QUICK THOUGHTS: WARNING some spoilers are in this section for those that have not seen this film already.
If you already read my Biggest Disappointments of 2009 article, you know this film has dwindled in my eyes since giving it a “B” in my theatrical review. To that point, I was actually surprised how uninterested I was in returning to this film.
Wikus, the lead character played with a proper innocence by Sharlto Copley, is someone I simply cannot connect to. Here’s a snippet from my theatrical review that still rings true, and even more so on a repeat viewing:
He comes off as an innocent and caring family man until he sets out to evict the aliens. He serves the eviction notices without compassion, refers to them as “prawns” without a second thought and even when he’s witness to all the secrets to District 9 his motivations are ultimately self-centered until there is no other choice.
This can be cause for interest the first time around, but the next time you know Wikus is a self-serving ass the entire time, which makes cheering for him or having any interest in his ultimate success or demise a waste of time. There’s no use, you already know his motivations so what use is it watching him go through it all again, with the film ultimately trying to end on a compassionate note?
Visually this film is a gem and I would say the CG work on the alien race looks even better here than it did on the big screen, it’s truly impressive, but overall it just doesn’t seem to have me convinced it’s a great film as many other people most certainly believe. And for those of you that like this film, definitely don’t let my opinion drag you down. There’s a lot in store for you on this disc and the film looks and sounds spectacular.
SUPPLEMENTS: I began by listening to director Neill Blomkamp discuss the film on an intensely technical and politically relevant level in his commentary and I was happy to hear he had a complete understanding of the film and realized the dilemmas people would need to deal with — such as my earlier complaint about Wikus’s motivations, which he properly addresses. He simply sees it differently than me, which is fine, I just don’t agree with the direction he takes things. Oh well, my loss.
The 23 minutes of deleted scenes didn’t interest me in the slightest and the copyright notification after every single one became increasingly annoying as things moved on. There is a 34-minute making of doc coupled with a 10-minute look at the makeup effects applied to Copley as he slowly morphed into an alien. This is interesting stuff for people that have never seen how an effects driven alien film is made, but it really doesn’t add much to the conversation and as it continues into two more making-of features a lot is covered that Blomkamp already addressed in his commentary.
I didn’t test drive the playable demo of God of War III, but I did try out Sony’s movieIQ feature for the first time and unfortunately have no interest in messing around with IMDb-like factoids while watching the film. I can do that on my laptop if need be.
On a side note, studios need to stop recording audio commentaries for DVD and Blu-ray releases before the film has been seen by audiences. Blomkamp says his commentary was recorded all the way back in late-July/early-August, prior to the film’s release and just following the screening at Comic Con. Commentaries would be much better if the filmmakers had already heard audience and critical praises and complaints and address them so as to give those of us listening a better understanding of their motivations. Recording these things before anyone has weighed in with an opinion gives these guys even less to talk about beyond the technical mumbo-jumbo, which we’ve already heard before.
FINAL THOUGHTS: For those of you that liked this movie, this Blu-ray is an absolute no-brainer, must buy, click here and buy it now. It looks and sounds marvelous and the special features go thoroughly in-depth. However, if like me you were a bit disappointed with the film, I would recommend a rental if you are even considering adding it to your shopping cart. For me, the film worked even less the second time around, and once I was done listening to the commentary I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be returning to it any time soon… if at all.
