Quote :

"I don't understand the near unanimous gushing response. Surprised you people aren't even a little divided... Anyway, it was fun. Definitely had some HUUUUGE problems with logic/style."

I was definitely disappointed (the trailer raised my expectations waaay too high)

-the logic of the fluid makes no sense
-the bad guys are so bland and 1D
-some of the action is pointless
-switching between documentary/third person ruins a lot

BUT

this is the movie that replaced Halo. I mean come on. And it's a directorial debut. For all that, it did a lot of things right and was pretty entertaining

8/19/2009 7:28:21 PM

The direction was fine and I look forward to future Blomkamp films.

But plz2write better or get better writers.

8/19/2009 7:40:05 PM

To me there really cant be major logical fallacies because you have no idea what the technology is about.

"The special alien liquid makes no sense"

You cant make that statement.

8/19/2009 9:41:43 PM

yea, as much as the alien DNA was needed to operate guns and stuff, i assumed the fluid was used for something similar for the aircraft

8/19/2009 9:46:27 PM

I'm afraid you can.

Why would fuel turn a species on a planet you've never fucking been to before into your own species?

This is like if the Prawns spoke english before arriving on earth or some shit.

8/19/2009 9:48:24 PM

bingo.

There wasnt a time during the movie where my brain didnt accept what the movie gave me because everyone is so ignorant about the aliens.

The worst thing you can do in a movie like this is try to make a super advanced technology seem realistic in todays terms. Which means you just dont try to worry about the tech and focus on the story.

8/19/2009 9:50:28 PM

maybe it's happened on other planets before, so thats why Christopher knew how to reverse it

it's not out of the question

8/19/2009 9:52:38 PM

The logic problems weren't just with alien technology....... Just lots of basic plot issues, I'm not talking about science here, I couldn't care less about the intricacies or feasibility of Prawn technology.

8/20/2009 12:10:47 AM

I haven't read the thread to avoid spoilers but Spill.com gave it a "Better Than Sex" rating. I intend to check this out soon.

8/20/2009 12:53:50 AM

^^ like what?

8/20/2009 1:23:28 AM

[Edited on August 20, 2009 at 1:23 AM. Reason : double post]

8/20/2009 1:23:28 AM

Like virtually everything involving alien weapons(NOT THE TECHNOLOGY OF THEM) being nonsense, for one.

[Edited on August 20, 2009 at 2:08 AM. Reason : such as all logic regarding the black market.]

8/20/2009 1:57:35 AM

Quote :

"-switching between documentary/third person ruins a lot "

yes the switching between doc and third was really forced and rough. It's just kind of lazy and shows
a lack of creativity in a way.

Blomkamp should have watched stuff like Man Bites Dog. Man Bites Dog does it OH SO RIGHT.

[Edited on August 20, 2009 at 2:11 AM. Reason : .]

8/20/2009 2:10:37 AM

i hate most movies that i see but i thought this was great.. most original sci-fi movie in years

8/20/2009 2:13:59 AM

What? Half of the movie was blatantly and unapologetically borrowed from other Sci-Fi.

Not even the most original or best Sci-Fi in the past three months.

8/20/2009 2:47:14 AM

I thought there were a lot of holes in the plot that i just did not understand.

1.) Why did the alien ship come to earth in the first place

2.) How is that the "fuel" took 20 years to collect yet still works even though the dude squirted himself in the face.

8/20/2009 8:39:43 AM

Quote :

"Why would fuel turn a species on a planet you've never fucking been to before into your own species?"

Quote :

"2.) How is that the "fuel" took 20 years to collect yet still works even though the dude squirted himself in the face."

Why are you people assuming that what sprayed him in the face was the fuel? It's left ambiguous enough that you could just as easily think it was a form of "germ warfare protection" to keep someone from misusing/breaking the vile that contained the fuel.

[Edited on August 20, 2009 at 8:42 AM. Reason : .]

8/20/2009 8:42:27 AM

Quote :

"Why did the alien ship come to earth in the first place"

How is this a plot hole? It doesnt fucking matter why the ship is there, thats not the point of the movie, nor do they ever reference the reason for its arrival.

Thats like saying another plot hole is why we didnt see the alien home world. Its completely irrelevant to the story and they dont mention it for that reason.

The same can be said about why the black liquid turns him slowly into a prawn. The point isnt to focus on the logistics of how this alien made up technology works, but to provide a route for the main character to progress through his story.

He started out as a bumbling anti-prawn fool and through the circumstances he found himself in he experienced what the prawns were going through and found his own humanity.

You're getting caught up in the sci-fi wrapper the story was packaged in.

I do agree about the badguys being pretty generic. Even if the movie was more about the main characters own struggle, you want that satisfaction of the bad guy getting their due. The only satisfying death was the nigerian leader.

8/20/2009 9:14:56 AM

I WANT TO EAT YOUR POWER

8/20/2009 9:53:10 AM

Quote :

"I thought there were a lot of holes in the plot that i just did not understand. 1.) Why did the alien ship come to earth in the first place 2.) How is that the "fuel" took 20 years to collect yet still works even though the dude squirted himself in the face."

1 - the exact reasoning for their arrival not being explained isn't a plot hole. It's just not part of the story. One time, I was standing on the corner across from the library waiting to cross. A guy came by, took a step toward where I was and swung at me (which I dodged) and then kept walking while staring at me. I have no idea what he did before then, why he did it, or what he did afterward. That's not a "plot hole" in my life.

I believe they specifically said, we do not know why they came. They did say that when they cut into the ship, the aliens were malnourished. That leads me to believe that one possibility is that they were out of food for some reason. They stopped at a planet that could sustain life. - Maybe their super light-speed drive broke and their voyage was taking longer than expected, so they ran out of food (this has happened in the past of humans). Maybe they knew their only chance was to head to a planet where they could feed. Or maybe they knew they could fix their super light-speed drive, but it was going to take a while so they had to get somewhere that could sustain life in the meantime, like earth.

Not long after they were there, Christopher and the command module dropped down. I believe that was so he could continue to work on it even if the humans did something with the rest of the aliens. Or so that he wouldn't be separated from the command module, which needed repair.

That said, I like a story that isn't afraid to not tell you everything. And you really don't need to know that stuff to understand or enjoy the story. And even then, you don't have to be the most imaginative person to fill it in a little if you want.


2) as mentioned, we don't know for sure that the liquid sprayed in his face is the same as what they put in the canister. Or if it is the same as the "fuel."

I don't recall, did he say it took 20years to collect the liquid, the fuel, or enough stuff to make that drop that went into the canister? because those were not all the same thing. If you recall, the liquid from the technology was put through the chemistry setup to get the drop that went into the canister. And I believe it was a single drop. Which may have been all that was needed to "activate" or create whatever the final "fuel" was. And who knows what or how much of what that single drop was mixed with. What we saw was pretty much the end of 20yrs of work. And we didn't see a lecture about how it worked, and I'm glad we didn't. I hate when a character in a movie stops and explains things when it does nothing to further the plot. I don't need to know how that shit works. That's when you get into trouble and are more likely to create plot holes - trying to explain make believe technology.

Quote :

"Like virtually everything involving alien weapons(NOT THE TECHNOLOGY OF THEM) being nonsense, for one."

Like the nigerians collecting weapons they couldn't use? They were getting them dirt cheap and it was only one aspect of their business. If they could eventually use them, they had a stockpile that would make them very powerful. Whether they wanted to use them, or sell them. They were no different than the wealthy, white arms dealers in the story who were stockpiling weapons they couldn't use.

Or was it something else?

[Edited on August 20, 2009 at 5:49 PM. Reason : .]

8/20/2009 5:46:40 PM

Quote :

"How is this a plot hole? It doesnt fucking matter why the ship is there, thats not the point of the movie, nor do they ever reference the reason for its arrival."

The plot hole is that supposedly the ship broke down or whatever to get the aliens there. Yet, somehow the mother ship still seems to be in good enough shape to go back to the home world of the aliens. Why then did Chris not dump his buddies off on Earth; then make a run back to the home world.

8/20/2009 6:32:32 PM

for those of you that hated the movie, what are some examples of movies that you like?

8/20/2009 6:51:23 PM

^^ because he didnt have enough of the black liquid.

the point is that we shouldnt be able to understand why its there. because we wouldnt understand what it takes to break that kind of technology.

8/20/2009 7:24:23 PM

How can you say alien weapons are nonsense?

8/20/2009 7:31:33 PM

Because they're just being trolls and/or 'that guy' who tries to break down a SCIENCE FICTION movie.

The plane mothership will not take off.

8/20/2009 8:58:15 PM

FACK

8/21/2009 1:00:53 AM

^^I'm sorry I don't find a largely unoriginal, largely illogical, poor style exercising, lazy but fun attempt at a SUMMER ACTION MOVIE to be the "best, most original sci-fi in years," as many others seem to think. much less the best or most original sci-fi in the last three months, as I said before.

8/21/2009 1:13:05 AM

that entire post gets a giant

8/21/2009 2:11:53 AM

the bones in your feet get a too...

[Edited on August 21, 2009 at 2:23 AM. Reason : drink some milk yao]

8/21/2009 2:22:53 AM

^^that entire post gets a giant

8/21/2009 4:18:37 AM

Bweez

you're pretty much a big joke ITT. You dont explain your stance at all.

I dont think anyone gives two prawn shits if you like the movie or not. The point is to disuss the film; which you aren't doing.

Why dont you try explaining your viewpoint on why it was so bad and unoriginal and full of holes?

And maybe give it a go without typing your post in all caps?

8/21/2009 9:21:43 AM

Quote :

"best, most only original sci-fi in years"

8/21/2009 9:39:28 AM

How ironic. I work in District 9....

8/21/2009 12:39:52 PM

I like Bweez, I typically think he is a pretty quality poster.

However, I'm a bit troubled by his recent posts. First, there's his bashing of District 9. But, what is even more concerning is his mention of a scene from "Knowing" in the thread about favorite movie/tv scenes.

I just don't know what to think any more.

8/21/2009 3:17:50 PM

^lol, I've been to like three movies in the past few months, and the plane crash set piece was undeniably the best scene in any of those three... Posted the first thing that came to mind rather than reach back for ten stereotypical favorite scenes from Jaws and shit.

Quote :

"And maybe give it a go without typing your post in all caps?"

I made a post in all caps?

Quote :

"Why dont you try explaining your viewpoint on why it was so bad and unoriginal and full of holes? "

I never said it's "so bad." It's a fun action movie. I'm just saying it's not exactly super smart and clever and original, and there at least are two better science fiction films from the past five months(Star Trek, Moon). Borrows heavily from The Fly, especially Alien Nation, and hell, even E.T. It almost uses these sources for smart, clever things, but it devolves into a preachy summer action flick.

The documentary style starts out great but becomes a huge gimmick used for unnecessary exposition halfway through. Could have been done much better, and it's just frustrating and seemingly lazy. Seriously should have either figured out creatively how to keep the documentary style the whole time, a la "Man Bites Dog," "[rec]," etc, or something else.

If people are going to simply say "OMG BEST MOVIE EVARRR," or "go. see. this. movie. nao." with no discussion, then I'm going to list reasons(admittedly broad reasons with little explanation in previous posts) I feel it doesn't deserve the "second coming of amazing science fiction" title, which is all I've been doing in this thread, shit. It's a "trying-to-be-different" summer sci-fi action flick that could have been a great work of science fiction.

I'm glad that a sci-fi movie is popular. I just wish it was as good as it could have easily been. SUE ME (ALL CAPS).

[Edited on August 21, 2009 at 5:20 PM. Reason : /]

8/21/2009 5:19:17 PM

Ok, you have made your point. This thread should end for you.

NOW I MUST SEE THIS PERFECT MOVIE AGAIN NAO! HUMP HUMP HUMP SWEET!

8/21/2009 6:33:06 PM

^^ You make some good points. I've not seen Moon, but now I'm probably going to check it out. Star Trek was really good, but it's not exactly new or fresh. Let's face it, it's a very safe play. There have been how many Star Trek movies and series that have been successful? It was great, and they did a great job bringing it back. But they had a huge head start as far as characters and concept go. They really just had to execute (which they did very well).

Alien Nation was years ago. And my guess is that there are a lot of people (read most early to mid-twenty somethings and all of those younger) who are not familiar with it at all. The Fly came out 23 years ago. And it may even be a tip of the hat as much as anything. I assure you that every film you've mentioned has seemingly borrowed from something made in the 23 years prior to its release.

Compared to recent stuff, this movie is fairly fresh for big audiences. Most people have not and will not ever see Man Bites Dog, many have not seen Alien Nation, and so on. If we compare this to every movie ever made, it's definitely not top 10. But it's a pretty damn good Sci Fi movie. And that's a genre that doesn't usually reach large audiences. It's limpresive that this movie can do so on a budget of 30million, Star Trek needed 150million and rehashed characters.

What part of the story was preachy? There were some low lying social undertones, but at no point was it preachy.

And as others mentioned, the bad guys were one dimensional. But the story isn't really a good guys vs bad guys story. They were not characters we needed to get to know.

It's not the greatest film of all time. But the masses have not heard of Moon. Everybody saw Star Trek because it was pretty much a sure thing. And most people 26 and younger have not heard of Alien Nation and maybe not even The Fly, let alone seen either any time recently. Compared to other recent, and big sci fi releases... this deserves all of the attention it's getting.

8/21/2009 6:58:45 PM

i couldnt tell if the the crash, drag him from the ship scene was intended as a tribute to Black Hawk Down or a ripoff, b/c it was almost a shot-for-shot recreation of one of the crash scenes from that film

8/22/2009 2:06:12 AM

O RLY?

8/22/2009 2:23:18 AM

Quote :

" Most people have not and will not ever see Man Bites Dog"

What? I was just pointing out a film that does the documentary style almost perfectly, throughout the entire film, in case anyone was interested...

[Edited on August 22, 2009 at 3:45 AM. Reason : .]

8/22/2009 3:44:51 AM

I saw this last night and enjoyed it.

8/22/2009 1:38:29 PM

Just got back from seeing this with the wife and neither of us really liked it. I didn't dislike it but wish we would have rented it instead.

***************************





Over half of the movie was generic action with unbelievable circumstances. Continually attacking a huge exoskeleton device with small arms? No heavy firepower around district 9 during the exoskeleton and command module ascent? No tanks, fighters, or armed helicopters are on hand, they just left the ship floating up above Johannesburg with no military presence on board or without being damn sure they disabled the ship?

Overall I expected it to be more Sci-fi and less generic action. I did like the look and feel of the aliens but felt that 95% of the movie would be exactly the same with humans replacing the aliens.



*******************************************************

8/23/2009 6:29:45 PM

I realized I haven't added my love.

This moive was pretty fucking cool. A little bit much in the action department towards the end... but that was done well as well so...

definitely a excellent Sci-Fi flick to put in the catalog

8/23/2009 7:16:32 PM

Quote :

"95% of the movie would be exactly the same with humans black people replacing the aliens"

8/23/2009 8:20:18 PM

bweez,

Name some of the many SCIFI flicks that have came out on the big screen in the past 3 months that are more original than this movie.

8/23/2009 11:03:09 PM

Moon. I mean, it's obviously debatable (a retarded, not very interesting debate), I just think people are being way too quick to say "MOST/ONLY ORIGINAL SCI-FI IN YEARS."

8/24/2009 12:00:45 AM

Quote :

"Why would fuel turn a species on a planet you've never fucking been to before into your own species?"

go spray yourself in the face with some nuclear fuel (human technology) and report back to me how you feel, or how your genes might be affected.

i didn't think it was a stretch to think that super concentrated fuel like that (enough to go across star systems) would not fuck you up.

it just ties into the whole DNA/alien technology motif.

[Edited on August 24, 2009 at 8:50 AM. Reason : science fiction!]

8/24/2009 8:49:58 AM

by looking at the moon thread I've realized that Bweez is not "just some troll"

that has to be said

8/24/2009 11:13:49 AM

i had a couple of issues with minor details (don't you think the MNU would have disabled his security code? the camera moves around way too much in some parts too) but overall i liked the movie. i'll watch the sequel.

i kept hearing it was super gory/bloody, but it was all video game style gore, not really anything disgusting.

8/24/2009 1:39:48 PM

I saw it yesterday with the wife, she liked it more than I did.

You have to wonder if it takes only two people with the alien guns to break into the MNU why are the aliens not using thier own weapons to get out of the slums? Or at least take the cat food. haha

It was decent, I will see a sequel if one comes out.

8/24/2009 3:06:22 PM