Elysium is a distilled version of D9. That is - even worse.

Rating: 4/10 (11 August 2013)

While in District 9 Neill Blomkamp did a fine effort of trying to show the results of racial segregation from the point of view of an oppressor becoming an oppressed one (ultimately failing to make it even a bit believable, though) in Elysium he has hit the nail precisely on the head, forgetting to put it against a wall first.
The premise is pretty worn - two communities, one a small, rich and prosperous, the other large but poor and suffering. And, obviously, a tale of one man's rise to citizenship of the rich one. What Elysium completely fails to create is a reason to feel for any of the characters. The bad guys are bad because Neill said so, the good guys are good by virtue of being poor and oppressed (we all know that every miserable sod has a heart of gold but is unwilling to sell it). So the good guys fight the bad guys. sacrifice themselves left and right and, obviously, win.
Also the movie contains so many absolutely stupid details that it becomes a pain to watch without facepalming. Every stupid action/sci-fi cliché you can think of is probably there.
Oh, and as for the message. Earth = Cuba/Mexico. Elysium = USA. Brave immigrants fight through border patrol and decimate U.S. citizens to achieve their small American dream. Kindly empathize with them.