The Wailing Woman Cliché is Getting Old

Rating: 5/10 (18 August 2013)

It has become such a cliché, that it is heavily featured in parody movies. The switch to slow motion as the tragedy unfolds and the soundtrack falls silent except for a single old woman wailing a sad song as if at a funeral. I'm not sure who started this phenomena, perhaps Ridley Scott. But it has been such a staple for action soundtracks in the last 20 years or so, to use it more than once during the course of the movie is to draw ridicule.
I had a lot of problems with the sound design and the sound mix of this film. They tried to stuff every beat in the film with some unnecessary sound or line of dialogue that would have been better left unsaid. While I can appreciate the film not wasting our time and keeping the pace and energy going (take that, Wolverine), it was almost afraid to catch it's breath. To have one of these blockbusters actually star a talented actor in Matt Damon, they should have let him breath between action scenes a little, get inside his head a little more. Visit with his ex-girlfriend a little longer. A little more character development in that area would have helped the large gulps of story that we chase through on our way to the big space station.
I was rooting for both the intelligence of Damon, who knows how to put some necessary humour into his character at the right time (take that, Pacific Rim). And my compliments to the producers for letting the film be a soft 'R' rated release, without a doubt lending better to realism amidst the dystopian future world (take that, World War Z). I think Sharlto Copley displayed far more depth and capability in being a dominating villain than the thin character that was drawn for him in this movie. He shows no consistent behaviour while deciding whether to kill Damon or not. But the delivery of his lines is so engaging, it is a delight to watch him do bad guy stuff.
It is a less appealing story that normal Sci-Fi fantasies intentionally avoid, but Elysium tries to feel like a documentary about a third world country. You will probably hear some hoots in response to the over-pronounced delivery Jodie Foster gives, making her villainous character more annoying than interesting. As I tried to keep remembering I wasn't watching "Oblivion", I was feeling satisfied in the attempt by the filmmakers to meet the audience's expectations. Other blockbusters recently having been lacking a soul as they rush through the by-the-numbers script clichés.
I wish it was released before "Oblivion", and perhaps this well made sci-fi action film might have felt a bit more fresh, and had not wasted my intelligence like that Tom Cruise vehicle did. On the other hand, would I have been invigorated by the exo-skeleton - fulfilling that "Terminator" quotient? Or would the fatal injury of Damon's character fulfill that "Star Trek: Into Darkness" quotient?
-major spoiler ahead
Or would I have been satisfied with the magic computer code saving the day - fulfilling that "Independence Day" quotient?
-major spoiler finished
In the end I was thankful that the busy pacing got us through to the resolution in a 1 hour 49 minute runtime. It's just too bad that the theme of dystopian sci-fi has cluttered the 2013 movie calendar. It is hard to tell how this film would have stood out, especially with less of fulfilling Hollywood cliché quotas and less of that wailing woman.