Minority Movie Report - Aisha

You must have heard by now how great District 9 is.

Opening night, I have no life, I am the designated ticket picker upper. I went to the Metrotown Silvercity Theatre at 8:20PM for a 10:25PM show. I bought the tickets thinking I could leave and come back in an hour. Good thing I took a peek around the corner first.

2 hours before the latest showing of the movie opened, there were four people already in line!!! I realized I forgot my DS, and all I had for 2 hours of entertainment was the Sudoku at the back of my daily free newspaper. Good thing I suck at Sudoku. I ran downstairs to get a reasonably priced beverage before returning to see another handful of people had also joined the line. I was still in the first 20 so good enough.

After what felt like an eternity our very own Magic Mike showed up to join the masses, which was the line for District nine. The line eventually moved, and we got beautiful seats. Up close, not too close, and center. Thai Hoa came in the nick of time and showed his appreciation to us for waiting in line by buying Popcorn and Nachos! What a great start.

I will admit I was a bit skeptical. Perhaps its because I usually don't like Aliens. (I like THE 'Alien' movies though). It isn't that often that a movie lives up to its hype. On top of that I don't see myself to be quite the lover of Science Fiction as a whole, however District 9 blew my mind. It surpassed the highest of hopes I had. The characters, played by actors I didn't know were so realistic, so believable! The Aliens, such a sad lot, so oppressed!

District 9 is shot in a documentary style. The footage at first is noticeably shaky, but it isn't long into the movie that you forget, that you feel like you are in it, the innocent bystander.

Our main character is Wikus Van De Merwe, he works for Multi-National United (MNU), which is a company contracted to take control and watch over the Aliens or "Prawns" which is more of a derogatory term. The idea is that this agency should be concerned for the welfare of the Aliens, as well as their interactions with humans. MNU however, is also a large weapons manufacturer. MNU is more concerned with the alien technology than the welfare of the Aliens.

Wikus Van de Merwe, played by Sharlto Copley is the hapless worker bee in MNU. Not the brightest bulb, but somehow he becomes the man in charge. This is the beginning of many events that shape the rest of the movie.

What I thought was going to be a mainly plot driven movie was so much more. This movie brings out so many emotions, not necessarily for Aliens, but just about the way the world works. If nothing else, on a grand scale it shows what seems to be an innate priority human beings have for furthering mankind no matter the cost to others. It translates to so many social instances.

The theme of this movie highlights so many issues that plague our constant advancements in technology, and health. It easily can be related to Racism, animal testing, and just the general Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY) mentality. We are never quite that concerned about so many global issues until it affects us directly.

Additional cast members in District 9 are Jason Cope, Nathalie Boltt, and Sylvaine Strike. There wasn't a cast member in the whole lot that I would wish to see differently. While I can't say I had knowledge of any of them before, their collective performance was perfect for District 9.

The only thing that irked me was the portrayal of Nigerians. I know there are so many crazy things that come out of that country, but this movie highlighted every single stereotype there is for Nigerians. Ill just say, it made me cringe. I spent three weeks in Nigeria, went full circle around the country and never met a single person that could fill the shoes of any of those characters.

And that’s the end of that rant. I can't even say it ruined the movie for me. It was more of a small nagging at the back of my mind that was overshadowed by everything else going on. The movie is not for those with a weak stomach, and I wouldn't let the kids go, but for everyone else, man, woman, whoever, I recommend this movie.