District 9 (Single-Disc Edition)
by Neill Blomkamp
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Actor: David James, Jason Cope, Nathalie Boltt, Sharlto Copley, Sylvaine StrikeDirector: Neill Blomkamp
Brand: SON
Writer: Neill Blomkamp
Producer: Bill Block
Producer: Carolynne Cunningham
Producer: Elliot Ferwerda
Producer: Ken Kamins
Producer: Michael S. Murphey
Writer: Terri Tatchell
DVD: Region Code 99
Audio: English (Unknown); Cantonese (Subtitled); English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Korean (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language); French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 1.85:1
Running Time: 112 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-12-22
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
DVD Reviews of District 9 (Single-Disc Edition)
DVD Review: A Theme So Obvious that Critics Seem to Have Missed It.
Summary: 5 Stars
Neill Blomkamp's ambition to do something different with the timehonored alien contact theme made "District 9" the best science fiction film of the decade. He wanted to make a movie in which aliens visit the developing world instead of a First World metropolis. And he wanted the aliens to be neither conquerors nor enlightened idealists come to set humans on the right path. Blomkamp grew up in South Africa, so he chose Johannesburg. He lived there during the Apartheid years, so he placed the action in Soweto and, with co-writer Teri Tatchell, constructed a plot inspired by the civil unrest that inevitably occurs when the upwardly mobile segments of society must face the violence and destitution that plagues the populations of their slums, townships, favellos, shantytowns, refugee camps, etc. and spills over into middle class lives.
Twenty years ago, a spacecraft came to rest over Johannesburg. When months pass with no action, humans force their way inside. What they find is horrific: A million aliens starving, aimless, and apparently unable to operate the craft. The aliens are evacuated to a holding camp, District 9, where they are fed, but it is not clear what should be done with them. Nicknamed "Prawns" due to their crustacean-like appearance, the aliens seem to require leaders in order to function, like an insect colony, and their leadership perished in whatever catastrophe befell the spaceship. Now they are violent, disorganized, and a menace to society. It is determined that the aliens cannot integrate with humans. Their ship won't work, so they can't leave. The private military Multi-National United (MNU) that has been hired to contain the aliens now has the job of evicting them from District 9 to a camp farther removed from the human population.
The man in charge of the operation is Wikus van de Merwe (Sharlto Copley), a bureaucrat of little talent who owes his career to his domineering father-in-law, MNU's CEO. As we might expect, the removal of the aliens does not go off without a hitch. It turns out to be an especially big hitch for Wikus van der Merwe. Like all good science fiction, "District 9" is allegory. We might think we recognize the theme right away, but it turns out not to be as simple or clichéd as it first appeared. That's what makes "District 9" a great movie. Many a Third World Marxist have made films about populations who live on the fringes of society in destitution, unable to put themselves on the road to prosperity, so instead fall victim to cycles of violence. Those films are simplistic to the point of disingenuous. They don't intend to make people think, but simply to scold the bourgeoisie. They're unwatchable.
"District 9" is an action movie. It has a lot of sheer entertainment value. That helps. But where it departs from the standard impoverished immigrant population versus middle class xenophobia paradigm is daring: Neill Blomkamp dares to make everyone unlikable. In forcing the audience to sympathize with the characters' situation, not with the characters themselves, "District 9" turns the tables, not just on conventions of filmmaking, but on moral laziness.
Wikus van de Merwe is not an Everyman that Harrison Ford or Bruce Willis would play, a man who looks ordinary but takes on superhuman resilience and lofty ideals when faced with adversity. They are what the audience likes to imagine themselves to be. Wikus is a sniveling bureaucrat. He's a nice enough guy. But he's selfish. He couldn't care less about the ethics of his job, as long as he collects a paycheck and goes home to the wife he adores. He's a real Everyman. He's not what the audience wants to be; he's what the audience is. He's not admirable, but he is so real that everyone can understand how he must feel. And everyone can understand that he shouldn't be treated the way he is, even though Wikus would (and does) turn a blind eye to that kind of treatment if someone else were on the receiving end.
The Prawns are victims of countless human and civil rights violations. But the human populace has genuine reason to fear them. Whatever they might have been when they had leadership, without it they run riot. They steal; they kill; they don't like humans. They cannot be blamed for disliking humans, but neither could they realistically be integrated into human society. They're not sympathetic. They appear no better than their human oppressors, maybe worse. The alien called "Christopher" has some qualities that we might admire, but the Prawns generally do not. But we can sympathize with their situation, all while disliking them. They're very far from their own culture, without the means they need to function productively, and they are being treated like vermin. "District 9" doesn't let the audience off the hook for thinking that we can throw the concept of rights out the window because we fear someone, no matter how justified that fear may be.
Maybe I am alone in this, but I am disturbed by the facile morality-by-emotional-response that I see so often. Writers and filmmakers have the idea that the way to make people examine the ethics of a situation or to understand another point of view is to make the "other" population like ourselves. If we can see ourselves in them, then they must be worthy of ethical treatment, or their point of view may be worthy of consideration. Films are certainly successful in employing this technique, and people do have a natural "like me" or "unlike me" reaction when confronted with something new, but that doesn't mean it is an acceptable standard for behavior. If people can't figure out how to act ethically when faced with someone they don't like or can't understand, we have a serious problem. That's not rational or moral behavior; it's self-indulgence. "District 9" doesn't take the easy way out. It gets the audience to come down on the side of ethics when faced with a muddy situation and a dangerous and incomprehensible enemy.
"District 9" presents itself in the style of a documentary made after the events take place. It departs from documentary mode into a more cinematic style for action that the documentary crew obviously wouldn't see. But a lot of the film is handheld, so if a shaky camera makes you nauseated, you will need Dramamine. I did not find "District 9" to be as shaky as "The Bourne Supremacy" or any number of low-budget "independent" films. At least there is a reason for the shakiness, as the documentary crew is tromping around the slums. I also liked the fact that the violent action seemed plausible (not considering the alien technology), as it is not unheard of for military or heavily armed police to enter slums, nor for the residents to be heavily armed. It's a welcome respite from trucks and airplanes engaged in high speed chases on the freeway or downtown office buildings exploding with pretty fireballs perfectly synchronized to the score.
The DVD (Sony 2009 single disc): Bonus features are 22 deleted scenes, one featurette, and an audio commentary. "The Alien Agenda: A Filmmaker's Log" (33 min) has 3 chapters, one about pre-production and the concept that became "District 9" (7 ½ min), the second about shooting the film (16 min), and the third about post-production, including sound design and editing (9 min). Director Neill Blomkamp, producer Peter Jackson, co-writer Teri Tatchell, the creative crew, and cast are interviewed. Neill Blomkamp's audio commentary is constant and addresses the sociopolitical themes and how they relate to South Africa. He also talks about locations, filming, a lot of technical detail of both big and small elements of the film. Subtitles for t he film are available in English SDH and French. Dubbing is available in French and English DVS.
Description of District 9 (Single-Disc Edition)
Synopsis: Produced by Peter JacksonItem Type: DVD Movie
Item Rating: R
Street Date: 12/22/09
Wide Screen: yes
Director Cut: no
Special Edition: no
LanguageENGLISH
Foreign Film: no
Subtitlesno
Dubbed: no
Full Frame: no
Re-Release: no
Packaging: Sleeve Please note: This supplier will be closed on 11/24, 11/25, 12/26, 1/2 for the holidays. The shipping cut off is 12/10 to try and have the products delivered by Christmas.
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