In the early 80’s a space ship stalled over Johannesburg located in south Africa. The ship sat there for upwards of twenty years before human intelligence was able to cut their way into it. Once inside they found malnourished and scared aliens. Humans nicknamed the aliens “prawns” because they look like a shrimp in the sea. Humans put on a good front in looking out for the alien’s welfare. In reality they only wanted to use them for their DNA to enhance technology.
District 9 has a distinct way of engaging the viewers emotions. “In Looking at Movies, it says Because most movies seek to engage viewers’ emotions and transport them inside the world presented onscreen.” After all it is science fiction and takes the viewers into a different world than the world they are living in. A lot of movies in today focus on the negative aspects of our world and societies and in turn negatively impact moviegoers. The producers of this film did a great job in taking the audience out of reality.
Throughout the movie there was a lot of cutting on action techniques. The camera switched back and forth between the people being interviewed, aliens, law enforcement, and military personnel. Succeeded in blocking out what they refer too in the book “In Looking at Movies, it says designed to hide the instantaneous and potentially jarring shift from camera view point to another. The camera used quick shots to film the aliens creating havoc and destruction in the slums they created. The film would turn to the Nigerian people using aliens for their DNA, interviewing them, and filming the Nigerian gangs. The aliens created enough destruction for the MNU to start a big operation into evicting the aliens. The film did a lot of low-angle shots to make the aliens look bigger than humans. I believe to show the magnitude of their race to the human race in the scenes of eviction (District 9). Many close-ups between the space ship, helicopters, and land below.
Wikus Van de Merve head of MNU is head of the operation throughout the movie but in the end becomes a fugitive. In the scene of Wikus raiding Christopher’s house he collects a bottle with an alien name printed on it for evidence. (District 9). He plays around with it and eventually sprays himself in the face with the DNA that was in the bottle. Wikus has begun his transformation into alien unknowingly. Nigerian gang wants to chop his alien arm off for Witch practices but unable to follow through. The scenes fade in/out of his transformation. Also, the film details fast close-ups of the actors and actresses’ emotions throughout the film.
In the end of the film the close ups of Christopher and his son show the intensity and importance to get fuel for the small space craft that was shown falling from the mother ship in the footage that Les Feldman spoke of in his interview (District 9). Wikus and Christopher become partners to combat the humans. The film has Wikus as a superhero in a low-angle shot to take on the law enforcement and army. There is a lot of emotion involved due to the intense fight. In the background Christopher and his son get the small space ship up and running and fly up to the mother space ship meanwhile Wikus is battling the humans. Once docked Christopher was able to navigate the mother ship back to the planet they originally came from.
The implicit meaning of this film I would assume ties into the culture of where it was filmed in Africa. The government relocating the different populations of people and the deep poverty.
