy. It blends some really dark comedic moments with a fair amount of gut-wrenching dramatic moments. It is a brilliant screenplay that will undeniably be considered a classic in years to come. The only fear I have is that the loose ends at the end of the film will be revisited in lackluster sequels. If everyone involved is back in a sequel, then I will be first in line to see it. But I just don’t see this being topped.

The lead performance by Sharlto Copley, the only developed human character, is absolutely incredible. He has a lot of Edward Norton in him. He has that brand of nervous liveliness than Norton portrays so well on screen. This is Copley’s first screen performance, and it is one of the best debut performances in years. He is one to watch, and if this movie is as popular as I hope it will be, he could garner some award recognition at year’s end. He is that good.

The visuals in this film really are top notch. Wikus’s mutation is gritty and brutal. The CGI is not overdone. The aliens look frighteningly lifelike. The giant hovering mothership is intricately detailed, and the shots of it are stunning. Some of the battle scenes are so exciting and so brutal that you don’t know whether you should look away or stare and cheer on the aliens. The editing is the best of the year and the best since The Bourne Ultimatum. It is the quickest two hours I have had at the theater in a long time. Not once did I look at my watch. I kept trying to get ahead of the story to figure out what was going to happen next, but everything was so uncertain and fast-moving that doing so was next to impossible. It is so furiously-edited and so well-constructed and well-detailed, that it makes for the most satisfying summer film experience imaginable.

With the weak marketing efforts, I am not sure what made me want to see it. Maybe it was the fact that Peter Jackson’s name was all over it. Maybe I have a soft spot for sci-fi that I didn’t initially realize that I had. Maybe I just wanted to go outside my box and see something that I normally wouldn’t. Whatever reason it is, I am glad that led me to the midnight showing. It is the most fun I have had at the movies this year, and suddenly Inglorious Basterds is going to have to be something truly remarkable to take over my top spot of the year. I have been just sort of plugging away for the past few months, watching a lot of great films, but always knowing in the back of my mind that Inglorious Basterds was going to take over my top spot of the year in late August. But now, much to my surprise, the week before I see that film, I have one that is going to be hard to beat by anyone. District 9 is a truly special film that is and will remain one of the best films of the year.

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