District 9 (2009)

User Rating:

8.4/10   

Director:

Neill Blomkamp

Writers:

Neill Blomkamp (screenplay) &
Terri Tatchell (screenplay)

Release Date:

14 August 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

You are not welcome here.

Plot:

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.

Plot Keywords:

Alien | Prawn | Government | Johannesburg South Africa | Refugee Camp

US Showtimes:

Culver Plaza Theatres

2:40pm | 7:20

(personalize)

Cast

Sharlto Copley	...	Wikus Van De Merwe
Jason Cope	...	Grey Bradnam - UKNR Chief Correspondent
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

MPAA:

Rated R for bloody violence and pervasive language.

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA | New Zealand

Language:

English | Nyanja | Afrikaans

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby | DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #45478) | UK:15 | New Zealand:R16 | Ireland:15A | Australia:MA (2009) | Australia:MA | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario) | South Korea:18 | Canada:18A (British Columbia) | Finland:K-15 | Singapore:M18 (cut) | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) (cut) | India:A | Germany:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Sweden:15 | Iceland:16 | Mexico:B15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Argentina:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:16 | Brazil:14

Filming Locations:

Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Company:

TriStar Pictures

Trivia:

A large number of actual South African weapons were used in the film. Quite a few of them were designed by Tony Neophytou and are marketed by Denel. This includes the NTW-20 20mm anti-materiel rifle, white painted CR-21 bullpup assault rifles and a Neopup PAW-20 hand-held grenade launcher. Kobus uses this when he shoots the battle suit in the back.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: The space ship covering a greater part of the city skyline manages to float in the air for 20 years without fuel. This defies Newton's Third Law, as it would need fuel or power to oppose or equalize the 9.8m/s/s gravitational pull. However, it is only stated that the ship needs fuel to make the journey back to the home planet. It can be assumed that it has some automated system keeping it floating.

Quotes:

Wikus Van De Merwe: [Wikus is obviously falling sick] Okay, let's cut some cake!
[Wikus begins to hallucinate and experience distortion in hearing his own speech, slowing things down considerably]
Wikus Van De Merwe: C-U-T S-O-M-E C-A-K-E!

Movie Connections:

References Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Soundtrack:

Hijack Stories

Wow

I caught an early screening of this movie last night. I went into it with high expectations considering the high ratings it has been getting already. My expectations were not high enough however because this film exceeded my them in every way possible.

I will not go far into detail because I would prefer to not spoil anything. This is unlike any sci-fi we have seen in years. Forget Terminator 3 and 4, forget the AVP movies, forget all those laughable sci-fi movies, this film is what we have been waiting for. An original idea, an original concept, brilliantly executed, great CGI, good acting, it just has it all. We have seen many aliens come to earth movies, but this is different, I will not say why though. That is for you to find out when you see it, which I HIGHLY recommend you do.

This movie, quality-wise, matches up with the popular Sci-Fi films we love. The original Alien, the original Predator, The Matrix, Star Wars, etc. While I enjoyed those ones more because they are classics, this one clearly meets the standards we expect today when it comes to quality. A big driving force behind this, in my opinion, is the fact that high esteemed Peter Jackson is behind this project as the producer. After seeing his masterful Lord of the Rings saga, anyone can see that he knows what he is doing.

As far as movies for this year, this is definitely top 5 so far on my list (Up, Star Trek, 500 Days of Summer, HP6, and District 9). Thank you Jackson and Hollywood for finally producing the best Sci-Fi in years. If this movie does not make its way to IMDb top 250 then I will be in awe.

See this movie!