EBC Film Reviews: Elysium

Film Review: Elysium
written & directed by Neill Blomkamp
released: 9 August 2013
length: 1 hour 49 minutes​

I'm not exactly sure why, but even knowing about Elysium's huge budget, A-list cast, and overtly sociopolitical message, I expected it to be as good as District 9. My perspective of Neill Blomkamp's new film, and thus my review of it, is colored by that mistake. So I should probably preface the meat of this analysis by acknowledging that no, Elysium is not a bad movie. It's just conventional and one-dimensional compared to its predecessor.

If you watch Elysium without having first seen District 9 or any of Blomkamp's earlier work, you'll probably greatly enjoy this film. Certainly Blomkamp's stylistic tendencies are all intact: the gritty, textured feel; the grounded twist on high-browed scifi; the over-dramatized blood and explosions; the use of handheld cameras and slow motion action scenes. Elysium doesn't hoist the mockumentary flag that District 9 used to great effect, but the gun battles feel just as raw; sequences of barely controlled chaos keep the viewer keenly aware of the threat of danger by way of bullets, katanas, and wayward grenades. You really can't fault this film for the way Blomkamp handles its action. Which is a big plus, because while District 9 is a blood- and grit-soaked character piece, Elysium is, for all intents and purposes, a by-the-numbers action vehicle.

Oh, there are characters, to be sure. Boasting a larger and more diverse cast than the South African lineup of D9, Elysium offers an archetype for every occasion: the cold, calculating politician! the adrenal, psychopathic mercenary! the weepy but dutiful love interest! And at the heart of the action, the baldheaded everyman with a shady past who happens to be an expert on operating every weapon ever created. Meet Bruce Wi Matt Damon.

I'm not gonna recap the plot at all (mostly because you can find out the whole damn plot yourself just by watching the trailer), but in terms of mechanics, character dynamics, twists, and pacing, the story performs just well enough to get by, without ever really reaching for the greatness that its heavy and complex subject matter deserves.

Look, there's nothing wrong with a summer action flick having a relatively weak plot, or transparent characterization, or a cringey brostep-meets-Inception score. Pacific Rim had all of those same flaws and nobody, including myself, complained at all. The difference is that del Toro's aliens-n-robots blockbuster doesn't try to half-assedly pose as a searing social commentary and cerebral drama. It's an action movie that recognizes its own limits, rarely over-reaching or coloring outside the lines. Elysium wants to be so much more than it is, and that discrepancy makes the actual product just a little hard to stomach.

written by Modern Sin

 

[Kylia Quilor]

Just because the movie has a conflict between rich and poor doesn't mean its social commentary.

The conflict between rich and poor has been a trope in literature forever.

 

[Seven Deaths]

See, I went to see this film with a friend of mine. While he saw the fight between the rich and poor, I actually saw a futuristic metaphor for Mexicans escaping to America. I'd say that's social commentary.

 

[modernsin]

Just because the movie has a conflict between rich and poor doesn't mean its social commentary.

The conflict between rich and poor has been a trope in literature forever.

It's not just a general critique on class inequality. There's a few fairly specific parallels to the Occupy debacle a couple years ago, and of course the anxieties about economic collapse and overpopulation are more prevalent in 2013 than they would have been ten years ago. Blomkamp's not milking the literary elements of the rich/poor dichotomy, he's obviously trying way too hard to make a sociopolitical statement. The gesture itself is not a bad thing per se, but its ham-fistedness unfortunately throws much of the film off-balance. I still liked the action sequences, and the acting was pretty great all around. The only thing Blomkamp is guilty of is aiming too high and fumbling a bit.

And SD's right on about the Mexican immigration and deportation references. Notice the racial divide in the film. I'm fairly sure that literally every Elysium citizen was white, whereas apparently the only white Earthling was Damon himself.

 

[Seven Deaths]

Plus they all spoke Spanish... And everyone on Elysium seemed to speak French. Then the random Australian.

 

[modernsin]

Plus they all spoke Spanish... And everyone on Elysium seemed to speak French. Then the random Australian.

Reminded me of last year's Rian Johnson flick Looper, where all the future-Americans spoke Chinese because the two cultures were so closely ingrained.

 

[Seven Deaths]

Plus they all spoke Spanish... And everyone on Elysium seemed to speak French. Then the random Australian.

Reminded me of last year's Rian Johnson flick Looper, where all the future-Americans spoke Chinese because the two cultures were so closely ingrained.

Yeah, there's another movie that fell short of expectations..

 

[Huxwells Fortier-Shaw]

Interesting review! Haven't seen it yet, but saw District 9 and thought it was magnificent. If it weren't for this review, I'd probably go into the movie theatre with the same prejudice.


PS: has there ever been a review on the movie Prometheus? As it links back to the old and glorious Alien-movies, I find it rather intruiging.. And confusing. I'm interested in seeing if any of you figured it out yet. :evil:

 

[modernsin]

Thanks, Huxwells! I really enjoyed D9 as well. Like many others, I went into the theater without having any expectations for what the film would be about, other than the fact that there are aliens and some people with weird accents. But the pacing and plot structure of District 9 are so unconventional, especially for an action-oriented film, that I was really impressed with the story. It had its flaws, but I willing to overlook them simply because of how fresh the movie felt. From what I hear, the vast majority of the dialogue was improvised, which added to the realistic tone.

 

[Lethen]

Just because the movie has a conflict between rich and poor doesn't mean its social commentary.

The conflict between rich and poor has been a trope in literature forever.

Sure that's been a trope for ages, but the relevance of themes in society - and thus its' media - ebbs and flows with the times.

So many movies during the Cold War reflected (Western) anxiety about nuclear holocaust; MAD; and the unknown/mysterious Russian enemy. And that's only one example. There are hundreds.