An extraterrestrial race forced to live in slum-like conditions on Earth suddenly finds a kindred spirit in a government agent who is exposed to their biotechnology.
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After Skynet has destroyed much of humanity in a nuclear holocaust, a group of survivors led by John Connor struggles to keep the machines from finishing the job.
Director:
McG
Stars:
Christian Bale,
Sam Worthington,
Moon Bloodgood
Originally a 30 minute portion for an anthology film, Impostor was retooled into a full length feature film. Based on the Philip K. Dick short story of the same name, it follows the lead ... See full summary »
Director:
Gary Fleder
Stars:
Gary Sinise,
Madeleine Stowe,
Vincent D'Onofrio
When terrorists threaten nuclear catastrophe, the world's only hope is to reactivate decommissioned Universal Soldier Luc Deveraux. Rearmed and reprogrammed, Deveraux must take on his ... See full summary »
Director:
John Hyams
Stars:
Jean-Claude Van Damme,
Dolph Lundgren,
Andrei Arlovski
A robotic assassin from a post-apocalyptic future travels back in time to eliminate a waitress, whose son will grow up and lead humanity in a war against machines.
Director:
James Cameron
Stars:
Arnold Schwarzenegger,
Michael Biehn,
Linda Hamilton
In 1962, the United States government enlists the help of Mutants with superhuman abilities to stop a malicious dictator who is determined to start world war III.
Director:
Matthew Vaughn
Stars:
James McAvoy,
Michael Fassbender,
Kevin Bacon
In 1982, a massive star ship bearing a bedraggled alien population, nicknamed "The Prawns," appeared over Johannesburg, South Africa. Twenty-eight years later, the initial welcome by the human population has faded. The refugee camp where the aliens were located has deteriorated into a militarized ghetto called District 9, where they are confined and exploited in squalor. In 2010, the munitions corporation, Multi-National United, is contracted to forcibly evict the population with operative Wikus van der Merwe in charge. In this operation, Wikus is exposed to a strange alien chemical and must rely on the help of his only two new 'Prawn' friends. Written by
Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)
The MNU headquarter buildings shown in numerous scenes throughout the film are in reality the Carlton Centre complex belonging to South African state transport company Transnet. The shorter of the two buildings (shaped as an upside down Y) is actually the former Carlton Hotel which was mothballed in 1997 due to low occupancy. The taller structure with the CGI helicopter landing pads and MNU logo on the roof is the primary 50-storey building of the Carlton Centre complex and is known as Carlton Centre which is the tallest building in Africa. See more »
Goofs
When Wikus is first admitted to hospital and is having his arm checked, it is quite clear that he has a hairy chest under his vest. Afterwards, he is seen with his shirt off and is hairless. Because the surgeons are planning on opening his chest to remove his heart, it is likely that his chest was shaved in preparation for the procedure. Another reason may be, due to the changes his body is undertaking (fingernails falling off, etc.), his hair may have fallen out. See more »
Quotes
Wikus Van De Merwe:
I would never have any kind of... pornographic activity with a fokkin' creature!
See more »
Crazy Credits
The end credits are back to front, with the actors names on the left and character names on the right. As opposed to most films where its the other way round. See more »
I do not give out ratings of 10 lightly, but here it is - the first film in years that has been deserving of the rating.
Neill Blomkamp brings to screens a fantastic, gritty, realistic piece of science fiction with District 9. Not since Ridley Scott's "Blade Runner", John Carpenter's "The Thing", or James Cameron's "Aliens" have we seen a science fiction film with a vision of this caliber. After viewing District 9, it will be clear to one and all why Peter Jackson put so much faith in Blomkamp and took him under his wing as protégé.
Abandoning the usual settings of Hollywood sci-fi and placing us in the harsh slums of South Africa, we are given an original piece of work which takes risks in the way it tells its story. Not only does it go against the expectations of audiences who have been trained to expect mediocrity from their sci-fi, it goes above and beyond the call of duty to provide us with spectacle as well as something to ponder after we've downed our popcorn.
There is, thankfully, not an overused, overexposed celebrity in sight, and every unknown face in the film gives a solid performance. The aliens themselves, brilliantly realized with top notch CGI even manage to make us feel something, only rivaled by Gollum from "Lord of the Rings".
District 9 has so much to like. It's spectacular, darkly funny, entertaining and thoughtful all at the same time, and it's all done on a meager $30m budget. There is true talent on show here. If only there were more films like this, the world of cinema would be a more interesting place.
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I do not give out ratings of 10 lightly, but here it is - the first film in years that has been deserving of the rating.
Neill Blomkamp brings to screens a fantastic, gritty, realistic piece of science fiction with District 9. Not since Ridley Scott's "Blade Runner", John Carpenter's "The Thing", or James Cameron's "Aliens" have we seen a science fiction film with a vision of this caliber. After viewing District 9, it will be clear to one and all why Peter Jackson put so much faith in Blomkamp and took him under his wing as protégé.
Abandoning the usual settings of Hollywood sci-fi and placing us in the harsh slums of South Africa, we are given an original piece of work which takes risks in the way it tells its story. Not only does it go against the expectations of audiences who have been trained to expect mediocrity from their sci-fi, it goes above and beyond the call of duty to provide us with spectacle as well as something to ponder after we've downed our popcorn.
There is, thankfully, not an overused, overexposed celebrity in sight, and every unknown face in the film gives a solid performance. The aliens themselves, brilliantly realized with top notch CGI even manage to make us feel something, only rivaled by Gollum from "Lord of the Rings".
District 9 has so much to like. It's spectacular, darkly funny, entertaining and thoughtful all at the same time, and it's all done on a meager $30m budget. There is true talent on show here. If only there were more films like this, the world of cinema would be a more interesting place.