Elysium

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is Elysium.

Written & Directed by Neill Blomkamp

Review #228

MPAA Rating: Rated R for strong bloody violence and language throughout.

Run Time: 109 min

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Cast

Matt Damon...Max

Jodie Foster...Delacourt

Sharlto Copley...Kruger

Alice Braga...Frey

Diego Luna...Julio

Wagner Moura...Spider

William Fichtner...John Carlyle

Jose Pablo Cantillo...Sandro

Maxwell Perry Cotton...Young Max

Faran Tahir...President Patel

Neill Blomkamp made a name for himself in the sci fi world not with District 9 but the short film he made that was the inspiration for District 9. Alive in Joburg. The popularity of that short got him the support to make District 9 and the rest as we say is history. If you haven't seen District 9 then you should be ashamed of yourself. After you've come to your senses do yourself a favor and SEE THAT MOVIE! It was one of the best films of 2009 and is way more than just a movie about an alien invasion in South Africa. Needless to say the immense positive response critically and publicly launched Blomkamp into cherished directorial territory. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that he's 33 years old?

So what did he have in store for a follow up?

Matt Damon wearing a robotic exoskeleton! SIGN ME UP!

Most of the time when an unknown or small film comes out I hit the geek sites and try to find out as much as I can before I make my decision to see it. With Elysium there was no need to research. Blomkamp earned my trust and loyalty with District 9. Then I saw a trailer and I was jazzed. Then I see the film and I wasn't so jazzed after. That's not to say that Elysium was a bad film. Far from it.

It's just not as good as District 9.

The biggest problem with Elysium is the disconnect with the script.

Blomkamp visually expresses the gap between both society's. Earth pictured above is filthy, dying and apocalyptic. Elysium pictured below is clean, serene and eden like.

It's within the society's where Blomkamp misses the mark. Somewhere in the narrative the balance gets lost. The film spends more time on earth which makes sense considering the film's main character lives there. However, despite seeing it, while on earth you don't get the sense of impoverishment and on Elysium you don't get the sense of opulence. This is more evident on Elysium. Too many establishing shots of people enjoying life and not enough feeling that the people are pissing away their privilege. Those kind of scenes would get you to root more for the people struggling to make ends meet.

Another unfortunate issue with the script of the lack of character development within the story. This primarily revolves around Kruger played masterfully by the spectacular Sharlto Copley. This guy was a bad ass and for some reason lived on earth despite working for the Elysium government. It didn't make sense for him to be there. The film gives him something to do while down there to establish his character but it wasn't enough to give Kruger the development he needed and deserved. More background behind his character would also have helped flesh out what happens to him at the end. When it gets to that point it feels out of left field which was sad because he was so cool to watch on screen.

The same thing happens to Matt Damon's Max only it's not as profound. Because he's the main character he gets more time to attach himself to us as the audience. That being said there wasn't enough there to make us care about him until the very end which was as predictable as you could get. Damon's performance was fine. I just wished there was more behind him than the unnecessary flashbacks of when Max was a kid. It didn't help his character and spoiled the end of the film if you paid attention.

Now let's talk about the good in this film. Just like in District 9. The world Blomkamp created was visually stunning. He had a bigger budget to work with here and it shows. Since the film takes place in two very far away locations the scale and look of those places had to be specific enough to meet the requirements of the story. They pulled that off. Earth was a place you definitely didn't want to live and Elysium was pure paradise.

The look and design of the security droids were also impressive. The CGI was so convincing that it was tough to tell what was real and what wasn't. This came as no surprise to me because Blomkamp always had a great eye for visual effects and world building. He's doing it the smart way by creating his settings from places he's known all his life. Born in Johannesburg, South Africa he grounds his fantastical locations grounded by his home turf. It gives the look of the world his films are in a rough yet realistic feel and presentation.

Bottom line is Elysium though not as strong as District 9 is still a step in the right direction for Neill Blomkamp and his sci fi stylings. I'm sure the powers that be that killed his involvement in the Halo film are kicking themselves right now. If not then they should be because his next film Chappie has already been green lit even before Elysium's release. If that film is anything close to the plot synopsis then Blomkamp will be 3 for 3.

I for one will be rooting for him. The guy is a rising star that demands your attention.

On the 5 star scale. Elysium gets 3 stars. With a "Go See It!" recommendation.

Thats a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"