Having a long February break, I was able to watch several movies that I was looking forward to for quite some time. One of them, District 9, is nominated for Best Picture, along with three other nods (for Editing, Visual Effects and Adapted Screenplay).
Yes, I realize that this film was released way back in the summer of last year, and I should have seen it a good long time ago, but my procrastination got in the way of that. Without further ado, I will review the aforementioned film
District 9 was produced by Peter Jackson, who saw special potential in the film's director and writer, Neill Blomkamp. The movie did quite well at the box office, and received critical acclaim, being considered one of the smartest science fiction films in years. And just recently the film scored its Academy Award nominations. To put it mildly, I was very excited to see this movie for a variety of reasons, and I think that is why I was inevitably disappointed by what I saw.
Yes, District 9 has one of the most clever concepts which the alien invasion genre has seen in years. When the ships land in South Africa, the invaders (here a crustacean-like species called Prawns) don't attack mercilessly; rather, they are malnourished creatures hardly capable of defending themselves. The Prawns are then placed in slums, and entirely segregated from the human population, in a smart allegory for apartheid in the 20th century.
Nevertheless, the premise and some great acting from Sharlto Copley (I would argue that Copley is more deserving of a Best Actor nod than Jeremy Renner of The Hurt Locker) are not enough to stop District 9 from being a slightly better than average sci-fi flick. It doesn't have the same intellectual punch like some of my favorite sci-fi flicks, such as Blade Runner, Aliens, Brazil or 12 Monkeys.
Don't get me wrong, the first half hour or so of the film was spectacular, with moments that were both humorous and jarring. Nevertheless, towards the end, the film slips into a somewhat stereotypical actionfest that is all too common in today's sci-fi.
Though certainly a fine movie, District 9 doesn't have the kind of attributes worthy of most other Best Picture nominees, and, therefore, I feel that it was one of the "filler" films included to round out the 10 movie race.
6/10
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I like stereotypical actionfests Shane. I dare say, you've made a poor judgment. The second half of the film featured some of the best parts-remember that drug kingpin who got his head blown up? Or that whole scene where Wikus and Christopher Johnson storm into that place and shoot guns that evaporate people?
ReplyDeleteI heard District 9 was a great movie. It's on my list to see.
ReplyDeleteI didn't think District 9 was a bad movie by any means, but it definitely didn't meet the hype that people built up about it.
ReplyDeleteAnd John, I enjoy a good action flick as much as the next guy, but I was just expecting this to be a more intense, psychologically complex film.
I understand man
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