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Movies / On DVD / District 9
District 9

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District 9 (2009)

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Reviews Counted:238

Fresh:215

Rotten:23

Average Rating:7.8/10

Consensus: Technically brilliant and emotionally wrenching, District 9 has action, imagination, and all the elements of a thoroughly entertaining science-fiction classic.

Rated: 15 [See Full Rating] for bloody violence and pervasive language.

Runtime: 1 hr 52 mins

Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy

Theatrical Release:04-09-2009

Synopsis: Director Neill Blomkamp teams with producer Peter Jackson for this tale of extraterrestrial refugees stuck in contemporary South Africa. It's been 28 years since the aliens made first contact, but... Director Neill Blomkamp teams with producer Peter Jackson for this tale of extraterrestrial refugees stuck in contemporary South Africa. It's been 28 years since the aliens made first contact, but there was never any attack from the skies, nor any profound technological revelation capable of advancing our society. Instead, the aliens were treated as refugees. They were the last of their kind, and in order to accommodate them, the government of South Africa set up a makeshift home in District 9 as politicians and world leaders debated how to handle the situation. As the humans begin to grow wary of the unwelcome intruders, a private company called Multi-National United (MNU) is assigned the task of controlling the aliens. But MNU is less interested in the aliens' welfare than attempting to understand how their weaponry works. Should they manage to make that breakthrough, they will receive tremendous profits to fund their research. Unfortunately, the highly advanced weaponry requires alien DNA in order to be activated. When MNU field operative Wikus van der Merwe (Sharlto Copley) is exposed to biotechnology that causes his DNA to mutate, the tensions between the aliens and the humans intensifies. Wikus is the key to unlocking the alien's technology, and he quickly becomes the most wanted man on the planet. Ostracized and isolated, Wikus retreats to District 9 in a desperate bid to shake his dogged pursuers. [More]

Starring: Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, David James, Mandla Gaduka

Starring: Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, David James, Mandla Gaduka, William Allen Young, Vanessa Haywood, Kenneth Nkosi, Devlin Brown

Director: Neill Blomkamp

Director: Neill Blomkamp
Screenwriter: Neill Blomkamp, Terri Tatchell
Producer: Peter Jackson, Carolynne Cunningham
Composer: Clinton Shorter
Studio: Sony Pictures Entertainment

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for District 9

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41 - 60 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 >> >|
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Le film de Neill Blomkamp brille de par son audace et la pertinence de son propos.

Full Review Source: Panorama | comment Comment
10/12/09
Jean-François Vandeuren
Jean-François Vandeuren
Panorama

We've seen most of the film's elements before ... but all these ideas have never been assembled in exactly this manner before, let alone with Blomkamp's wit and style.

Full Review Source: Brand X | comment Comment
09/20/09
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
Brand X

Works as political commentary, blood-splattering action flick and sneaky-funny comedy.

Full Review Source: Florida Times-Union | comment Comment
09/10/09
Matt Soergel
Matt Soergel
Florida Times-Union

We'll know if District 9 has become an instant cult classic if this Halloween, children start dressing up as prawns.

Full Review Source: CultureCatch | comment 6 Comments
09/10/09
Brandon Judell
Brandon Judell
CultureCatch

Peter Jackson let Neil Blomkamp make his Bad Taste but with all of Jackson's expensive toys.

Full Review Source: Can Magazine | comment Comment
09/09/09
Fred Topel
Fred Topel
Can Magazine

Original in concept and thoroughly intense, this alien encampment sci-fi thriller quickly devolves into a gritty slaughter chase that never bores but rarely surprises.

Full Review Source: Spectrum (St. George, Utah) | comment 10 Comments
09/08/09
Bruce Bennett
Bruce Bennett
Spectrum (St. George, Utah)

District 9 is a ferocious fable. Potent and provocative, it is an allegory for our time. It is bursting with contemporary themes -- oppression, greed, power, propaganda, and the conflict of disparate cultures.

Full Review Source: tonymacklin.net | comment 4 Comments
09/08/09
Tony Macklin
Tony Macklin
tonymacklin.net

You don’t feel bamboozled, fooled, or patronized by District 9, as you did by most of the summer blockbusters. You feel winded, shaken, and shamed.

Full Review Source: New Yorker | comment 15 Comments
09/07/09
Anthony Lane
Anthony Lane
New Yorker

Intriguing but ultimately jejune space-bug yarn

Full Review Source: CinePassion | comment 7 Comments
09/04/09
Fernando F. Croce
Fernando F. Croce
CinePassion

Easily one of the best and most surprising films of the summer, an edge-of-your-seat actioneer that represents the very best that science fiction has to offer.

Full Review Source: BrandonFibbs.com | comment Comment
09/03/09
Brandon Fibbs
Brandon Fibbs
BrandonFibbs.com

District 9 doesn't carry much weight as sociopolitical commentary or satire but, taken on the merits of its shrewd story sense and craftsmanship, it's a popcorn entertainment destined to stay in our minds.

Full Review Source: Cinema Writer | comment Comment
08/31/09
Jay Antani
Jay Antani
Cinema Writer

District 9 is an odd melange of a movie: part fake documentary, part body horror, part office comedy and part Mechwarrior: It's fresh and exciting if not groundbreaking.

Full Review Source: Washington Times | comment 3 Comments
08/28/09
Sonny Bunch
Sonny Bunch
Washington Times

A funny, violently gross, and wildly enthralling addition to the science fiction canon.

Full Review Source: Windy City Times | comment 3 Comments
08/26/09
Richard Knight
Richard Knight
Windy City Times

a sharp-edged science fiction parable that mixes metaphor and violent action with such dizzying confidence that you leave the theater feeling charged and alive

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment 2 Comments
08/25/09
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

An energetic and tantalizing film that promises more than it can ultimately deliver

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment 2 Comments
08/24/09
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
Apollo Guide

[The "popcorn" egg-burning scene] in a way represents the whole film: There's popcorn appeal for casual viewers, but something more vital and desperate at stake underneath.

Full Review Source: Decent Films Guide | comment Comment
08/24/09
Steven D. Greydanus
Steven D. Greydanus
Decent Films Guide

Wielding wicked retribution, the clever District 9 reinvents alien invasion with a wry wink.

Full Review Source: Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA) | comment 5 Comments
08/21/09
John Wirt
John Wirt
Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA)

District 9 is a down and dirty sci-fi flick that ... makes a point about racial prejudice.

Full Review Source: Atlantic City Weekly | comment 1 Comment
08/21/09
Lori Hoffman
Lori Hoffman
Atlantic City Weekly

Copley's wild-eyed performance as the luckless Wikus has a lot going for it. The fact that he's so ridiculous -- and so dogged -- adds to the pathos, for it's patently clear Blomkamp has no taste for easy endings.

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment 1 Comment
08/21/09
Sandra Hall
Sandra Hall
Sydney Morning Herald

It's a fascinating hybrid of a film, an anti-Hollywood movie which incorporates a great deal of contemporary big-budget elements ... but with a tart, subversive sense of humour that leavens the violence and mayhem.

Full Review Source: The Australian | comment 4 Comments
08/21/09
David Stratton
David Stratton
The Australian
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 >> >|
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Latest News for District 9

December 31, 2009: RT on DVD: District 9, Ponyo, Young Victoria
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December 21, 2009: RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: District 9 and (500) Days of Summer
One would think that the week of Christmas would bring with it a plethora of new releases in home video, but such is unfortunately not quite the case. Though there are a... More...

December 07, 2009: Help Us Choose the Community Golden Tomato Award
If you're a regular RT reader, then you're probably familiar with our end-of-year Golden Tomato Awards. The long and short of it is that we compile a list of the films released... More...

October 23, 2009: Blomkamp Gets to Work on District 9 Follow-Up Opens in new window
Few details are known about the project, but director Neill Blomkamp has signed a deal that will give him creative control over his untitled follow-up to "District 9." More...

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