Review: District 9
I thought it was very well written and well acted. I liked the alien characters especially. Actually, I'd go so far as to say that this was more of a suspense film than action. It felt somewhat reminiscent of Orsen Well's War of the Worlds radio broadcast with it's dedication to a documentary style aesthetic.
The characters are done extremely well. The shifts and changes the main human character undergoes are incredibly realistic and well played. I was extremely impressed. :) The same care is used with the main alien character. It actully makes him more personable than any of the cold corporate characters.
My big complaint is the camera work. The vast majority of the movie is shot in jittery, unstable, "handheld" style... so much so that the stable surveillence camera shots were a distinct relief. I had a mild headache before going into the theater and left with a pounding one in addition to feeling slightly nauseated (I'm prone to motion sickness). I'm pretty sure the filmmakers went anti-stedicam to hide the CGI better and add more documentary feel to the film overall, but I really wish they had done so in a different way. In any case, where the surveillance camera shots were used, they were very well placed in the film and helped illustrate the "dispassionate corporate institution" mindset of some of the characters.
I'd recommend the movie to anyone who doesn't get motion sick easily. :)
The characters are done extremely well. The shifts and changes the main human character undergoes are incredibly realistic and well played. I was extremely impressed. :) The same care is used with the main alien character. It actully makes him more personable than any of the cold corporate characters.
My big complaint is the camera work. The vast majority of the movie is shot in jittery, unstable, "handheld" style... so much so that the stable surveillence camera shots were a distinct relief. I had a mild headache before going into the theater and left with a pounding one in addition to feeling slightly nauseated (I'm prone to motion sickness). I'm pretty sure the filmmakers went anti-stedicam to hide the CGI better and add more documentary feel to the film overall, but I really wish they had done so in a different way. In any case, where the surveillance camera shots were used, they were very well placed in the film and helped illustrate the "dispassionate corporate institution" mindset of some of the characters.
I'd recommend the movie to anyone who doesn't get motion sick easily. :)