District 9 (Brodie)

I loved it. I'm going to try not to give anything away. I went into the movie knowing nothing and was glad I did.

I really liked the first-person documentary style, and the CG effects were great. The story was very thought-provoking without the sledge hammer bluntness we can usually expect from Hollywood. Though, the choice of setting was inescapably poignant. The "multi-national" nature of the people shown ensured that no one could evade the finger that was being pointed at humanity. And what a finger! The message was bleak, dark, and depressing. The one party scene that could have been fun and celebratory was shown as invasive, uncomfortable, and unbearable.

There was only one likeable character--well, one and a half if you count his son. And there were other glimmers of decency in some minor tertiary characters--those people who knew this was a story worth telling and exposing.

So why did I "love" a movie that was so bleak? Well, it was certainly original and different. It had some of the most gruesome violence I've seen since the exploding zombies of Planet Terror, and to me that was part of the point--in a world of such violence, there are no good guys. There is no Bruce Willis to sweep in and save the day. The world is what we make of it, so if we create a world of hatred and violence, then that's what we get.

For those of you looking for an action-packed movie that doesn't have a "bigger message," District 9 should still satisfy. It was pretty non-stop, and as I said, was filled with some great violence.

I don't know about you, but I'm anxious to see what will happen in three years.