You Say Prawn, I Say Shrimp

District 9 was the second movie I saw last Saturday (immediately after Ponyo), the third movie I saw that weekend (I saw The Time Traveler's Wife the night before), and the ninth movie I saw at The Rave over the last three weeks (but the movie madness is now officially over). And I liked it.

I had been anticipating this movie since producer Peter Jackson, director Neill Blomkamp, and main actor Sharlto Copley showed us some exclusive footage at the San Diego Comic Con on July 24th, and maybe that is why I was a little bit disappointed with the film. It was a good movie, and I enjoyed it a lot, but I guess it wasn't as great as I thought it was going to be. Once again (and this is something we've discussed in the past), the expectations you have when going to see a movie actually affected how much I enjoyed it.

The acting was very good, and the movie, even though it is a sci-fi story, felt real. This was Sharlto Copley's first movie as an actor, and the fact that the movie is shot in a documentary style and that the actors were encouraged to adlib most of the dialogue really help to turn this film into a close-to-real experience. Copley in particular does a terrific job as the beleaguered main character, and he made me root for him the entire time. I was really, really impressed by his performance.

The special effects were great, and the Prawns (the aliens) looked really cool. And what about that mecha straight out of a manga? Now that's what cool robots look like, not the crappy designs certain movie about robots that transform boasts.

I would tell you more about the movie, but that would reveal key plot points the trailer, for once, doesn't give away, so I think I'm going to stop typing now. But if you're looking for a movie that combines action, sci-fi, good filmmaking, and packs a message and a reflection on classic topics such as racism, segregation, government control, and the influence of big corporations, District 9 is the movie to watch. Who said that summer movies are by definition brainless fun and should therefore not be expected to be intelligent? It's movies like District 9 that make crap like Transformers 2 even more insulting and unforgivable.