Film: District 9

[fortehlulz]

Absolutely enthralling. Loved it. Gotta love a blending of JoBurg with aliens and shit.

 

[sdripper]

I kid i kid, don't take my joke serious

 

[jam uh weezy]

as much as i enjoyed this film, the main character was a moron. it was hard for me not to start shouting at him at multiple instances in the theater.

 

[Noodle]

I've yet to see this. As a science fiction fan, I feel compelled to give this a a go in a proper theater.

I'll rate this later in the week.

-

( Hey Lane! I haven't seen you 'round these parts in many moons. )

 

[snaggletooth]

as much as i enjoyed this film, the main character was a moron. it was hard for me not to start shouting at him at multiple instances in the theater.

I dont think you got the point. He was supposed to be a bit of a geek. But some of his one-liners made me kill myself laughing. "Dont you point your fucking tenticle at me" LOL. And how the humans called the aliens prawns. But without doubt, this was the best movie Ive seen this year. Way better than Inglourious Basterds I saw the day before.

 

[jam uh weezy]

It wasn't really his mannerisms. I understood his character.

NSFW:

But certain parts, like when the head Gangster was telling him "I'm coming to get you." Why the fuck wouuldn't he shoot him too? You just blew away a small chunk of his squad, fucking finish him and save yourself the trouble in the future!! And the Colenel. FUCK THAT GUY JUST WOULD NOT DIE. so many instances that dude could have easily been taken care of. And when he had the suit, he was just runnning by letting all these guys shoot him, when he had this gnarly ass suit and could have killed them as he went.....he clearly has never played videos games.

I dunno, he just seemed to lack basic decision-making skills, that go beyond his nerdiness.

Ok, you just got sprayed with this alien goo, your nails are falling off, and you puked black shit. HMmmm, I think I'll just go home to the wife and relax. What an asshole! /end rant.

It was a good movie tho, I really liked it.

 

[Lane]

( Hey Lane! I haven't seen you 'round these parts in many moons. )

Hola, Noodle!!! I'm still around. I visit at least a few times a week.

 

[Wyld 4 X]

Very good film. I've heard so many good things about it that I was cautious not to get too hyped about it. However, it delivered and it may be the best film of the summer.

 

[hexxx]

. I was also disappointed by the overt racism(in regard to the portrayal of Nigerians)

Haven't seen the movie but yeah Nigerians are very chilled here and run all the drugs and prostitution rackets, nothing too hectic. They aren't violent and often people steal from them without consequences (even after going back later). There are a few that will slit your throat for your shoes but that can be expected for any race / nationality. If they portrayed all Nigerians as drug dealers, sadly this is by far the most common career choice out of almost every single Nigerian I've ever met - literally 100's with some I'd consider friends (exception being 1 doctor - should have asked for something special on the side to test). If they are portrayed as violent, this is grossly inaccurate for the most part.

Is this something to watch under the influence of drugs, and if so, which drugs are appropriate?

Zol, preferably jat followed by buttons.

the prawns

Those things are terrible. I mean the real ones. Imagine a mutant locust with no wings that sprays noxious black stuff at you if you get too close. They aren't eaten by too many animals because they taste terrible (apparently). I've had one in my shoe and I now check every single time. Here are some locals discussing them:
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?t=157756

Gimme aliens rather.

 

[Benefit]

They've done a stellar job marketing this as a Halo knock off with the Peter Jackson brand to lend it credibility... some people in this very thread mistakenly believed Jackson had directed the thing. Funny then when audiences step into the theater and immediately get hit with the mock documentary style, newsreel footage and the obvious parallels to apartheid that scrutinize race relations - all that before they even get around to asking themselves who the fuck makes a film in South Africa? Most of the people leaving the theater I saw it in weren't really sure what they had just seen. I secretly laughed at them from behind my veil of elitism.

This movie is like a cross between Spinal Tap and Halo. I'm amazed they were able to make it on a $30 million budget. Sensational special effects for the price, integrated beautifully into the live action. Christopher Johnson and his son succeed in eliciting real emotions, especially the son - no small task for such ugly looking creatures. Love that they cast a no name actor in the lead. He was terrific, but not everyone's going to agree. I am of the opinion that most stars don't make very good actors and I wish we lived in a world where films could consistently gross over $100 million dollars without the presence of a single A-list actor. I'd rather see that $20 million salary spent on costumes, sets and special effects.

The writing was very, very good. Excellent concept; the narrative moves well from portraying District 9 as an enclave of lawlessness, and then delving deeper past the initial prejudices. Some really clever stuff, like the cat food. What the fuck is up with cat food? I'm glad they left a lot of questions unexplained; all the important stuff was made clear enough (TheDeceased, you missed a major background point in your theory about why the aliens don't wage open war on humanity). The third act degenerates into a kind of clichéd shoot em up, but oh well, nobody's perfect.

A sequel, and there will probably be one, would certainly fuck it up because I think there was only one really good shot in this pistol. They should round out the story with short films posted online. There's probably not enough to sustain another feature without some serious Hollywood contrivances.

Yeah the Nigerians didn't come off that great, but I wouldn't call it racism; I would call it a plot device. They needed a second set of evil bad guys. Apologies to Nigeria. I'm sure they are swell fellows in real life.

 

[tambourine-man]

Off-topic, but Primer is one of my favorite movies of the last 5 years.

+1

(thedeceased: it's epic)

 

[Sykik]

omg i loved this movie. It is great....

it get's so fucking heavy in the middle, like omg, it was really heavy... then it shifts and you get a touch of comic relief and the documentary style ends...

the ending I feel was fine....

there is hints at a sequeal if this one is succesfull, which it has been, said so on imdb.com, a comment from the screenplay/director.


In my opinon one of the best sci-fi movie's ive seen in a long time. Comparable to children of men, but a completely different style. The ending was great. Really good.

Spoiler:

NSFW:

The end, is brilliant, leaves you guessing, the reason the working class didn't use weapons cause they didn't know how, or want too, they were stupid and not organized. The main character is so "the office - UK" with that annoying idiot style, but it makes him so approachable as a character and you can relate to it. The entire racism style, is so real, and I am so very glad this wasn't shot in america, sorry guys, but South Affrican accecnts>>>>american.

I hope they don't make a sequeal, and if they do I hope they put some real work into it, as a sequeal would have to answer questions that are left there to keep you thinking, it would be like making a sequeal to matrix, and we all know how that turned out. Or a sequeal to cloverfield.

It could be done, but should it be done? A no from me, unless they leave some of the mystery, not just fill us all in and leave us disapointed.

Idea for second: spoilours

NSFW:

In the point of veiw from earth, with the weapons being developed and half-prawn humans being made... with the advanced weaponary being 80% understood and usable by humans, christofer returns, and hunts down the main dude.... there is a war, and the mystery of there home world, and how they got there is slowly revealed through flashbacks, or as part of the treatment to make the main character human again. There is a diplomacy scene in the UN about the prawsn, and if they can leave.... and perhaps a war scene, with the humans trying to take down the ship and make it there own.

This way, there is still some mystery, and not just a here, this is what we want you to know, spoonfed hollywood shit you see all the time.

4.5/5 - sci-fi movie for our generation imo.

 

[Cyc]

I thought this movie was just... OK.

I was vexed on how they used the power source when it appeared that 90% of the precious liquid sprayed in the protagonist's face. Didn't they just spend 20 years collecting just enough to power the vessel up to the mothership?

I'm also wondering why the alien didn't just take him back to the home planet to have the mutation reversed. Instead the alien getting beaten over the head for no clear reason, followed by the ship being magically flown around without prior knowledge, only to have it shot down, was irritating to me. Further, what exactly was he expecting to do with the ship once he got to it? Fly back to the Prawn homeworld by himself?

Also, there's all these badass weapons hanging about in the Prawn encampment that only they can use, but they allow themselves to be ruled by Nigerian outlaws? By the looks of it, a few blasts from that electro gun could've liberated them quick snap.

I d'no.. Good movie, but the plot holes bothered me.

 

[psood0nym]

^

NSFW:

The liquid was to activate the mother ship. As to the amount: it's a mysterious alien liquid, who knows its volumetric properties under pressure? As I recall Christopher was going to cure Wikus on the mother ship, but after finding out about the medical experiments vowed to go back to the home world to get help first, meaning there would be three years before Wikus got back to earth. I think Wikus panicked and thought he'd use the tech on the ship himself to cure it (Wikus makes lots of stupid decisions (like the cell calls), as he's a stupid vile person being hunted down to be tortured and harvested from as he mutates into an alien). I assume Christopher did plan to fly back himself, yes (?). As to why the alien's didn't liberate themselves: even if they have better weapons, they're on a planet of seven billion humans that don't like them. They're feared and outnumbered with no way home.

I was thrilled with this movie, though my girlfriend was nauseated by it and found it "very unpleasant," but still "good" (she was sad and reticent for the rest of the night). Most of the women I know who have seen it found the gore factor to be too much. It's a smart, stark and uncompromising guy movie that forces people to experience a depiction of the sick shit happening in the world we've been happy to ignore (like cannibalism by rebel armies in Africa--google canniblism and Congo and U.N. report; the modern-era real horror--not uncommon systematized sex-torture homicide and cannibalism of innocent children and women by sadistic soldiers who hold magical beliefs regarding the consumption of power--is far worse than even this movie depicts), which I found weirdly satisfying. Though no doubt many think it's hyperbole, the monstrous and savage depiction of warlords in the region is, in many cases, understatement. If you're a misanthropist at heart, there's lots to love!

 

[lilczey]

i thought it was ok.

i mean at parts i felt confused n some of the time i felt like i had next part on the tip of my tounge...

n yes this film could very well happen

 

[Finder]

I d'no.. Good movie, but the plot holes bothered me.

You seemed to have missed some key points which probably made you feel like there were more plot holes than there actually were.

NSFW:

I was vexed on how they used the power source when it appeared that 90% of the precious liquid sprayed in the protagonist's face. Didn't they just spend 20 years collecting just enough to power the vessel up to the mothership?

You're assuming it was 90% of the liquid. They never explain how it works, so what's the point of speculating? I can see how this could be somewhat bothersome, however.

I'm also wondering why the alien didn't just take him back to the home planet to have the mutation reversed.

I don't think Vickers had any interest to go back to his home planet. He was under the impression he could get fixed on the ship like he was originally promised.

Instead the alien getting beaten over the head for no clear reason

He clearly doesn't want to wait three years for Christopher to come back, so he decides, rather hastily, to hi-jack the ship and fix himself. I thought this was obvious as hell.

followed by the ship being magically flown around without prior knowledge,

You've never worked anything without instructions before?

Further, what exactly was he expecting to do with the ship once he got to it? Fly back to the Prawn homeworld by himself?

I think it's pretty clear by this point he was not thinking all of his decisions through very well resulting in some exceptionally poor choices.

Also, there's all these badass weapons hanging about in the Prawn encampment that only they can use, but they allow themselves to be ruled by Nigerian outlaws? By the looks of it, a few blasts from that electro gun could've liberated them quick snap.

Lane explained it best:

You missed a major point in why The Prawn were stranded. They may have had superior technology, but they were a working class. Unorganized. Unmotivated. Not entirely bright. They were on the mothership for 3 months, starving. There was no apparent leadership.

Christopher was not of this working class. Note, his hiding of the "command" ship and his 20 years of work formulating the fuel. He was the only one to show any interest in returning home. The others were just out to survive and obtain cat food. Trading that robotic suit for 100 cans of cat food. hahaha!

 

[Cyc]

Yeah, I guess. When I watch the type of movies that focus on telling a story or following a series of events, I tend to hold the storytelling to a much higher level. This was a psychological thriller of sorts, so when I'm watching, the wheels are constantly spinning.

Movies (such as X-men for example) that follow the characters and their personal trials and relationships tend to get judged on that metric instead. It's easier to ignore the inconsistencies or forget that nagging question in the back of your mind.

 

[daysonatrain]

i was actually really disapointed in this movie, i guess i went in expecting too much. it really annoyed me how it started as a mockumentary and then almost instantly went into a "normal" filming style. also, it had way less effects than i was led to believe. not terrible, and better than the average load of crap that passes for action/whatever movies these days, but def. did not live up to what i thought it would be.

 

[MistaJeff]

4/5

It was good. I enjoyed seeing it in the theatre. It wasn't mind blowing but it had a good storyline and some great action. I saw it with my boss from my last job, he really loved it.

 

[ladyinthesky]

4/5
i heard from a lot of friends that this movie was totally different from what i think it is
i went in with an open mind and im glad i did
though it took a while to get me interested in the story, it turned out to be awesome