District 9

When my friends told me we were going to watch District 9 I just assumed it was some spin off of the Hunger Games series.  It was of course a different and unique science fiction action packed film that I was shocked I had never seen.  Nominated for 4 academy awards, District 9 is the story about an alternate Earth where a ship full of alien invaders land in South Africa and disturb the people.  The story follows the Wikus a bureaucrat who is appointed by his father-in-law to monitor the aliens and head a project of relocation so they are further away from the main city of Johanasberg disturbing the public.  He is later infected by an alien virus and action and drama occurs.

The movie was directed by Neill Blomkamp and uses fictional stock footage, mocumentary, fake interviews, and other documentary/news like tactic to tell parts of the story.  It was a very interesting way of telling this story. One of the producers behind the film is Peter Jackson who is most famous for his work on the Lord of the Rings series and The Hobbit.  Although the movie was a success, it was a surprise since it had a very unknown cast and relatively modest budget.

What I found very interesting about the film was it's political undertones.  It often referenced and brought up the subject of gun control, government and leadership in the Africa's, as well as immigration.  I think the aliens in this movie were directly a symbol of illegal aliens within our country, as well as other countries.  It was a large debate in the movie about kicking the aliens out of Earth because they are clearly invading our space and territory.  However it was brought up later in the film that the aliens - although not the most helpful to humans - had their reasons to leave their home planet and could not go back.  This obviously brings up illegal immigrants traveling to other countries to escape persecution, and crime filled nations.

The movie was good and did lose to Biggalow's The Hurt Locker, but I wouldn't have given Distric 9 the Oscar anyway.  It was enjoyable but I don't think I would watch it again.  It was a unique way to tell such a different thought provoking story and it was effective but it was a bit boring for my taste and I did not end up liking the main character.  Although my friends really enjoyed the movie.  Maybe I'm just more of a rom-com kinda guy.

The Hurt Locker

One of my favorite films from the last few years was The Hurt Locker, directed by Katherine Bigelow. The Hurt Locker puts the viewer through an emotional roller coaster in an attempt to convey some of what everyday life is like for the three characters, American soldiers, in the film. What sets this film apart from others for me is how they can create such suspenseful scenes and still show the monotony of life on the ground for the soldier.

For example, in the opening scene a relatively routine ordinance disposal mission slowly unravels until it goes completely bad.



After watching this scene, The Hurt Locker  establishes the danger the characters are truely in and able to subsequently bring the viewer to the same stress levels, same adrenaline, even if all the build up is for nothing.

In this scene two of the main characters clear a building. Same build up but without a violent ending.




I believe Katherine Bigelow does this in an attempt to show the audience how in combat the level of stress and adrenaline the soldiers experience. The movie also shows how this can affect everyone differently. For example one of the main characters develops PTSD and can't handle the stress. One of the other main characters is an adrenaline junkie. While although he mostly is quite and keeps to himself, on the inside, he is yearning for the unparalleled adrenaline rush of being at war. After returning home at towards the very end of the movie there is a scene where the character is in the super market, staring at a seemingly never ending line of cereals. The elevator-esq music cuts to a guitar riff showing the soldier back overseas on yet another tour because he is addicted. Katherine Bigelow uses the camera, editing, music, plot, and characters all to effectively evoke the emotion she wants her audience to feel.