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Updated Friday, November 20, 2009 9:31 am TWN, By James Topley, Special to The China Post

District 9 第九禁區

Every so often a film comes along that defies and compels the imagination. “District 9” is a film with an actual idea in its head and the guile to manifest it on screen. It does not sit inside a single genre, but crosses boundaries by revitalizing overworked themes. Prepare yourself for an out-of-the-world sci-fi experience that looks and smells like pure fact.

Main character Wikus van der Merwe is played by Sharlto Copley, who in his debut performance, excels to no end and is one of the most memorable aspects of this movie. Wikus' character is transformed before our very eyes from smug pencil-pushing goon, to terrorized victim in a matter of minutes. He works for a corporation called Multi-National United (MNU) in Johannesburg, charged with the inspection and transfer of a township filled with aliens, derogatorily named “prawns.”

Wikus is new to the job, but he seems to enjoy it, that is, until a bunch of hardcore prawns make his day-job a little more permanent.

“District 9” sets up its alternate-reality premise beautifully. With its clever faux documentary style, this is the most imaginative science-fiction movie to come along in years. Amid the suspense and heart-pumping action sequences, there is a heartfelt commentary on xenophobia, corporate greed and apartheid.

The premise reveals that an enormous UFO descended twenty years ago over the city, only to remain dormant — hovering, revealing nothing of its contents. The nations of the world grew curious and by opening it up like a can-opener, out spills over a million creatures, all refugees from their homeland.

“District 9” is directed by Neill Blomkamp and produced by Peter Jackson, director of “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy. Blomkamp also co-wrote the script with fellow Canadian Terri Tatchell. Other main actors are Jason Cope, and Robert Hobbs.

The story — adapted from “Alive in Jo'burg,” a 2005 short film directed by Blomkamp and produced by Copley — was produced on the relative shoe-string budget of US$30 million, and dealt with the issues of prejudice and social segregation. The title and premise of “District 9” were inspired by subsequent events that took place in District Six, Cape Town during the apartheid era.

Without a doubt, Neill Blomkamp brings to screens a fantastic, gritty and realistic piece of science fiction with “District 9.” Not since Ridley Scott's “Blade Runner,” James Cameron's “Aliens,” or John Carpenter's “The Thing” have we seen a science fiction film with a depth of this caliber. After viewing “District 9,” it will be clear to one and all why Peter Jackson had so much confidence in Blomkamp to effectively set him loose on the cinematic world.

The aliens themselves, brilliantly realized with top notch CGI, even manage to make us feel empathy towards them and are rivaled only by Gollum from “Lord of the Rings.”

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	Main character Wikus van der Merwe is played by Sharlto Copley, who in his debut performance, excels to no end and is one of the most memorable aspects of the movie. (Courtesy of VieVision Pictures) More Photos (2)


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