This Thread for Humans Only

[Trekker 42]

So it looks like Peter Jackson has done it again, as a producer. Neil Blomkamp's District 9 comes out this friday and frankly, I haven't been this excited for an original concept (disregarding the Pixar films) since Cloverfield. Hopefully this one will be better than that.

For those who don't know, District 9 is about an alien race who landed in Johannesburg, South Africa as refugees from their home planet. And while people argued over what to do, they set up house in District 9 in Johannesburg. So now, a segregated race, the alines must contend with the people there and with the constant demand for the secrets of their weapons.

Here are the trailers

Trailer 1

Trailer 2

So yeah... your thoughts o community?

[karamazov80]

I haven't been this excited for an original concept (disregarding the Pixar films) since Cloverfield.

Nothing is completely new, though, is it? Sounds a bit like Alien Nation to me.

Edited August 10, 2009 by karamazov80

[Trekker 42]

I haven't been this excited for an original concept (disregarding the Pixar films) since Cloverfield.

Nothing is completely new, though, is it? Sounds a bit like Alien Nation to me.

Well as they say in my lit class, there is only one story. Everything is borrowed somewhat as everything has, more or less, already been written.

[Jatta Pake]

I'm really looking forward to this one. I love trying to figure out the plot twists of movies from the trailers. My perhaps spoiler speculation below.

It appears the hero uncovers some bad stuff in District 9. I think the humans are holding the aliens hostage and exploiting them. It looks to me like the hero joins with the aliens to help them escape Earth. He blocks a missle with the huge power armor shot by an earthling soldier. Pure speculation of course.

[Shanester]

The new Fangoria had a lot of insight into this one. Looks cool, but seems like the aliens are a metaphor for the real life happenings in the districts of South Africa. District 6 maybe?

[buttheadsmate]

Brave & inspired decision to use Jo'burg as the setting for this movie as it is in reality one of the most dangerous cities in the world . I dread to think how the locals will treat the aliens next year.... English football fans

I've been reading a lot of good stuff about this movie & I hope it lives up to my expectations.

[Nessex]

I'm looking forward to this one. The last few films i've seen at the cinema have been pretty average (Bruno & Transformers 2).

A good action/sci-fi adventure with a racial/political subtext is just what i need. I'm trying to avoid reading up on it before i go so as to not hype myself up too much - this thread was just enough to get me excited about it coming out next week:)

Edited August 10, 2009 by Nessex

[Punisher]

Excellent film. Very well put together, and the documentary parts made the entire thing seem real. Not my favorite film of the summer (Star Trek was just so much fun!), but all in all, a top-notch must see flick.

[Jatta Pake]

Excellent film. Very well put together, and the documentary parts made the entire thing seem real. Not my favorite film of the summer (Star Trek was just so much fun!), but all in all, a top-notch must see flick.

Only got to see the first half. Had to leave because my wife got sick. I am loving it so far! Will have to see the rest on Sunday. No spoilers please!

[Trekker 42]

Yeah, spoiler free for a while please. I'm seeing it tomorrow with a friend of mine who I haven't actually seein in three years. We recently reconnected via facebook. I'm so flipping excited to see her again!

[MINI_MYTE]

Freakin' awesome movie! With a summer of big let downs and mediocre films, District 9 has truely breathed some "WOW" (all be it rather late) into the tail end of the summer movie season. GO SEE THIS MOVIE! Plain and simple. You will not regret it. A truely original idea and excellently executed. Finally a movie where you care and cheer on about the main characters. The visual effects are also spectacular, but they just compliment an amazing story and are not crammed down your throat because of a lack of one. District 9 is easily added to my only two other liked movies of the summer; Star Trek and The Hangover. 10/10

[MiniFiend UK]

The trailers look excellent and to me this looks like the sleeper hit of the summer if not the year. UK release is the 4th of Sept and I cant wait.

Spill.com give this a better then sex rating on their site which is their highest rating. Its a good review but could be a bit spolierish if you dont know what to expect.

District 9 Spill Review

[Trekker 42]

Well guys, here's my full review (more or less spoiler free) for you to enjoy. I gave this a 4.5 out of 5 in case anyone doesn't want to read the full thing. And I do a new format after I saw Harry Potter 6. Started this new trend. Called the AWED review which examines the Action, writing, effects and directing of the movie in question

So without further ado: District 9.

District 9 is not the perfect alien film, It is not the perfect action film. It is not a perfect allegory. Instead District 9 is a blend of these traits into one amazing, and near perfect film.

I shall be doing my AWED review and, to be sure, I was indeed awed by District 9.

But first, a summary. For those who don't know, District 9 is a story about a man named Wikus van der Merwe which is extremely hard to spell and pronounce. Pronounce Wikus with a V FYI. Wikus is the head of a task force doing eviction notices in District 9 of Johannesburg South Africa attempting to kick out all of the alien race which has made their home there. While doing it, he is exposed to a vial of black fluid which causes him an illness and causes him to have to become a fugitive from the company he worked for. Due to the condition (I will not reveal it here, you just gotta see the movie) he hides out in District 9 amongst the creatures he called enemies and finds a friend in an alien who has been called Christopher Johnson.

Acting: The acting, by actirs who are entirley unknown, is excellent all around. Especially Sharlto Copely who playes Wikus. As his condition progresses, he is forced to see the humanity in the aliens called Prawns who just want to go home. The rest of the acting is not really worth mentioning. Nothing special, just a well rounded performance. The Aliens will go into effects as they never speak human tongue (Get used to subtitles) and are more or less CGI creations. Impressive ones though. Some of the best acting comes out of the Prawns.

Writing: Ah, the writing. Distirct 9 ranks very highly on writing because, well, it's ORIGINAL! It's not a full-on allegory nor is it simply an action film. You feel for the characters, for Wikus and Christopher and Christopher's Son (Who remains unnamed, but I'll call him Son) and the script has some gems. For example:

[A guy shoots Wikus and Wikus disentegrates the guy]

Christopher: I thought you said not to hurt them!

Wikus: Well he shot me!

Along with some other amusing dialogue throughout. But make no mistake friends, this movie is no comedy. There is violence, terror, and blood and gore throughout. Think Watchmen violence with aliens everywhere. Excellent script overall. High marks.

Effects: And here is where Distrit 9 deserves its praise. The Prawns. Dear oh dear the Prawns. A beauty to behold are the Prawns. Perfectly executed, perfcetly played, and the language they use is amusing. The Prawns are never boring to look at and Christopher and Son in particular deserve praise for the personalities that were bestowed upon them. It's been a while since a CG creation has gotten this convincing and this... sympathetic. The Prawns have our upmost attnetion and our upmost sympathy throughout. In other words, I love the Prawns. It's hard not to. Once you get past the disturbing exoskeletons of course.

Directing: One word: awesome. District 9 manages to be excellent with everything it does. The scenes are perfectly coordinated, switcing from traditional movie to documentary to security cameras to news footage, always managing to be interesting, never slowing down. The action is fast paced and once exposure happens, the movie never wants to stop. You don't get breathing room once the extent of Wikus's condition is discovered. And, of course, what causes it. So it was well paced, well shot, and highly entertaining. What else could you want?

I have to put in a warning here: District 9 is higlhly violent. Extreme violence. Head exploding action means heads literally explode. Not for pre-teens. NOT for pre-teens.

So honestly, I give District 9 an almost perfect score. Almost perfect, not perfect, because it is missing the charm and wit of many movies that constantly hold my attention. And honestly it takes a bit to get moving. So for those two simple issues, I give District 9 a 4.5/5. Enjoy it.

District 9 is not the perfect alien film, It is not the perfect action film. It is not a perfect allegory. Instead District 9 is a blend of these traits into one amazing, and near perfect film.

I shall be doing my AWED review and, to be sure, I was indeed awed by District 9.

But first, a summary. For those who don't know, District 9 is a story about a man named Wikus van der Merwe which is extremely hard to spell and pronounce. Pronounce Wikus with a V FYI. Wikus is the head of a task force doing eviction notices in District 9 of Johannesburg South Africa attempting to kick out all of the alien race which has made their home there. While doing it, he is exposed to a vial of black fluid which causes him an illness and causes him to have to become a fugitive from the company he worked for. Due to the condition (I will not reveal it here, you just gotta see the movie) he hides out in District 9 amongst the creatures he called enemies and finds a friend in an alien who has been called Christopher Johnson.

Acting: The acting, by actirs who are entirley unknown, is excellent all around. Especially Sharlto Copely who playes Wikus. As his condition progresses, he is forced to see the humanity in the aliens called Prawns who just want to go home. The rest of the acting is not really worth mentioning. Nothing special, just a well rounded performance. The Aliens will go into effects as they never speak human tongue (Get used to subtitles) and are more or less CGI creations. Impressive ones though. Some of the best acting comes out of the Prawns.

Writing: Ah, the writing. Distirct 9 ranks very highly on writing because, well, it's ORIGINAL! It's not a full-on allegory nor is it simply an action film. You feel for the characters, for Wikus and Christopher and Christopher's Son (Who remains unnamed, but I'll call him Son) and the script has some gems. For example:

[A guy shoots Wikus and Wikus disentegrates the guy]

Christopher: I thought you said not to hurt them!

Wikus: Well he shot me!

Along with some other amusing dialogue throughout. But make no mistake friends, this movie is no comedy. There is violence, terror, and blood and gore throughout. Think Watchmen violence with aliens everywhere. Excellent script overall. High marks.

Effects: And here is where Distrit 9 deserves its praise. The Prawns. Dear oh dear the Prawns. A beauty to behold are the Prawns. Perfectly executed, perfcetly played, and the language they use is amusing. The Prawns are never boring to look at and Christopher and Son in particular deserve praise for the personalities that were bestowed upon them. It's been a while since a CG creation has gotten this convincing and this... sympathetic. The Prawns have our upmost attnetion and our upmost sympathy throughout. In other words, I love the Prawns. It's hard not to. Once you get past the disturbing exoskeletons of course.

Directing: One word: awesome. District 9 manages to be excellent with everything it does. The scenes are perfectly coordinated, switcing from traditional movie to documentary to security cameras to news footage, always managing to be interesting, never slowing down. The action is fast paced and once exposure happens, the movie never wants to stop. You don't get breathing room once the extent of Wikus's condition is discovered. And, of course, what causes it. So it was well paced, well shot, and highly entertaining. What else could you want?

I have to put in a warning here: District 9 is higlhly violent. Extreme violence. Head exploding action means heads literally explode. Not for pre-teens. NOT for pre-teens.

So honestly, I give District 9 an almost perfect score. Almost perfect, not perfect, because it is missing the charm and wit of many movies that constantly hold my attention. And honestly it takes a bit to get moving. So for those two simple issues, I give District 9 a 4.5/5. Enjoy it.

Edited August 16, 2009 by Trekker 42

[TM2 Dinobot]

So, I hadn't heard of this before slicking on this thread this afternoon. 2 hours later, I get a call to do a trailer check on this. I was all "SURE!"

I was stunned. It really was a quite good movie. The language is atrocious, but I knew that going in, and the accents make it easier to swallow. (sorry but they do) I hated Wikus at first but by the end I really felt for him. He came into his own.

The story was just amazing. it's like I always say "Nobody cares about Africa!" and that is so true in this movie. If the Prawns had landed in NYC or London, they'd have had something done about it in a week. You'll have to watch the movie to find out what happens but suffice it to say, that if no one cares about Africa, they're really not gona care about African alien refugees. People would feel bitter that they would land in Johannesburg instead of some place "important" like LA, so if the Prawns are gona snub the important people by landing on a horrible little blight on the planet, the important people will ignore them. <- this being an attitude, not my feelings on Johannesburg.

I will say I LOVED the Frontline feel to it. Documentaries don't get nearly enough credit as a viable format. I just hope they will keep World War Z in that format. Speaking of which, Zombieland is looking better and better.

Edited August 16, 2009 by TM2 Dinobot

[Trekker 42]

I will say I LOVED the Frontline feel to it. Documentaries don't get nearly enough credit as a viable format. I just hope they will keep World War Z in that format. Speaking of which, Zombieland is looking better and better.

Zombieland looks hilarious. Zombie Kill of the Week! With a freakin' PIANO!?!?!?!? God I laughed so hard. After all, every other trailer was for some freakin' serious horror movie and it got on my nerves. Then Zombieland which finally made me laugh.

BTW: This shall become a spoiler thread later today.

[entertheninja!]

Holy hell I just saw D9 and must say I think it's one of the best films this year! It was magnificent! I love the CG and the racial themes and everything was perfect. I think it's one of the best Sci Fi (or shall I say SYFY?) films of the decade...

Holy hell I just saw D9 and must say I think it's one of the best films this year! It was magnificent! I love the CG and the racial themes and everything was perfect. I think it's one of the best Sci Fi (or shall I say SYFY?) films of the decade...

[SErge]

It was great, one of the best movies i saw all year right next to coraline, sorry watchmen,you're outta here!!

seriously watch the film,but be aware it's for humans only

[MiniFiend UK]

For me one of the hits of the year a great way of showing social structure and prejudice. I really enjoyed this movie it may not be a bang bang shooty alien film but for me its better then that. I would recommend anyone to see it and have already texted ppl I know but am I'm expecting a high percent of them to actually tell me they hated it as they expect Sci-fi movies to be all space battles and princess rescuing but I dont care. This should go down as a classic and I cant wait to read some of the newspaper reviews.

[Nessex]

well - i have seen it and quite enjoyed it, but i'm being a bit tougher on it.

I'm going to give it 3 out of 5. Possibly 3.5.

Great action & adventure. It was a little 'splatter-happy' more often than it needed to, but i can always justify that if the story is good enough & the splatter serves a purpose. In the case - i think most of it did.

My big problem with the film was how unsubtle the metaphor was. Apartheid & refugee status are VERY worthy subjects for satire, social commentary & discussion, but i didn't feel like there was much of an effort to to make any kind of intelligent comment about what we as a society had done in the past.

Despite being set in South Africa & being called District 9, there is no reference to what actually transpired before in SA or to District Six in Cape Town. The film seems to exist in a world where Apartheid never actually happened, despite the world looking almost exactly like the one we inhabit now.

Anyway - that's just what i thought. I was compelled and entertained the whole way through the film, but wanted something a bit smarter . . . something that made a more intelligent criticism of the situation. 3 stars for some very solid action, a fun story & brilliant effects.

[Trekker 42]

The film seems to exist in a world where Apartheid never actually happened, despite the world looking almost exactly like the one we inhabit now.

You know, I actually think it did. I think that Apartheid did not happen or almost happened in this world. But was interrupted by a little thing called Aliens. It just seems like that. There seemed to be little or no problems between the blacks and whiles in the movie. Or at least little obvious ones. Other than the gang issue. It was like those who would be enemies were united against a common enemy. And the enemy of my enemy is my friend. So it was like the Apartheid had to be cancelled due to alien invasion.INstead it was directed at aliens.

Which, honestly, makes sense.

[TM2 Dinobot]

Eh, I get what he's saying though. It set itself up to be this killer metaphor, and then just told a (good) story, instead of saying anything about who we are.

[Bob Harris]

It's not about dead horses, but I've seen the movie yesterday, a little belated, but it was the first time that I had time to go to the movies in NY.

I was very impressed by the movie, most things are already said and there won't be anybody still reading this, but the thing that got me most was, that you usually don't feel so strange "alienated" watching a movie with aliens. It was a very tough movie, but not because of the visual violence, but the clever way they broached the issue of social segregation and xenophobia (?) in a science fiction movie.

Very good, indeed!

(A little too much action in the end, but it looked cool, so it's ok. )

[BrobotC]

It was a very tough movie, but not because of the visual violence, but the clever way they broached the issue of social segregation and xenophobia (?) in a science fiction movie.

EXACTLY!but its an incredible movie and i felt bad for wikus at the end,he was totaly consumed and even for an alien movie it was kinda sad.

[karamazov80]

A little late to the party, but I saw this one tonight. A very impressive piece of film-making! A very original film with some impressive design elements, story structure, direction, and acting. I'm looking forward to see how "Wikus" handles "Murdoch" in the A-Team pic. And an interesting way to address some of the problems of displaced people and a severe, ignored underclass that pervade parts of the world. Even some parallels with the poverty we see in the southern U.S. (the role of gangs, oppression and injustice by the official arms of the state, the consumption of cheap, unhealthy food, the part with the fighting insects, etc. etc.).