A Science Fiction Classic

Rating: 10/10 (19 October 2012)

Director Neill Blomkamp teams with producer Peter Jackson for this tale of extraterrestrial refugees stuck in contemporary South Africa.District 9 is a science fiction thriller that was written by Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell that features Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, and David James. The story of the film pivots on the themes of humanity, xenophobia and social segregation.
It's been 28 years since the aliens made first contact, but there was never any attack from the skies, nor any profound technological revelation capable of advancing our society. Instead, the aliens were treated as refugees. They were the last of their kind, and in order to accommodate them, the government of South Africa set up a makeshift home in District 9 as politicians and world leaders debated how to handle the situation. As the humans begin to grow wary of the unwelcome intruders, a private company called Multi-National United is assigned the task of controlling the aliens. But the organization is less interested in the aliens' welfare than attempting to understand how their weaponry works. Should they manage to make that breakthrough, they will receive tremendous profits to fund their research. Unfortunately, the highly advanced weaponry requires alien DNA in order to be activated. When MNU field operative Wikus van der Merwe is exposed to biotechnology that causes his DNA to mutate, the tensions between the aliens and the humans intensifies. Wikus is the key to unlocking the alien's technology, and he quickly becomes the most wanted man on the planet. Ostracized and isolated, Wikus retreats to District 9 in a desperate bid to shake his dogged pursuers.
Technically brilliant and emotionally wrenching, the film has action, imagination, and all the elements of a thoroughly entertaining science- fiction classic.That is one reason why it is a must-see film.