A fine & worthy follow up to "District 9"

Rating: 8/10 (20 August 2013)

The problem with Neill Blomkamp's last film was that it came from absolutely nowhere for paying people like me & floored us. Obviously. we all asked how was he going follow that act?
The answer to that question is "pretty damn well". "Elysium" gives him bigger stars & a bigger set of toys to work with & probably gives his buddy, Sharlto Copley, a bigger paycheck.
This is a constantly entertaining BIG sci-fi film filled great visuals, interesting characters & a very satisfying story with as much political subtlety as a Michael Moore film.
So what if Jodie Foster is rather one-dimensional as a villainous "suit" (think "Avatar's" Quaritch wearing Armani)? She makes that one dimension very entertaining. Matt Damon may not be Bourne-terrific here but he is fine form nevertheless. His "Max" has a story we actually care about. The two standout performances here are Wagner Moura as the computer ace, Spider & Copley as the hit-man/machine/sociopath/mercenary, Kruger. Unlike the two idiot scientist who almost ruined "Pacific Rim" for me, Moura has fun with the role without ever making fun of the role. There is hardly any humor in this movie, but that doesn't make it a downer. Copley has a voice & a way of speaking that I'm sure seems very strange to anybody living in the western half of the U.S. As he showed in "District 9" & the terrific "Europa Report"(his other "E" sci-fi movie this summer) he has a unique screen presence that always holds our attention. I don't know if this makes him a particularly good actor, but he is fun to watch. Kruger is written as a scary guy & Copley makes him one.
Blomkamp keeps things moving at a fast pace that never seems rushed. There is only one fight scene that seems a bit like overkill (unlike just about all the fight scenes in "Man Of Steel" -which I otherwise loved). There is fairly bloody stuff going on throughout this movie. One scene nearly matches the infamous self-abortion in "Prometheus". The gore flashes in front of you quickly & never lingers. Just keep the kids home.
This movie is probably not going to go over very well with people who keep their bank accounts on the Cayman Islands, but for the rest of us it is rollicking entertainment