District 9 (2009)

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.

Director:

Neill Blomkamp

Writers:

Neill Blomkamp, Terri Tatchell

Stars:

Sharlto Copley, David James, Jason Cope

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 29 wins & 109 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sharlto Copley	...	Wikus Van De Merwe
Jason Cope	...	Grey Bradnam - UKNR Chief Correspondent / Christopher Johnson
Nathalie Boltt	...	Sarah Livingstone - Sociologist
Sylvaine Strike	...	Dr Katrina McKenzie
Elizabeth Mkandawie	...	Interviewee
John Sumner	...	Les Feldman - MIL Engineer
William Allen Young	...	Dirk Michaels
Greg Melvill-Smith	...	Interviewer
Nick Blake	...	Francois Moraneu - CIV Engineer Team
Morena Busa Sesatsa	...	Interviewee
Themba Nkosi	...	Interviewee
Mzwandile Nqoba	...	Interviewee
Barry Strydom	...	Interviewee
Jed Brophy	...	James Hope - Police Officer
Louis Minnaar	...	Piet Smit

Storyline

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.

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Plot Keywords:

alien | prawn | africa | ghetto | refugee | 

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Taglines:

Support non-human rights. Everyone deserves equality.

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Genres:

Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for bloody violence and pervasive language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [France]

Country:

South Africa USA New Zealand Canada

Language:

English Nyanja Afrikaans Zulu Xhosa Southern Sotho

Release Date:

14 August 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sector 9

Filming Locations:

South Africa

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$37,354,308 (USA) (14 August 2009)

Gross:

$115,646,235 (USA) (30 October 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

TriStar Pictures, Block / Hanson, WingNut Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sharlto Copley ad-libbed all his lines during the "documentary" sequences. Copley and Jason Cope improvised their dialogue in other scenes.

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Goofs

When the soldiers first cut their way into the alien's ship, the plug they remove from the wall has edges that are the wrong shape to fit the hole it came from.

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Quotes

Wikus Van De Merwe: [while the 'anti-abortion team' burns down the shack with the alien eggs in it] You hear that? That's a popping sound that you're hearing. It's almost like a popcorn.

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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.

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Connections

Spoofed in District 69 (2010)

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Soundtracks

10111
Performed by Molemi
Written by Motlapele Morule
Courtesy of 3rd Element Entertainment

User Reviews

Extraordinary Surprise

I have to say in advance, that I didn't hear anything about this movie, there was no hype for me, I'm simply interested in good SciFi. D9 is in a way a SciFi Slumdog Millionaire; if you allow yourself being caught you are totally in. Some months ago I hated Cloverfield for making my head aching and boring me. I hated Star Trek for disappointing me with being more childish (and thereby being so seriously) than Star Wars. Now I love District 9 for surprising me with a good idea and a subversive view. SciFi is rare, because it's expensive. Good SciFi is one of the rarest things, because the massive amounts of money spent must flow back to the investors with profit, and they think, that only mainstream and infantile movies work in that way. D9 was cheap, compared to other top movies of the genre, and so the producer had not many risks to bear.

So the author had the opportunity to use his plot to show us some of the uglier sides of us, by unmasking common accepted behavior, preoccupation, condemnation and greed as essential (and damnable) parts of our daily life.

There is one key scene (for me) where Witus, the main character, describes how Alien fetuses are destroyed resp. burned with flamethrowers and make noises like popcorn during this process. It is obvious that those people don't think that the "Shrimps" are worthy beings, despite - or because - they live with them since more than two decades. In this moment you see how easy it is to treat somebody as sub-human.

Another key scene is at the beginning, when they learn that the Aliens are poor and weak (and dumb) beings. After the first amazement there is no benefit from the encounter, no wonders are coming from them, they simply have to be fed. They are a burden and primarily useless. So there is no need to try to understand and treat them in an appropriate way ?

But i don't want to over-interpret this movie. It's definitively not only for "intelligent people", but for people who are bored from predictable US mainstream SciFi.

And yes, D9 is political incorrect. The Nigerians are shown like real Idiots who actually think, eating Aliens could make them mighty and powerful, even after this didn't work during the past 20 years. They are villains, cat food dealers like drug dealers, there is no positive aspect in their appearance. It's a cliché, and maybe the author worked up some personal reluctance. But the story needed a color equation for the badness of all those white guys.

I admit that the part which is critical of society is not the real main part of the movie. The movie wants to suggest that, but the main part is the action shootout in the MNU center and the slums. Although this is a bit too long and too tension (= box office) oriented, it intensifies the impression of the rest of the movie.

I for myself rated back from 10 to 9 because of the 90% happy end, according to my mom who always said "good movie, bad ending" ;-)