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 DISTRICT
9
With
Sharlto
Copley,
Vanessa
Haywood,
David
James,
Nathalie
Boltt,
Jason
Cope,
Mandla
Gaduka,
Kenneth
Nkosi,
Eugene
Khumbanyiwa,
Louis
Minnaar
Written
by
Neill
Blomkamp
&
Terri
Tatchell
Directed
by
Neill
Blomkamp
South
African
born
Neill
Blomkamp
was
set
to
direct
the
big
screen
adaptation
of
the
Halo
video
game
under
the
auspices
of
producer
Peter
Lord
Of
The
Rings
Jackson.
Some
would
say
Halo
got
postponed
fatefully,
and
led
to
this
modestly
budgeted,
but
highly
original
sci-fi
laced
movie,
based
on
the
Blomkamp
short
movie
Alive
In
Jo'burg.
An
extraterrestrial
race
has
found
their
way
to
earth,
and
in
stead
of
heading
for
New
York
or
London,
their
gigantic
space
craft
comes
to
a
stop
over
Johannesburg,
South
Africa.
The
malnourished
and
ill
creatures
inside
are
crammed
get
contained
in
an
area
known
as
District
9
-
but
after
several
decades,
this
area
has
become
an
uninhabitable
slum,
not
only
because
there
are
very
few
services,
but
also
because
of
the
aliens'
nature.
Amid
these
haggard
conditions,
humans
co-exist,
also
including
Nigerian
gangsters.
Multi-National
United
(MNU)
is
contracted
to
sort
out
the
problem,
but
they
are
more
interested
in
the
alien
weaponry
which
humans
are
incapable
of
using.
The
MNU
is
a
strange
blend
of
Apartheid-era
militants
and
current
persuasions,
and
have
to
move
the
aliens
(derogatorily
referred
to
as
“prawns”)
from
District
9
and
repatriate
them
to
refugee
camps.
Wicus
Van
De
Merwe,
an
old-school
government-style
administration
agent
is
put
in
charge
with
heading
the
operation
to
serve
the
“prawns”
with
eviction
notices
to
vacate
their
shanties
-
a
laborious
door-to-door
process
with
several
spills
resulting.
During
this
operation
Wicus
is
accidentally
exposed
to
the
aliens'
biotechnology,
not
only
altering
him,
but
possibly
the
entire
course
of
history
for
the
aliens
on
earth.
With
the
MNU
out
to
experiment
on
Wicus,
he
escapes
and
finds
himself
on
the
other
side
of
the
fence,
becoming
an
unlikely
action
hero
(further
bulking
up
the
originality-cred
of
this
highly
impressive
movie).
Wicus
is
very
well
played
by
Sharlto
Copley,
even
when
his
nerdy
Afrikaans
character
often
lapses
into
a
caricature.
Colloquialisms
are
littered
across
the
movie,
seeing
and
hearing
them
on
the
screen
(often
not
subtitled)
adding
to
the
enjoyment
for
South
African
viewers.
The
first
chapter
of
the
movie
is
shot
like
a
documentary
in
progress,
but
pretty
much
falls
way
when
the
teeth
of
story
take
hold.
The
South
African
movie
industry
has
been
marred
in
three
sectors:
the
politically
driven
theme,
cheap
slapstick,
and
the
advertising
industry
with
foreign
companies
utilizing
the
country's
locations,
professional
crews
and
cheaper
cost.
District
9
adds
an
entirely
new
dimension
to
the
SA
film
industry.
This
highly
original
movie
is
another
much
needed
breakthrough
for
the
South
African
movie
industry.
Tsotsi
won
the
Oscar
for
best
foreign
film,
and
Charlize
Theron
for
best
actress.
District
9's
contribution
will
be
recognized
for
its
leap
from
the
well-trodden
socio-political
path
by
injecting
(some)
of
these
issues
into
a
high
profile
special
FX
/
sci-fi
/
action
spectacle
loaded
with
both
entertainment
value
and
a
consciousness
leaving
the
viewer
with
a
lot
to
think
about
when
it
comes
to
the
adage
of
"love
they
neighbour".
The
references
to
South
African
cases
in
District
9
is
no
secret
(with
the
aliens
ariving
during
the
Apartheid
era),
from
people
forcibly
removed
from
South
African
areas
like
District
6
(on
the
edge
of
Cape
Town
city),
to
the
recent
xenophobia
around
foreigners
from
Zimbabwe
and
other
parts
of
Africa,
being
attacked
by
fellow
Africans,
referring
to
them
as
“cockroaches”.
District
9
can
be
seen
as
the
first
true
South
African
FX
movie,
it's
realization
and
execution
all
home
grown
(except
for
the
digital
FX
which
was
handled
by
Peter
Jackson's
Weta
and
other
companies
like
animators
that
worked
on
Iron
Man).
With
a
special
FX
background,
Blomkamp
was
responsible
(amoung
other
things)
for
the
Citroën
advert,
with
the
transforming
&
dancing
car.
Gritty,
exhilarating
and
very
South
African,
District
9
is
by
far
one
of
the
most
original
movies
this
year.
District
9
will
release
the
same
weekend
as
the
first
CELLUDROID
Sci-Fi
/
Anime
/
Fantasy
Film
Festival
at
The
Labia
Theatre
on
Kloof
Street,
Cape
Town,
South
Africa.
www.CELLUDROID.net
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Paul
Blom
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