Review of extra-terrestrial sci-fi thriller District 9 produced by Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings) and directed by Neil Blomkamp

Director: Neil Blomkamp
Starring: Sharlto Copley, Vanessa Haywood, Jason Cope, Louis Minnaar, David James
Running time: 112 mins

WARNING: This review contains PLOT SPOILERS

In District 9’s fictional 1980s, an alien mothership comes to a mid-air standstill over the South African city of Johannesburg, subsequently bringing an alien species to Earth – the residents of a far distant planet who soon come to make their homes in the city’s outlying scrubland, district 9. The human inhabitants of Johannesburg however become prejudiced, intolerant and aggressive towards the new alien immigrants, becoming hostile and giving them the slur of ‘Prawns’ for their Piscean appearance. This prejudice develops into outright social unrest, forcing the government to serve ‘eviction notices’ and re-house the aliens. However, as one might expect with moving an entire colony of people, the government’s plan is met with unexpected problems.

District 9 begins with documentary-style footage of the mysterious alien spacecraft coming to a halt over South Africa’s second city and talking heads discussing the social and cultural impact the alien visitors had on the country, thus presenting the film’s premise  - a plot which has many elements of a more pedestrian film but is never clichéd, having a certain quality of freshness about it. This is partly due to the distinct socio-political commentary that runs throughout the film, touching on themes of racial intolerance, discrimination and autocracy, the plethora of social problems still alive in South Africa in the aftermath of apartheid – a commentary which to this critic at least, is one of the film’s trump cards.

The other is the performance of Sharlto Copley as main protagonist Wikus van der Merwe – the head of the government led team in charge of moving the alien community from their homes in district 9 to what is effectively a concentration camp. Copley plays Wikus as essentially an everyman, but one for which there is great deal of of moral ambiguity, rendering him a more intriguing character as a result. The supporting players are also very good, in particular Louis Minnaar and David James. However, credit must go to the CG artists in charge of rendering the facial expressions and twitches of Christopher Johnson (the main ‘Prawn’ character), conveying as much emotion and inner turmoil as we see in his human (and non-CG) counterpart Wikus.

District 9’s shaky, steadi-cam driven visual style, while not being in any way innovative (seen memorably before in The Blair Witch Project and more recently in Cloverfield), seems fresh, unique and completely in keeping with tone and plot, making a perfect marriage between the two. The presentation of the Alien technology and weaponry is equally good, as is Wickus’ agony and visceral disgust at his physical transformation into one of the ‘Prawn’ species, presented in horrific detail that will have those more lily-livered audience members squirming in their seats. As thrilling as all this is however, the film loses pace in a tricky third act which plods along comparatively slowly compared to the rest of the film.

District 9’s climax sets up the possibility for a sequel naturally, in a subtle way that leaves room for the story to continue, an exciting prospect with a film this promising. A well structured, thought provoking, thrilling and thoroughly entertaining alternative to the regular Hollywood sci-fi gloss – hopefully in the future we might see a District 10.

Rating: MMMM

Director: Edward Zwick
Starring: Leonardo Di Caprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly
Running time: 143 mins

Only two years on from its original release, it may be hard for some to regard Blood Diamond as a ‘classic’, but classic it is. With its powerful mix of shocking ultra-violence, poignant scenes, liberal political message and standout performances, the film delivers on every level.

Blood Diamond begins with the dramatic and shocking assault on the village of Shenge by the Revolutionary United Front (the rebel side of the civil war), machine-gunning all in their path, murdering and maiming at will – these opening five minutes are hard to stomach, as the violence is almost too realistic. Women are raped and tortured. Children are abducted and torn from their families. Villagers are not killed have their hands cut off to prevent them voting in the Sierra Leone elections. Those with a nervous disposition or an aversion to blood, look away now. Along with seminal war films such as Saving Private Ryan, the bloodshed and gunfire in Blood Diamond is unsettling due to the fact that it really happened. What makes it even harder to watch is that we know that needless conflicts and atrocities like those witnessed in Sierra Leone are still going on.

Another element of near-the-knuckle realism is the film’s depiction of children being forcibly taken from their homes, brainwashed and indoctrinated (with shouts of “shed their blood! Shed their blood!”) and handed an AK-47. These are children, being taught to kill their parents and to relish the acts of murder they commit: making it all to easy to understand what Oxfam and Amnesty are fighting for when they say “children are born with these arms (hands), not these arms (guns)”.

The eponymous ‘blood diamond’ in question is a pink golf ball sized rock, which although on the face of it might sound impressive and beautiful, it becomes no more than an object of revulsion and disgust when we learn the lengths people go to obtain it and just how many lives pay for it. The diamond’s journey through the film forces the audience (this critic at least) to question why the hell we desire lumps of rock with which to adorn our fingers, necks and hands when people have to die in order for us to buy them.

The action sequences are gripping, terrifying, but more importantly ugly (the race out of Freetown in particular is adrenaline-charged) making a stark contrast with the majestic African landscape – the violence and hatred of the human conflict takes on a new devilry when set against the natural beauty of the continent.

Acting wise, the performances are spot-on. Leonardo DiCaprio as Danny Archer is excellent, with a fantastic accent to match. Jennifer Connelly (Maddy Bowen) is also very good, although she isn’t given much reign as either of her co-stars. However, Djimon Hounsou steals the show with a reprise of the noble humanity and power he found in Gladiator to shape a truly moving performance. Supporting roles from Michael Sheen and David Harewood (as the psychotic Captain Poison) are also very solid.

The only thing detracting from the movie is the predictable Hollywood-shoehorning of a romantic subplot between DiCaprio and Connelly, which feels gratuitous and out of place. This aside however, Blood Diamond is an intense and thought-provoking thriller that is both profound and wildly entertaining. If you take away anything from the film, let it be the conviction to boycott conflict diamonds. Make sure they are ethically sourced, and not from African war zones. If you’re not careful, you might just have blood on your hands.