I saw District 9...

[No One Jones]

On another note. This movie accomplished what all the leftists I've ever met have never been able to do. It made me feel sympathetic towards a minority. A fictional, non-human minority. Growing up in NYC I learned all about civil rights and I didn't care about anyone one of them and I still don't. It was never my problem. But watching this kind of federal/corporate intertwined oppression in a fictional scenario made me sympathize.

 

[Schlorgan]

I?m happy for you.
it?s one of the only original Sci-Fi movies this year so be happy.

I don't see how it's "orginal". I've seen things like this before.

quick comparison:
latest star trek: familiar cast as a bunch of newbies on the good old enterprise. movie about nothing.

latest transformers: a movie about a college kid who has robots for friends. movie about nothing.

district 9: visitors from an alien world are treated in the typical human fashion of "denigrate what we don't understand" and are forced to live in ghettos. a figure of authority will come to terms with this by becoming one of them and in the end sympathize with the visitors. movie about something

action movies with rich subtext are a precious rarity

I agree with that, and I haven't even seen it. And c'mon! Movie Bob liked it, it's good

 

[oliveira8]

I liked it but it was a bit dark for my tastes. Movies are meant to be an escapist medium; why make them depressing?

Same can be said for every type of entertainment. They all an escapist medium. Some people want more than Boom fests.

 

[awsome117]

...The aliens couldn't get on the ship. The fuel was to power the control module, the part that fell off the ship. I know, they used a tractor beam, but I guess the computers in the module couldn't run without the fuel.

That part does make sense. And your opinion is your opinion, I don't see any reason to dislike it, but you're just saying you didn't find it perfect. I didn't either, it left me craving some more, but diff'rent strokes.

Yes, but the fuel is from there technology. Human tech is worthless to them. So, for three months, they couldn't find the amount of fuel(which was a small amount if you think about it) on their own ship, but they could find it in a human slum?

Like I said, maybe I just looked at it the wrong way.

 

[G1eet]

Why be hating on a Blommkamp movie?

 

[awsome117]

Why be hating on a Blommkamp movie?

I don't hate it, I liked it. It was a good movie. I just felt it wasn't as great as everyone said it would be.

 

[Ilovechocolatemilk]

I know some like it, but only one that I can think of at this moment, and that is Terra(and yes, you may have noticed I've said this a lot, but it's the only movie I can think of at the moment).

http://www.starpulse.com/movie/Battle_for_Terra/V360980/0/5/

Terra is nothing like District 9 from the looks of it. First of all, that movie deals with a fictional alien civilization that has conquered earth long after humans have departed (similar to Planet of the Apes if anything) and it is humans who are the underdog, not the aliens. You're also comparing a kid's movie to a much grittier, more realistic movie like District 9, meaning there is absolutely no way that the former could deal with half of the issues that the latter covered. I still fail to see how District 9 is not one of the most original movies that has come out in a while, but I am open for anyone to prove me wrong.


Minor spoilers ahead, stop reading now if you haven't seen the movie

Spoiler

District 9 makes a really good point of showing all the bureaucratic bullshit imposed on third-world countries by first-world governments/corporations, along with all the gang violence and tyranny imposed by the endemic gang culture of said third-world countries. It is, I think, one of the most realistic portrayals of what might happen should an actual alien civilization wind up on our planet without murderous intentions (which seems to be the premise of every other movie out there involving aliens). Even if you take away the aliens, you still have a strong film about human nature and the complex relationships between different echelons of society.

 

[G1eet]

Why be hating on a Blommkamp movie?

I don't hate it, I liked it. It was a good movie. I just felt it wasn't as great as everyone said it would be.

Well,

1) it was a movie with a thirty million dollar budget, and it looked and felt better than another particular movie with seven times that budget.

2) it was more original than most movies that came out this summer, like:

Land of the Lost
Transformers 2
Harry Potter 6
Ice Age
Angels & Demons
Night at the Museum 2
Terminator: Salvation
Star Trek
Taking of Pelham 123
My Sister's Keeper
GI Joe
Julie & Julia
Time Traveler's Wife

All of these films were either a sequel, an adaptation of a book/play, or a reboot of bygone movie or toy series. These films did relatively well, even though they weren't technically original.

District 9 is an original idea. Ergo, it does well. And it's great in terms of creativeness. Not to mention that Peter Jackson's own sfx studio, Weta Workshop, turned down District 9 in leiu of James Cameron's "Avatar".

 

[Gxas]

I can't. But not the point. I felt it wasn't orginal when people claimed it to be.

No, that is the point. Nothing is original nowadays. Everything has been done. You expected a completely original, never been done concept, and were let down because you bought into the hype that surrounded it. I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy the movie, but that is your fault. You let yourself down by thinking it was going to be original.

 

[Ilovechocolatemilk]

Yes, it's good, but it didn't seem as good as everyone made it out to be. And that doesn't explain how it's orginal.

Ok, if you don't think it's original, name ONE movie that's similar to District 9.

I can't even think of a single movie involving humans and aliens where the aliens were portrayed in a sympathetic light, let alone one that has a rich allegorical layering like District 9.

AlienNation.
Thank you!

Looked it up and to be fair, it is a good comparison to District 9. A reviewer, however, states the following:

"This is like a lot of movies where the premise is more interesting than the plot. The arrival of the "Newcomers" seems to be a metaphor for the immigrant experience in America, but this is not followed up. It goes from a sci-fi movie into a cop-buddy movie, and it's really not bad on that level. It seems, however that the filmmakers passed on an opportunity to make a really significant commentary. One wishes for the film that got away. "

If this is true, then District 9 IS the "film that got away" made real. The problem with discussing originality in fictional works is that no single work of fiction is entirely original. Even "highly original works" like Lord of the Rings still drew inspiration from various medieval folklore. Fiction cannot be held to the same standards of originality that governs scientific innovation. At best, one can say a given work is "more original" than other works of that type and in that sense, District 9 is one of the most original, well-executed movies I've seen of its kind.

 

[CodiferL]

I've seen it twice and it's by far the most original movie with aliens-on-earth I've ever seen. Freaking amazing.

 

[awsome117]

I can't. But not the point. I felt it wasn't orginal when people claimed it to be.

No, that is the point. Nothing is original nowadays. Everything has been done. You expected a completely original, never been done concept, and were let down because you bought into the hype that surrounded it. I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy the movie, but that is your fault. You let yourself down by thinking it was going to be original.

Yes, it was my fault. I bought into the hype. I thought it was going to be great. I still enjoyed the movie, I just felt it wasn't as good as I thought it would be.

 

[PirateKing]

After I gave it time to sink in I realized that I really liked it. The guy who played Wickus(I can't remember his name) has a bright career ahead of him (as long as he can avoid selling out).
That movie also had the concept of a climax figured out. The final battle was much better than any of the other battles.
It was exciting and heart wrenching and...gory as Hell. It had the best mech suit I've ever seen in a non Japanese film. So, if only for that, District 9 gets a big recommendation from me.

 

[DigitalSushi]

Yes, it's good, but it didn't seem as good as everyone made it out to be. And that doesn't explain how it's orginal.

Ok, if you don't think it's original, name ONE movie that's similar to District 9.

I can't even think of a single movie involving humans and aliens where the aliens were portrayed in a sympathetic light, let alone one that has a rich allegorical layering like District 9.

AlienNation.
Thank you!

Looked it up and to be fair, it is a good comparison to District 9. A reviewer, however, states the following:

"This is like a lot of movies where the premise is more interesting than the plot. The arrival of the "Newcomers" seems to be a metaphor for the immigrant experience in America, but this is not followed up. It goes from a sci-fi movie into a cop-buddy movie, and it's really not bad on that level. It seems, however that the filmmakers passed on an opportunity to make a really significant commentary. One wishes for the film that got away. "

If this is true, then District 9 IS the "film that got away" made real. The problem with discussing originality in fictional works is that no single work of fiction is entirely original. Even "highly original works" like Lord of the Rings still drew inspiration from various medieval folklore. Fiction cannot be held to the same standards of originality that governs scientific innovation. At best, one can say a given work is "more original" than other works of that type and in that sense, District 9 is one of the most original, well-executed movies I've seen of its kind.

do this to your other comment

Spoiler

blahblahblah [/*spoiler*] without the stars, thats what you do to stop the spoilification.

To be fair it sounds like you love District 9 a bit too much (which by all means, great, i'm glad you enjoyed it) but you're cherry picking a mildly negative comment to bolster your case, others could do the same with District 9.

Alien Nation was a film about racism and prejudice, it was deep especially when it swam with 80's high concept movies.

 

[Julianking93]

It was fucking awesome and it's tied with Inglorious Basterds for my favorite movie of the year.

 

[awsome117]

It was fucking awesome and it's tied with Inglorious Basterds for my favorite movie of the year.

I'm glad you liked it. Hopefully I'll get to see IB before summer ends.

 

[Julianking93]

It was fucking awesome and it's tied with Inglorious Basterds for my favorite movie of the year.

I'm glad you liked it. Hopefully I'll get to see IB before summer ends.

If you like Quentin Tarantino and a good revenge story, you'll love Inglorious Basterds.

 

[Ilovechocolatemilk]

To be fair it sounds like you love District 9 a bit too much (which by all means, great, i'm glad you enjoyed it) but you're cherry picking a mildly negative comment to bolster your case, others could do the same with District 9.

Alien Nation was a film about racism and prejudice, it was deep especially when it swam with 80's high concept movies.

I'll take your word for it since I haven't seen Alien Nation. It's funny that you mention that I "love District 9 a bit too much" since after watching it, I simply felt that it was a really good movie that deserved the praise it received. It's not like I'm going to join the District 9 fan club or anything; internet debates have a tendency to make people polarized on the most trivial of issues. For me, I was just upset that someone would write off an entire movie because it didn't meet their flawed litmus test of "originality."

I suppose all this has to do with a simple fact of life; it is far easier for someone to criticize a work for its flaws than it is to appreciate it for its beauty/depth. Yahtzee himself admits this from time to time in his reviews. Even the best works have something that can arguably be considered a flaw (for example, the pacing in Akira Kurosawa films) but those flaws are minor compared to what the work achieves as a whole. All I'm saying is appreciate District 9 for what it is-- of course, it is virtually impossible to defend such a position on the internet without becoming a fanatical zealot defending the honor of said movie.

 

[awsome117]

To be fair it sounds like you love District 9 a bit too much (which by all means, great, i'm glad you enjoyed it) but you're cherry picking a mildly negative comment to bolster your case, others could do the same with District 9.

Alien Nation was a film about racism and prejudice, it was deep especially when it swam with 80's high concept movies.

I'll take your word for it since I haven't seen Alien Nation. It's funny that you mention that I "love District 9 a bit too much" since after watching it, I simply felt that it was a really good movie that deserved the praise it received. It's not like I'm going to join the District 9 fan club or anything; internet debates have a tendency to make people polarized on the most trivial of issues. For me, I was just upset that someone would write off an entire movie because it didn't meet their flawed litmus test of "originality."

I suppose all this has to do with a simple fact of life; it is far easier for someone to criticize a work for its flaws than it is to appreciate it for its beauty/depth. Even Yahtzee admits this from time to time in his reviews. Even the best works have something that can arguably be considered a flaw (for example, the pacing in Akira Kurosawa films) but those flaws are minor compared to what the work achieves as a whole. All I'm saying is appreciate District 9 for what it is-- of course, it is virtually impossible to defend such a position on the internet without becoming a fanatical zealot defending the honor of said movie.

I didn't "write it off" because of "orginality". I just felt it wasn't as good as everyone said it to be. The orginallity I would have ignored if everyone didn't say "the most orginal thing".

Like I said, I didn't hate it, I just didn't think it was great.

 

[awsome117]

It was fucking awesome and it's tied with Inglorious Basterds for my favorite movie of the year.

I'm glad you liked it. Hopefully I'll get to see IB before summer ends.

If you like Quentin Tarantino and a good revenge story, you'll love Inglorious Basterds.

Yep. The only trouble is, finding time(and money) to see the movie...