First appeared in artsfuse.org
Remember Neill Blomkamp's District 9, how original, how full
of surprises it was — the Prawns, as they were derisively known, from outer
space, and their shanty town? The movie seemed a clanky, improvised, by the
seat of your pants kind of thing, low-to-no budget, and full of weird,
politically incorrect reflections about racism, privilege, and power.
My point is that whatever distinguished District 9 and made
it so special is entirely absent from Neill Blomkamp's blockbuster, Elysium.
I'd rate Elysium a DON'T SEE, or a MUST MISS, unless you just can't get enough
of guys in robotic exoskeletons whaling on each other, even if one happens to
be Matt Damon. Me, I got bored pretty quick when I realized that kind of
violence was really all that I was supposed to take home with me.