I wrote up a little article on Voyeuristic Cinema and made a mention of District 9. Well, after seeing the movie, I now know the entire movie is not set in that documentary style at all. In fact, it’s pretty much just the first twenty minutes or so of the movie, as a means of establishing the setting and events that take place prior to the film’s opening, and a couple of minutes at the conclusion of the film. That’s not to say that the film doesn’t use the style to its advantage, in fact, I think it packaged the storyline in a much clearer way, grounded in a sense of reality that would have been missing without it.
The film itself was refreshing.The setting isn’t one you might ever associate with aliens, and it goes a long way in also making District 9 a visually unique experience. Speaking of visuals, the special effects were impressive for a film that didn’t look destined to cause huge waves at the box office,even though it did make quite a splash ( $37 million).
I think as a story, the writing is a tad bit lazy, and relies on character lines that are too obviously drawn. I’ve heard complaints of the plot being a bit too convenient, as well. To be fair, there was a moment in the film where I thought the same thing. But with that said, it is a science fiction movie, and a damn good one in a year of other good sci-fi films (see: Moon and Star Trek), and there is bound to be some form of convenience or happy accident that ties part of the story to another. Part of the problem with sci-fi films is to make them seem absolutely plausible, which I think District 9 does a superb job of doing.
I’ve read multiple accounts that much of the acting was spontaneous and without an actual script for the actors to read from. This makes sense, as a lot of the dialogue felt quick and a bit of it was stumbled over or choked on (used to great effect as well). There are a couple of moments where I thought Wikus (played by Sharlto Copley) overplayed the character, but I only noticed them in the beginning. Once the action ramps up, which was also well shot and choreographed, I didn’t find myself paying much attention or finding much more at fault.
This could have been the Halo movie, and I’m glad Peter Jackson and Neill Blomkamp spent their time with this instead. This year has seen a resurgence in well done sci-fi, which has been a pleasure as a moviegoer.
August 18, 2009, 5:52pm
