District 9

Every once in awhile a film will come along that will whoop the hell out of your mind and take your eyes on a rollercoaster ride of the unexpected, I’m glad to announce that District 9 is that movie. It was only ten years earlier that another science fiction film took audiences by storm and revolutionized sci-fi as a whole, that film was The Matrix. Now is District 9 on par with the first Matrix film, my opinion says it defiantly is. Is it a classic in the tradition of Blade Runner or Children of Men, one hundred percent, now is it a better film than the two films just mentioned, maybe not?
What makes District 9 so great is that it took the whole documentary film style, aka Cloverfield or The Blair Witch Project and perfected it. When you view this film it does not feel like a documentary or a mock documentary but instead flows like a grade A Hollywood production. All of this accomplished on the budget of a mere thirty million dollars, more than just a feet, but a miracle of filmmaking.
This film comes from Neil Blomkamp a South African born filmmaker who previously did short live action movies. He had a deal to make the popular Halo videogame into a feature but once that fell through Peter Jackson came up with the funding for District 9. Thank the lord for that because I haven’t seen a director with such an eye for talent or imagination since Steven Spielberg came onto the scene in a big way with Jaws. For this being his first feature film he has done something amazing for not only sci-fi but cinema as a whole.
Let’s not jump to conclusions though the acting also comes a long way in this film. As talented as Neil Bolmkamp is he also has an eye for actors or maybe he should just thank the casting agent who brought in Sharlto Copley. Copley is an unknown actor who hails from South Africa, what makes his performance astonishing is that it was mostly improvised. At least all of the dialogue was if not the flow of the story. Without his triple tour de-force of an acting job this film might not have been the same. I believe his performance is definitely Oscar worthy but most Academy voters will most likely decline this thought. It doesn’t surprise me either; the Oscars have never been kind to actors in sci-fi or fantasy. What we do know though is this; Sharlto Copley has a talent that could rival first on screen appearance by such legends as Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. His career is going places and I cannot wait to see what he does next.
The other performances are good in the film but none are better than that of the computer generated Prawns. Even though they are fake and not real in any sense of the word they help move the story along with believability. There struggle to find a way home is real emotion and there torture by the hands of humans is concerning. The paradox between this film and what actually goes on in Africa is very unsettling; this film has a message but does not clearly blurt out what it is, which is very smart in, just for the simple fact that you don’t want to alienate your audience with a message, and the filmmaker knew this.
There is no need for me to explain what this movie is or about to an exact note. If you have seen the trailer or read another review you already know what you are in for. All I am here to do is spread the message of this genius film from an up and coming director who is sure to become a tycoon. This film is a science fiction action flick with a smart story and slick style, if any of the two genres I just mentioned peek your interest, I will promise that you will not leave the theater disappointed.
I can picture that I am in a room a couple of years from now with other film lovers as myself and a topic will arise, what is a better film? Children of Men or District 9? Both are sci-fi masterpieces, both have incredible directors and actors. Both have storylines that make Star Wars and Star Trek ooze out unoriginality. Yet only one can reign supreme and both parties will give a good argument for there particular film of choice. Each individual will be justified in there opinion for the film they chose but during this heated debate I think everyone in the room will forget something of importance. The importance I speak of is how blessed we are to have two great science fiction films come out in the same decade. The generation before me had a heated debate of which two films were better, Blade Runner or Brazil? I am just glad to announce that now my generation has something legitimately to argue about, so let the debates begin!

THE JUDGEMENT CALL: A sci-fi classic that can hold its own with The Matrix or Children of Men. It is without a doubt the best film of 2009 thus far, and unarguably a masterpiece of small budget filmmaking. Go see it while it is still in theaters and be amazed at its originality and above par filmmaking.