It's rare for the summer movie season to ever get deep, be it emotionally, philosophically, or intellectually. Usually, the cinematic fare of the season amounts to escapist popcorn movies. Besides, the thematic material belongs in those arthouse drama films that are released just in time for awards season, right? Neill Blomkamp wouldn't agree with you.
A South African-born director, the 29-year-old Blomkamp first turned heads in 2007 when he directed live action short films meant to promote the upcoming "Halo 3" video game. His gritty, in-your-face, cinema verite style impressed many in the film industry, especially one Peter "Lord of the Rings" Jackson. After a Jackson-produced and Blomkamp-directed feature-length "Halo" film fell through, the new partners decided instead to adapt a short film Blomkamp created in 2005, entitled "Alive in Joburg". What followed was a film that had the appearance of an intense sci-fi action flick, ut underneath, it was something much more.
Set in modern day Johannesburg, South Africa, the story (presented as a pseudo-documentary) revolves around arthropod-like aliens (derogatorily called "prawns") whose mothership malfunctioned over the city twenty years earlier. As a result, the prawns were forced by the private military contractor known as Multinational United (MNU) to move into slums, separated from humans who fear and despise them. All of which serves as a highly effective metaphor for the real-life horrors of apartheid in South Africa, as well as the vicious xenophobia that blacks endure in that region.
The movie also does a fine job turning the whole "alien invasion" action movie gimmick on its head. At first glance, these prawns seem like dirty, vicious, animalistic scavengers, but as the story progresses, these creatures turn out to be more human than the humans who persecute them.
One such human is MNU field operative Wikus van de Merwe, fabulously portrayed by Blomkamp collaborator and first-time actor Sharlto Copley. Ordered to serve prawns their eviction notices as a means for MNU to further segregate the aliens from their human counterparts, the overeager van de Merwe is accidentally exposed to an alien liquid. Unfazed at first, van de Merwe begins to experience intense physical changes in his body and genetic code, slowly but surely transforming into a prawn himself. Seen by MNU as a means to mass-produce his hybrid DNA to access the prawns' weaponry, van de Merwe is experimented on until finally escaping.
He eventually hides out in the home of a prawn known as Christopher Johnson (voiced and motion-capture-performed by Jason Cope), who reveals that the liquid that Wikus was exposed is needed to restart the mothership. Being told that he could be cured of his infection onboard the mothership, Wikus and Christopher forge an unlikely partnership to retrieve the liquid and escape.
Themes and allegories aside, the major asset at play is Copley's performance. His Wikus starting out as an everyday guy with a loving wife and a great job, we feel his panic, dread, and fear as he begins to transform into the very thing that he's helped hunt down and segregate. The portrayal of the prawns, notably the Christopher character, is outstanding to behold. It's rare to see such emotion and depth in a CGI character (although it shouldn't be any surprise, considering that the visual effects were handled by WETA, the giant behind "Lord of the Rings" and its Gollum character), and it proves that you don't need an alien to be all cute and snuggly like E.T. to be sympathetic.
And speaking of which, the visual effects and technical work are absolutely terrific, made all the more astounding since the film was produced for a mere $35 million (despite looking and sounding like it was financed with QUADRUPLE that amount). The fake-documentary, guerilla-filmmaking style adds to the film's authenticity and intensity.
Though implementing an allegory to real-life atrocities, "District 9" never becomes preachy, and at the same time, there's enough human-scale drama and pathos to keep the film from being all about the action. Thought-provoking, emotional, intense, and highly entertaining, "District 9" is sure to kick off the promising career of a fresh, young, and innovative talent.
LETTER GRADE: "A-"
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