Where to begin, eh? Just from the trailer I had a feeling that I would enjoy this movie, but upon my initial viewing I hadn't a clue that I would love this movie; that I would want to inexplicably cuddle with this grotesque and violent creature of a movie by a warmed fireside, sipping tea and sensing the sweet smell of the roasted guts bursting from one of those alien laser guns. I want one.
The movie is visually delectable. It's the kind of treat where you find yourself licking your fingers after every scene, still going back in to that bag of sour gummy worms even though your tongue is raw and peeling while you know you can't take anymore, but you just have to. The WETA team have created such a visual masterpiece, I'm not too sure if I've ever seen anything like it. The truth is, every shot of the film looks so oddly familiar and grounded in its own false reality, I can't remember if I just didn't notice a gigantic spaceship overhead like the sky was playing pinch the mole, or if I was watching a movie. Then came the walking out of the theater and being disappointed that there wasn't a looming UFO in the sky outside. Sad day. (And on a side note, it boggles my mind that such a beautiful, effects heavy movie had a $30 million dollar budget, while movies like Julie and Julia was $40 million and Funny People was $75 million.)
The story itself isn't the most engaging, but how it's told is simply superb. It's a fantastic example of an artist doing exceptional work with the money given. It's not that it hasn't been covered before, it's that director and writer Neill Blomkamp has woven together a 112 minute thrill ride from his original short film Alive in Joburg that is sure to dazzle and hook even the hardest of alien racists. Now, I'm no alien loving hippie or anything, but the characters, human and nonhuman, are so engaging and heartfelt, even the shmuck protagonist is accessible. But hey, who hasn't murdered hundreds of crops of alien babies in their lifetime?
Look, these are just words to you. See the damn movie. Don't want to? What's wrong with you? The movie has mech warriors. And blood. And guts. And f-bombs. And racism. And refrences of interspecies copulation. You know you want it.
I give it 5/5 exploding alien baby pods.
Links:
Trailer
Rotten Tomatoes
A fantastic review of the film
finally a new type of racism.
ReplyDeleteso refreshing.
question. how did he know how to work the alien ship and suit? just cause he was physically alien doesnt mean he was completely mentally alien.
ReplyDeleteand i didnt really feel that connected to the main character. i wish i liked him more.