Immigration is a hot topic in the UK at the moment with the Conservative government leaning into the whole shtick of ‘strengthening our borders’ and deporting illegal immigrants to Rwanda. Anyone with a brain knows that almost all the people arriving on Britain’s shores are not illegal, but asylum seekers fleeing war, or refugees that the government are legally required to care for under the human rights convention. So, when I decided I would check out the back catalogue of South African director Neill Blomkamp in preparation for his next film, Gran Turismo, I had almost forgotten how politically driven his early films were, and District 9 in particular.
I first watched the film during my English GCSE’s where I studied some of the film’s most prominent themes. I won’t bore you with my barely passable analysis I wrote back then, and I’m sure I have nothing new to add to the incredible praise showered all over this film. But without further ado, here’s my take on the film that put Blomkamp on the map, has left people desperate for a sequel ever since, and puts immigration under the sci-fi microscope in one of the most damning portrayals of humanity in twenty-first century cinema.
In 1982 a giant spaceship suddenly appeared over the skies of Johannesburg, South Africa. For three months the ship just floated there, and scientists eventually managed to gain access to the interior of the ship. There they found a severely malnourished race of aliens, clearly stranded, with no way of being able to fly the ship out of Earth’s atmosphere. Earth governments move the aliens, dubbed ‘prawns’ as a derogatory term for their crustacean like appearance, to a nearby refugee camp named District 9.
Twenty years later and weapons manufacturer Multinational United (MNU) has been tasked with relocating the aliens from District 9, where they have reproduced en-masse and engage in a wide array of criminal activities, to a new concentration camp-like site further away from Johannesburg, District 10.
MNU employee Wikus van der Merwe (Sharlto Copley) has been appointed the lead of this operation, despite his clear lack of experience or qualifications. But when Wikus begins to transform into an alien, he becomes the subject of a manhunt for MNU wanting to experiment on him in the hope of being able to control alien weaponry. Meanwhile Wikus allies himself with Christopher Johnson (Jason Cope), an alien who believes he has worked out how to get the aliens off Earth for good and potentially reverse the effects of Wikus’ transformation.
I first watched the film during my English GCSE’s where I studied some of the film’s most prominent themes. I won’t bore you with my barely passable analysis I wrote back then, and I’m sure I have nothing new to add to the incredible praise showered all over this film. But without further ado, here’s my take on the film that put Blomkamp on the map, has left people desperate for a sequel ever since, and puts immigration under the sci-fi microscope in one of the most damning portrayals of humanity in twenty-first century cinema.
In 1982 a giant spaceship suddenly appeared over the skies of Johannesburg, South Africa. For three months the ship just floated there, and scientists eventually managed to gain access to the interior of the ship. There they found a severely malnourished race of aliens, clearly stranded, with no way of being able to fly the ship out of Earth’s atmosphere. Earth governments move the aliens, dubbed ‘prawns’ as a derogatory term for their crustacean like appearance, to a nearby refugee camp named District 9.
Twenty years later and weapons manufacturer Multinational United (MNU) has been tasked with relocating the aliens from District 9, where they have reproduced en-masse and engage in a wide array of criminal activities, to a new concentration camp-like site further away from Johannesburg, District 10.
MNU employee Wikus van der Merwe (Sharlto Copley) has been appointed the lead of this operation, despite his clear lack of experience or qualifications. But when Wikus begins to transform into an alien, he becomes the subject of a manhunt for MNU wanting to experiment on him in the hope of being able to control alien weaponry. Meanwhile Wikus allies himself with Christopher Johnson (Jason Cope), an alien who believes he has worked out how to get the aliens off Earth for good and potentially reverse the effects of Wikus’ transformation.
There’s a good reason why District 9 is held in such high regard, and it’s because it’s really quite an incredible film. Whilst Blomkamp had made a number of short films before District 9 that had gained some traction, as well as a truly iconic advert for Citroen starring a dancing car, to have a debut feature film that is this experimental, so highly refined, and has such a bold political statement is simply unheard of. Blomkamp literally burst onto the scene and started to redefine the science fiction genre with an idea so brazen and painfully reflective of humanity’s cruelty. Not bad for a guy that made a Citroen dance.
The film opens in a documentary style, featuring interviews with academics, and a handful of the films supporting characters who set the scene, recounting the arrival of the aliens, how humanity seemed to put their differences aside overnight and became immediately hostile towards the aliens, and how the aliens brought out the worst in people turning District 9 into the world’s largest ghetto, and they introduce us to Wikus, seemingly regretfully. It’s here where the mystery is first sewn, why is Wikus important? What went wrong?
This documentary style is really awesome, and whenever the film implements it, those are the strongest parts of the whole thing. But once we get to District 9 with Wikus, going door to door handing out eviction notices, the film switches to a traditional storytelling style and ditches the documentary elements right up until the ending. It’s certainly a choice, and whilst the film is incredible, I honestly think the film would have been far better had it been presented entirely as a documentary. Particularly because the third act leans far too heavily on big action sequences, and whilst they are entertaining, they’re easily the weakest part of the whole film. It feels somewhat out of place to have these big, bloody, and quite gory action sequences in a film that started out seemingly as a documentary about interstellar immigration. I would have much preferred if the film built to a dramatic climax rather than just big shootouts, but it’s a small complaint to have when the film as it stands is still very strong.
The film opens in a documentary style, featuring interviews with academics, and a handful of the films supporting characters who set the scene, recounting the arrival of the aliens, how humanity seemed to put their differences aside overnight and became immediately hostile towards the aliens, and how the aliens brought out the worst in people turning District 9 into the world’s largest ghetto, and they introduce us to Wikus, seemingly regretfully. It’s here where the mystery is first sewn, why is Wikus important? What went wrong?
This documentary style is really awesome, and whenever the film implements it, those are the strongest parts of the whole thing. But once we get to District 9 with Wikus, going door to door handing out eviction notices, the film switches to a traditional storytelling style and ditches the documentary elements right up until the ending. It’s certainly a choice, and whilst the film is incredible, I honestly think the film would have been far better had it been presented entirely as a documentary. Particularly because the third act leans far too heavily on big action sequences, and whilst they are entertaining, they’re easily the weakest part of the whole film. It feels somewhat out of place to have these big, bloody, and quite gory action sequences in a film that started out seemingly as a documentary about interstellar immigration. I would have much preferred if the film built to a dramatic climax rather than just big shootouts, but it’s a small complaint to have when the film as it stands is still very strong.
I find the film to be really quite visually striking too. The choice of cameras, framing, and lighting gives everything this hyper-real aesthetic, and combined with some incredible CGI for the aliens gives them the illusion of really sharing the frame with the human characters. The aliens also have a relatively unique design, like a kind of bipedal insect with its skeleton on the outside, the prawns are some of the most visually distinctive aliens in cinematic history.
Copley’s performance is the solid foundation that the rest of the film sits upon. Wikus goes on such a great journey from racist pencil pusher at a weapons manufacturer to full blown freedom fighter for the very people he was persecuting. It feels natural and earned. He’s no white saviour because he’s still a bit of a crap person, and he kind of relies on Christopher a lot more than Christopher relies on him, but you can tell he’s learned the error of his ways now that he’s seeing things from the other side. Copley really gives his all here, and it makes the world of District 9 seem all that more real.
District 9 is a one-of-a-kind experience, and because the subject matter is arguably more relevant now than it ever has been before, I think it’s a film that everyone should watch. It’s definitely got some issues, a few shortfalls here and there, but the overall package is so bold, unapologetic, and determined that it’s just so incredible to think that this was Blomkamp’s first feature film. He has a true command over the story, the camera, the sound, the performances, the visual effects, all right down to the smallest details. District 9 is so outstanding that the praise it received has still given Blomkamp’s name a significant reverence despite his subsequent filmography falling far short of what he achieved here. If you’ve yet to visit District 9, then that needs to change right now. It’ll also leave you uncontrollably shouting ‘fookin prawns’ for a while, just a small side effect of Copely’s brilliant performance.
Copley’s performance is the solid foundation that the rest of the film sits upon. Wikus goes on such a great journey from racist pencil pusher at a weapons manufacturer to full blown freedom fighter for the very people he was persecuting. It feels natural and earned. He’s no white saviour because he’s still a bit of a crap person, and he kind of relies on Christopher a lot more than Christopher relies on him, but you can tell he’s learned the error of his ways now that he’s seeing things from the other side. Copley really gives his all here, and it makes the world of District 9 seem all that more real.
District 9 is a one-of-a-kind experience, and because the subject matter is arguably more relevant now than it ever has been before, I think it’s a film that everyone should watch. It’s definitely got some issues, a few shortfalls here and there, but the overall package is so bold, unapologetic, and determined that it’s just so incredible to think that this was Blomkamp’s first feature film. He has a true command over the story, the camera, the sound, the performances, the visual effects, all right down to the smallest details. District 9 is so outstanding that the praise it received has still given Blomkamp’s name a significant reverence despite his subsequent filmography falling far short of what he achieved here. If you’ve yet to visit District 9, then that needs to change right now. It’ll also leave you uncontrollably shouting ‘fookin prawns’ for a while, just a small side effect of Copely’s brilliant performance.