District 9 - Distrik Ses

Rating: 8/10 (3 July 2012)

District 6 (Distrik Ses) was the absolutely genuine inner-city slum region of Cape Town, best known for the brutal removal of over 60,000 inhabitants during South Africa's apartheid regime. South Africa gave many reasons for the removals: interracial interaction bred conflict; enforced separation of the races; the district was a slum fit only for clearance; the area was crime-ridden, dangerous and full of immoral activities like gambling, drinking, and prostitution.
Around the historical facts of District 6, District 9 weaves one of the most original and engaging Sci-Fi movies I've seen since Bladerunner. The cinematography is wonderful, the editing is damn-near perfect, the CGI is beautifully handled and the cast perform with considerable aplomb.
Additionally, District 9 wears its allegorical politics very lightly. It makes no direct mention of apartheid, and it makes no mention of the painful legacy of apartheid, which can still be seen so clearly even to today. What it does do is balance originality, entertainment and socio-political comment so beautifully that, by the end of the screening, I wanted to stand and applaud. 8/10 - a very fine piece of work.