Mediocre

Rating: 6/10 (30 August 2013)

For a sci-fi film, Elysium is neither beautiful, fun or brilliantly written. Rather, it attempts to be a socially-minded, emotionally-driven dystopian story with some action. The thing about making such a gritty sort of film is that the plot needs to be really tightly constructed. It does not have to be complex or high-concept - it can be tooth and nail simple - it just has to be seamlessly put together, whatever it is. Elysium has too shaky a script and too many contrived plot points to hit as hard as it needs to.
It is not a horribly bad film (except for those turned off by a constant barrage of the F-word – for those viewers, this is a horrible film) but there is little attractive about it. And in spite of what seems on the surface like a surefire premise, it is not really emotionally or ethically compelling. It tries to be, tries quite overtly in fact, but it does not manage to get there.
The Good – The visual effects, particularly the robots, aircraft and spacecraft. Sharlto Copley deliriously crazy, sadistic, over-the-top antagonist. Frankly, that is about it.
The Bad – Lackluster script. Overly contrived plot. Matt Damon is a fine actor, but his understated persona does not help here. Underutilization of Jodie Foster. Failure to make the very obviously emotional beats truly sink in. Unconvincing ending.
After viewing Elysium, I could not escape the feeling that this film, as it exists, does not really add much to the universe. It is more ambitious than Neil Blomkamp's previous effort District 9, but not as good. More effort, less to show for it. There are some clear (and unquestionably relevant) thematic elements related to immigration and human rights, but those issues deserve a stronger vehicle than Elysium provides. A rather mundane film overall.