My Review: Elysium (7/10)

"I promise you, one day I'll take you to Elysium."

Elysium is Neill Blomkamp's sophomore sci-fi film after his critically acclaimed debut with District 9. Expectations were high considering that film was a unique experience in that it blended some great sci-fi visuals with a social commentary about the apartheid movement in South Africa. District 9 worked as a modern day parable. Sadly Elysium doesn't live up to those high standards he set in his previous movie, but I still have to admit I had a fun time with this film. I think people would've enjoyed this film a little more if they didn't know it was directed by the same person who brought us the groundbreaking District 9. Elysium is far from being a great film because it is very predictable and generic. There were no twists or surprises here, but I enjoyed the CGI and the performances from some of the cast members (sorry Jodie Foster, I can't include you here). Elysium works as a blockbuster as long as you don't think too much about the plot. Unlike in District 9, the social commentary doesn't work too well here because the characterizations were extremely over the top (Jodie Foster could've toned it down a bit). Blomkamp was trying to criticize the immigration issue and the difference in privileges between the rich and poor. However, I felt that as an action sci-fi film it kept me entertained despite the predictability so I still had a good time with Elysium.

The film takes place in 2154 where the planet has suffered from overpopulation and the wealthy have decided to live off in a space station called Elysium. The wealthy have access to a very comfortable life and state of the art equipment such as these medical capsules that heal you in a matter of seconds. Max (Matt Damon) has been dreaming of living in Elysium but his social condition doesn't allow it. He's committed several crimes in the past, but now he's decided to clean up his act and work at a local armor factory. After an incident with some droids, he runs into his childhood friend, Frey (Alice Braga), who's working as a nurse. Max isn't the only one who dreams of being able to go to Elysium. Several thousands of people have searched for a way to get a ticket (especially the sick who want to get healed in those capsules), but Officer Delacourt Rhodes (Jodie Foster) enforces the anti-immigration laws with a stern hand and will stop at nothing to ensure the safety of the wealthy class. When illegal crafts try to enter Elysium she doesn't hesitate in using force to stop them. One of her best agents is Kruger (Sharlto Copley) who happens to be psychotic as well and loves to use violence. When Max suffers an accident at work he is forced to find a way to Elysium and will stop at nothing to get there. 

I enjoyed Matt Damon's lead performance here and it was good to see Copley teaming up with Blomkamp again. The face off between these two characters was probably my favorite scene in this film. Elysium isn't the best sci-fi film of the year, but it still is an enjoyable flick if you go into it with low expectations. The action is pretty fast paced and at times the slow motion action scenes look like a video game. Blomkamp is a young and talented writer/director who will probably continue having success in the genre. Again I think the main weakness of the film was its overselling of the social commentary, but the premise and the action scenes lift this film from other formulaix sci-fi action films. I guess that the wealthy habitants of Elysium would've been better off if they simply offered their employees a better healthcare system. The lovely Alice Braga should also go over her roles a little as to try not to come up with a same ending again because the closure was almost identical to I Am Legend.

My Review: District 9 (8/10)

¨When dealing with aliens, try to be polite, but firm. And always remember that a smile is cheaper than a bullet¨

(8/10) District 9 was the suprise Summer hit and it was also a great film debut for director Neill Blomkamp who was able to make one of the best sci-fi movies of the last decade. This movie had it all: great special effects, good action scenes, character development (not just of the humans but of the aliens as well), and most importantly an original plot which served as a socio-political satire on descrimination, genocide, and corporate greed. I think almost anyone could understand the message that the director was trying to get across with this sci-fi movie. He criticised how humans treat others as inferior to them and how that hatred develops amongst the different groups simply because of cultural differences. The aliens were just an excellent way to get this message across without being too preachy and at the same time making us realize how fragile we are towards others who we cant relate too. Even the hero of this movie was depicted as a person with several flaws who made very unethical decisions, but changed once he was able to relate too and identify with the aliens. I was waiting a long time to get the chance to see this movie because of the excellent word of mouth it was receiving and I wasn`t disapointed once I finally got to see it.

The movie was filmed in a documentary style (like The Blair Witch Project or Cloverfield) and that was a great addition to the film because it only gave it a more realistic and interesting take of the aliens and their lifestyle. The protagonist was Wikus, played by Sharlto Copley, who worked for a big corporation in charge of evicting the aliens and forcing them to live in concentration-like camps. These camps soon became slums where the aliens lived in very precaurious situations and were looked down upon by the humans. Wikus is not your typical action hero, he is very unethical and treats these aliens very poorly and tries to manipulate them because he sees them as dumb and inferior beings. It is not untill he accidently splatters some bio-hazard material all over his face that we see him go through a Kafka like transformation and he also begins to see the aliens differently now and relate to them. Comparisons to the 80s movie The Fly cant be missed here as we see Wikus change not only in form, but in character as well and even becomes likeable by the end of the film. He forms an unlikely duo with one of the aliens, Cristopher and in this relationship we get to see the aliens in a different light as well.

You have to give Peter Jackson a lot of credit for producing a movie like this with a first time director like Blomkamp, but the result was great. The director counted with Jackson`s blessing and was able to put into use all the resources he was given delivering a great combination of special effects and fun action scenes that lived up to the standards of Summer movies with good performances from the cast and an original plot. If this was Blomkamp`s first movie as a director I cannot wait to see what he has in store for us as he continues to mature in his profession. His name will definitely be one I will be looking forward to in movies to come. A lot of credit has to be given to Sharlto Copley`s performance as well because this movie couldn`t have worked without him. He did an excellent job at depicting such an unorthodox and complex heroe who went through a range of mood changes and made the audience hate him during some points of the movie and love him at others. This is a must see film that is more than just an action sci-fi movie, it is also a smart social-political satire that will be remebered for years to come.