In spite of some impressive visual effects, the action is not enough to carry the entirety of the narrative.

Rating: 7/10 (28 August 2009)

District 9 begins as a mockumentary, accounting for how in the the last twenty years an alien spacecraft has hovered over Johannesburg in South Africa and how an alien inhabited camp has been established and militarised on Earth. Following violent protests from the humans however, an organisation called the MNU (Multi-National United) is established to handle all alien matters. One of the MNU's most significant tasks is to move the alien colony into a new area that is described as more like a concentration camp. Heading this operation is a newly promoted member of the MNU, a nerdy and clumsy man named Wikus Van De Merwe (Sharlto Copley). Many of his colleagues describe how surprised they are by his promotion and even his father-in-law assures us that it was not because of his family connection. With the unlikelihood of his promotion, Wikus' authority over the operation is tested by the military personnel who are also assisting with the eviction.
The opening quarter of District 9 is easily the most impressive of the entire film. The films mockumentary aesthetics, such as the inclusion of interviews, hand-held camera shots, grainy security footage and the decision to cast unknown actors, lend the film an immersive and almost believable quality to the fiction. This is not merely a gimmick however as writer and director Neill Blomkamp seems to have a real interest in the political and moral aspects of the alien camp. Along with the impressive visual design of the aliens, he has portrayed them with a real sense of humanity. They live with their own alien children in shacks, scavenge for food, engage in experiments of science and technology and participate in trade bargains. It is difficult not to feel something for them. The real monsters of the film are the humans. From the military personnel to the Nigerian militia gangs, the humans are shown are cruel and unmerciful, labelling the aliens with derogatory names such as prawns or shooting them down at will. Even the films main protagonist Wikus is not entirely clean. In one scene he attempts to blackmail an alien into signing an eviction notice by saying that he will have the alien's child taken into welfare custody. It is this level of inhumanity, in trying to force these alien immigrants out of their homes, which allows the film to echo the same social and political problems we have witnessed in recent years. With this moral conscience, the opening quarter of District 9 is not only fun in its originality, but it's also a thoughtful experience as well.
Unfortunately, many of the political and social ideas are not developed throughout the rest of the narrative. Once the film runs out of things to say, it loses its mockumentary style in favour of action and visual effects and becomes more the equivalent of a video game. Though the action at the beginning of the film is often exciting and intense, its frequency ensures that it becomes rather monotonous by the end, with a minimal sense of character development. The film also suffers from the predictability of several key plot points. When Wikus accidentally sprays an alien device on himself and begins coughing up thick black good, it is clear what will happen to him, who will help him and where he has to go. The influence of Peter Jackson, who was one of the producers of the film, is visible in many of the film's gross out moments, such as Wikus' transformation as he starts losing his teeth and fingernails and and also through many of the films exploding bodies. It is the same mixture of horror and humour that evokes memories of the early Jackson horror films such as Bad Taste, which will surely excite some and repulse others.
It is because District 9 starts out so strongly, with a thoughtful and interesting concept that it is all the more disappointing that the film cannot sustain its political and social subtext. In spite of some impressive visual effects, the action is not enough to carry the entirety of the narrative. With its critical praise and box office success however, it would be optimistic to believe that the inevitable sequel – hinted at by the end of the film – will be much of an improvement.