Another superlative slice of sci-fi action

Rating: 9/10 (6 November 2014)

When South African director Neill Blomkamp's DISTRICT 9 came out, it blew me away. Never before had I seen an inventive and intricate storyline mixed with mind-blowingly realistic special effects work and some hard-hitting and heavyweight action scenes. It's still one of my favourite movies of all time, so I was understandably excited by the prospect of this follow-up.
And ELYSIUM doesn't disappoint. It's a straightforward action thriller in which both good guys and bad are clearly delineated; it lacks the novelty and scope of Blomkamp's previous movie but it more than makes up for that with its full-blooded action and overriding sense of energy. Once again, the sci-fi special effects are remarkable - this is CGI as it should be employed, as it's completely realistic and never lacking.
Matt Damon can handle the action stuff readily enough - anyone who's seen the Bourne trilogy can tell you that - and Blomkamp assembles a stellar supporting cast to back him up. William Fichtner is a delightfully weaselly bad guy and Jodie Foster an effective political foe, but it's Sharlto Copley who really shines as the OTT main villain, Kruger. It's a complete turnaround from his quiet, mild-mannered turn in DISTRICT 9, and both he and the viewer have a ball with it.
ELYSIUM builds up a real sense of excitement and palpable tension as the story progresses, and the script never lets you down either; once again, there's plenty of subtext to enjoy. This film could well be thought of as an advert for 'Obamacare'. The action sequences employ shaky-cam to good effect, and it's nice to see that Blomkamp hasn't toned the bloody violence down either. No, it's no DISTRICT 9, but it comes close and is one of the best sci-fi movies of recent years.