District 9

[indianasmith]

My wife and I really enjoyed this one.  It is a pretty original piece of Sci-Fi and the effects are really awesome.  Definitely worth the rental fee.

[hellbilly]

Watched this last night and enjoyed it as well. Very good movie.

[Javakoala]

Most impressive. The whole thing had my tense and knotted up throughout the whole thing, once things got started, which was about 10 minutes in. Utterly impressive on every level.

[Leah]

really pretty damn good

[Mofo Rising]

I just watched this movie and loved it.

The first thing I thought of was how this movie should win the Philip K. Dick award for making the protagonist such an irredeemable bastard.

Second, since this is a South African film, I want to hear what our resident expert Trevor thinks. Granted, the movie posits an alternate reality where aliens drop down on Johannesburg in 1982. Filmed in New Zealand, but with many South African leads.

I can tell you one thing I liked about this movie, is that the filmmakers explicitly stated that they did not want to make a political movie. Of course it has politics, but it's more of "what would happen if it happened here" than any sort of political message.

The movie was never afraid to go for the goofy and irredeemably gory special effects.

I thought it was great, and very compelling.

[trekgeezer]

Filmed in New Zealand, but with many South African leads.

The film was shot on location in Chiawelo, Soweto during a time of violent unrest in Alexandra, Gauteng and other South African townships involving clashes between native South Africans and Africans born in other countries.[18] The location that portrays District 9 in itself was in fact a real impoverished neighbourhood from which people were being forcibly relocated to government-subsidised housing.

This is a quote from Wikipedia,  the only New Zealand connection is that Peter Jackson was the producer and WETA workshop did the digital effects.

[Torgo]

Watched District 9 again tonight on DVD. The movie holds up extremely well on repeat viewings. I think it deserves a best picture nomination.

[BTM]

My best friend worked on Zombieland painting around 1200 clay pots and various set props over a long weekend a few months back while it was shooting here. Her handiwork can be seen decorating the cigar store indian/outpost in the trailer. 

Whoa, you know someone who worked on some props for the film Zombieland?  That is AWESOME. 

Also, pity about WCS, it seems like it could be a cool film...

[Vane]

1. Saw it in the theatre on the midnight release.
2. Saw it again the next week.
3. Purchased the 2-disc on its release day as the store opened. ( i also reserved it. )
What im trying to say here is that i loved that movie. ALOT.
the preachy-ness was... tacky.
but true.

[nilbog]

Watched District 9 again tonight on DVD. The movie holds up extremely well on repeat viewings. I think it deserves a best picture nomination.

Looks like you got your wish!

[Trevor]

Second, since this is a South African film, I want to hear what our resident expert Trevor thinks.

I was told by a few people that this is an anti-South African film and I don't go for those, so I haven't seen it.

[Jim H]

Second, since this is a South African film, I want to hear what our resident expert Trevor thinks.

I was told by a few people that this is an anti-South African film and I don't go for those, so I haven't seen it.

Well, it does use in large part the position of the aliens as a metaphor for apartheid.  By and large the statement seems to be that people jump at the idea of being in a position of power over others (as everybody seems to look down on the aliens, even those of the black persuasion who might have reason to be sympathetic), and that people don't like poor immigrants. 

Johannesburg is certainly depicted as having a serious crime problem, of course - but, the city does have a crime problem, and the world of District 9 is very different from ours anyway (it's essentially Sci-Fi alternate history, since the aliens have been on Earth for 30 years when the film takes place).

Think the people who'd be most offended by the film would probably be Nigerians.  They're basically monsters in the film.

But, on the flip side, it somewhat dodges the issue much like Avatar did by having the really bad people be either mercenaries hired by an evil corporation, or people in the corp itself.  Thereby, to some degree, absolving any real peoples of true blame for the plight of its characters.

I don't know.  I guess I'd say overall it is a mixed bag for anyone sensitive to negative portrayals of South Africa.  It is negative, but it's more explicitly negative against people in general than South Africa in particular.

[Mr. DS]

Coming in really late to this conversation.   I just watched it and enjoyed it.  It took me so long because many people I had talked to about it weighed me down with their opinions.  Stuff about it being deep and sending profound messages.  Well, the "message" was there but I found it more or less to be on the dark comedy side of things.  Matter of fact I think the film was laced with many moments I found to be hilarious.   Perhaps this was intentional or maybe I'm just a sick b@stard (or both) but it worked nicely.  Either way, mankind in general are made to be the dufuses.

Maybe I missed something but why is it the Aliens put up with so much sh*t?  Their weaponry was beyond superior to that of ours.   A few of them in that Iron Man-like suit could easily take over a country within a few days.  

[Trevor]

It took me so long because many people I had talked to about it weighed me down with their opinions.  Stuff about it being deep and sending profound messages.

That's another reason that I haven't seen it as yet. I probably will still do so.

Maybe I missed something but why is it the Aliens put up with so much sh*t?  Their weaponry was beyond superior to that of ours.   A few of them in that Iron Man-like suit could easily take over a country within a few days.  

Welllll........these South Africans are strange people......

[3mnkids]

Maybe I missed something but why is it the Aliens put up with so much sh*t?  Their weaponry was beyond superior to that of ours.   A few of them in that Iron Man-like suit could easily take over a country within a few days.  

I think they say something towards the beginning of the movie, when they are interviewing people, that the aliens didn't have any motivation or something like that. They assumed because of illness.. They were sick and near starved when they were found and just like human nature if you constantly do something for someone they wont do for themselves.