District 9

[StarOpal]

Good. Movie. Often messed up (Lissa would cover her face a lot), but really good.

Probably the purest scifi movie I've seen in a long time. Right down to the classic "fearing that which we don't understand" social commentary.

I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it, but it is so for this crowd.

[PoolMan]

I went with Darthmadler the other night (thanks dude!), and really enjoyed it. I plan on going again.

In terms of tone and theme, I agree, it was just excellent. It's old ground, but beautifully retread.

The plot's got some amazingly big holes in it, but you can really forgive these. This is a movie more about what it has to say, not how it says it.

Despite the fact that the ending BEGS for a sequel, and that the movie has done well at the box office, I hope we don't get a District 10. I can't see any way that it would end better than it already has.

[Lordmoon]

I enjoyed this film very much. At a budget of only $30 million it really shows that you don't need a Michael Bay sized budget to deliver spectacular visuals.

[StarOpal]

Aug 20, 2009 11:04:18 GMT -5 PoolMan said:

Despite the fact that the ending BEGS for a sequel, and that the movie has done well at the box office, I hope we don't get a District 10. I can't see any way that it would end better than it already has.

District 9 II: The Revenge of Christopher Johnson

[seanhrcc]

I thought it was wonderful...ever since i saw the short film years ago i wondered if he would ever go further, and then i heard about this earlier this year and i was STOKED. The special effects were awesome, the story was pure and though not completely original, it was unique enough to keep me surprised and satisfied.

Id love to see a sequal but i feel it would almost be too similar to The Matrix, a very much wanted desire that is, at the root of the idea, a horrible decision.

[aargmematey]

I absolutely loved it. I I loved the characters (especially Christopher, and his son), the story, the idea, everything. And I thought that Sharlto Copley was excellent as Wikus; I hated him at the beginning, but at the same time I kind of liked him despite myself just because of how pathetic he was.

And this was one of the only movies that I've ever seen where I walked out of the theater actually wanting a sequel.

[PoolMan]

Madler and I debated the idea of a sequel, but I think we need convincing that one could be any good.

***Spoilers!***

I mean, what are our options, here? Either:

A) Christopher comes back in peace to help both Wikus and the greater prawn population. Wikus' plight aside, the movie was careful to ensure that we understood something: Christopher was deeply enough shocked by what he found in MNU to completely drop his guard and stand stock still in the middle of a heavy firefight. (this would be the more interesting story - what makes D9 unique is that the aliens are not the aggressors)

B) Christopher comes back in force to wage war on the humans. Will he have changed his mind about Wikus in the mean time during his intervening flight to and from the prawns' homeworld? He certainly seemed genuinely interested in helping Wikus out when he saw what happened to him, but with more careful reflection he might realize Wikus was only on his side because of the mutation. After all, earlier that day Wikus' sole purpose in life was to move the prawns from one concentration camp to another. CJ might just bring the prawns back, guns blazing. (this would be the less thoughtful approach - too similar to all the other "aliens invade" stories we've seen done countless times before.)

In either event, I dunno if we really need a sequel... I thought it ended really well. Guess it depends on the box office take.

[Lordmoon]

C) The story conitnues in District 10 following a new group of prawns. Things are even worse now for them following the events of the first film and the departure of the mothership. Christopher might make a cameo appereance at the end.

[TheOogieBoogieMan]

I've seen D9 twice now, and loved it both times. As much as I may dislike viral marketing, I'm glad that's the route the powers-that-be took, because it meant I went into the movie only really knowing those "Humans Only" billboards (even the trailers were wonderfully vague). It's a treat to be pleasantly surprised by a movie you know hardly anything about.

Aug 24, 2009 20:08:25 GMT -5 aargmematey said:

I hated him at the beginning, but at the same time I kind of liked him despite myself just because of how pathetic he was.

The first time I saw the movie, I leaned over to my girlfriend around the point where Vikas was gleefully describing the popping sound the burning eggs made and said, "I hope he dies." He seemed so nebbishly evil, it totally didn't occur to me that he was the protagonist that would eventually redeem himself, so I enjoyed having to eat my words towards the end.

re: Sequel vs. No Sequel, I would be happy either way. D9 ended as well as it could have (life never has a "happily ever after"), but I have enough faith in the creators (Jackson and the director whose name I regrettably can't remember) to make a sequel that's at least as good as D9. I'll also suggest another way the movie could go:

D) Christopher Johnson returns to Earth, partly to help Vikas, but also because he couldn't stop his government from waging war on Earth, and they follow shortly after. If they want to tie D10 to world history, as they did with the first one, they could make parallels to WWII, with the aliens playing the Allies and the humans being the Nazis. It's an unfortunate comparison to make, but Vikas even calls District 10 a "concentration camp." Maybe they were setting that up to begin with?

[StarOpal]

Aug 25, 2009 18:01:22 GMT -5 TheOogieBoogieMan said:

It's a treat to be pleasantly surprised by a movie you know hardly anything about.

So true, me and Sis kept trying to figure out what the black liquid really was. My theory was it was supposed to be used to turn the aliens into humans and then they'd be sleepers among us. 'Ooooh, it's fuel.'

Getting you interested in watching a movie without giving everything away, that's what trailers should be and this movie did them right.

[Rett Mikhal]

Amazing movie, but I would never, ever pay to see a sequel. For one simple reason:

It is always better when movies leave you with some questions that you have to answer for yourself. Was Christopher hellbent on going back to organize a rescue party or an attack army? How would he have any authority? Why did the command module eject in the first place?

Too many questions is bad, but too few is far worse. Movies that thrust the answers in your face don't stimulate your brain (Matrix 3). Hell, even action films in the 80s (Predator) left you asking questions like, why does he hunt? Then a modern sequel (AvP) comes out and just flat out tells you in a flashback/exposition scene.

Movies like those of modern cinema (excluding D9, obviously) don't leave you asking enough questions, so your brain starts to go comatose for the pretty pictures on the screen. I will always argue that I was happier imagining in my head what the 'Clone Wars' were like.

All that aside, while D9 is seen by many as a racial allegorical tale, I think it shows the tendency of humanity that causes all other sins, including racism: Greed. All characters in the movie that commit crimes seem motivated by greed. Warlords cheat and kill Prawns just to get weapons... that they can't even use. Why? The corporation cares nothing about the Prawns, they only move them every so often when cameras show how bad things have become and their government paychecks start to dry up. Wikus, though he does help Christopher, is only helping to help himself. Before that he was willing to burn children for a paycheck. The only selfless one is Christopher, who cares only about his people even if they've become scattered and downtrodden.

My 80 cents.

[dex]

Oct 11, 2009 21:05:59 GMT -5 Rett Mikhal said:

Too many questions is bad, but too few is far worse.

Wise words.