The future of capitalism

Rating: 9/10 (19 February 2015)

This is an extremely interesting sci-fi movie which discusses economics and society deeply. Basically, it simulates the future of capitalist production system. In a society so dependent on electronics, with robots, droids and cyborgs, plants full of blue collars still exist (and not an increase of financialization as we could expect), with workers working in the worst conditions possible, in a labor Darwinism. As there is a great unemployment, workers accept very bad jobs. Businessmen look for profit caring nothing about workers' rights. There is a deep split in society in two classes (well, Karl Marx could agree with much of what is shown in the film), with the richest living comfortably outside the Earth, in an artificial satellite called Elysium (full of beautiful gardens and gorgeous houses), and the others surviving in poor conditions: human rights abuse, garbage, lack of health-care (what is extremely developed for high class in the space), crime, degraded areas, pollution... Not surprisingly, Latin people are concentrated in the lowest economic strata in this futuristic Los Angeles, speaking a mix of Spanish and English. The state is focused on keeping that elite privileges in Elysium, keeping the poor outside by means which remind us a lot about the immigration control in USA/Mexico borders. Lobbyists are inside the State in order to cooperate with private interests, and private firms may cooperate with a coup d'Etat if it is economically interesting for them. Unfortunately, the film does not keep the same level throughout its length, as it gets too melodramatic and focused in chases and fights, but it is nice until its end. All the actors did a good job and it is hard to choose someone to highlight.