Much has been made about how District 9 is not just another summer blockbuster. Unfortunately when it comes down to it, I think it is. It just happens to be slightly better and attempts for something greater, but the film can't reign in its many objectives leaving us with a lot of empty promises.
The film starts with a mock documentary look, which it later abandons because I think it realized it would miss out on a lot of plot. Yes, there is some obvious and smart social commentary, if you don't see it, you are blind (and in being blind, movies might not be your best form of entertainment). In an alien movie I am happy to except that aliens have come to earth, I'm happy to accept that they now live on earth in a shanty town called District 9 that has been quarantined off by government agencies. I am happy to accept that these are some ugly creatures and don't at all have the charm of E.T., in fact they are given the derogatory name "prawns" (gasp, why the hell do they care what we call them). Having accepted all that, why do I care that they are getting so mistreated (maybe I'm part of the problem, I don't know). It is hard for me to empathize with this creature/human relationship. Eventually I did get beyond that, but then every human except our main character started getting painted with one mean broad stroke. Then this "smart" summer blockbuster turned into a huge shoot em up akin to Iron Man meets Transformers.
Yes, this movie had potential, but it tried to do too many things and in the end didn't work for me. One bright spot of this film is in the star making turn of Sharlto Copley as Wikus Van De Merwe. This guy was great and managed to bring to life a complex character that was neither a good guy nor a bad guy, just a desperate man. Keep an eye out for Copley as an A lister of the future.
District 9 should garner some praise for its fortitude to put in an ending that doesn't sell out and really works for the film.
Do I recommend District 9? Maybe. But don't go in expecting the smartest blockbuster in years.
**1/2
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