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Begs for a sequel

Customer Rating:
District 9 is an interesting account of ghetto aliens, trying to survive on a hostile planet following the breakdown of their spaceship. The lead character, a human, is our hero, if a bit selfish, and unable to see a larger picture. It's a good yarn, and I hope a sequel is made to help fix all the bad things that happened.

9 out of 10

Customer Rating:
Plot: 9 out of 10, Acting: 8 out of 10, Visual Effects: 10 out of 10, Overal Effect: 9 out of 10

An overrated bloodbath

Customer Rating:
This movie has received quite a bit of positive attention, and I must say I'm at a loss to understand. I've read through the positive reviews here and understand that people like it, but I I'm still not sure why. I will concede that it is impressively made and that the lead actor does a very good job (although I wouldn't say the same for the rest of the cast). However, the script is a little weak and filled with questionable character motiviations and plot twists seemingly designed to eke out the maximum amount of gore from the project. But my main gripe is that when all is done, the film doesn't accomplish anything.

The first 10 minutes of the film sets up a potentially interesting premise. The following 20 or 30 minutes sets up a plot twist that could have lead to a fascinating follow up. What happens instead, unfortunately, is a 90 minute shoot-'em-up manhunt that squanders any potential set up by the beginning. Not only is it disappointing, but it's kind of disgusting to watch.

The violence is both explicit and relentless, and all of it is gratuitous. The film EASILY could have achieved its aims with only a tenth of the gore. Pathetic. And of course it doesn't skim on the grotesque, showing agonizing acts of mayhem and painful biological transition. If you like movies like "Saw" or "Hostel," you might have a taste for this style of film making, but I avoid such films like the plague.

The way the film chose to portray the alien race was bizarre. With the exception of one father and his son, it was a race of savages, a bipedal equivalent of ravenous jackals. (Now that I think of it, the humans in the film weren't portrayed any better.) As such, it is difficult to know what to make of the situation--are we to pity them because of the oppression they suffer, or are the humans justifiably confining them for their (the humans') own protection? The film could have served as an analogy to apartheid or anti-immigration sentiment, but without eliciting a shred of empathy for either side, it falls flat in this regard.

So, then, what's with the oft-cited praise that this film is somehow a "parable for our times"? A parable? What's the message, then? That all living creatures are despicable? That it's only a matter of time before rival sects destroy one another? That we have nothing better to do with 90 minutes of our time than to watch exploding heads and acts of mayhem? Indeed, I implore anyone who applauds this movie to tell what they learned from it. (There very well could be something that I'm not getting--I really want to know!)

As Eckhart Tolle would say, this is a move made by pain-bodies for pain-bodies. I'm still a weasel and a wretch, but there must be hope for me, because this movie turned my stomach.

Still, fair is fair. Two stars for the effort put into it, the lead actor, and the special effects. Also, this movie was strongly recommended to me by someone whose opinion I respect, so your reaction to this horrifically ugly movie may vary from mine (see what I did there?).

Delivery was WAAAAY faster than anticipated!

Customer Rating:
Delivery was supposed to take 2 weeks, I got the product in 4 days! It was well packaged and I would buy from them again.

Prawn Delight

Customer Rating:
I read a negative review of this movie that said it tried (and failed) to be all things to all people; political commentary, action film, engaging emotional storyline. I would beg to differ. This is a movie that stays with you for a few days on many levels. Highly recommended!