Movie Review: Elysium (2013)

by Naharnet Newsdesk 09 August 2013, 19:58

Neill Blomkamp's "District 9" is hands down one of the greatest science fiction movies I have ever watched. It came out of nowhere and punched everyone in the face, hard, and introduced us to a great new director (Blomkap) and a fantastic new actor, Sharlto Copley. Blomkap's follow-up, "Elysium", has a lot to live up to, and while it doesn't reach the same heights as "District 9", it's still a great sci-fi movie in its own right, and solidifies Neill Blomkamp as an incredibly creative writer/director who isn't afraid to create something original, and most importantly, relevant.

The movie is set in the year 2154, and Earth is pretty much a shit hole at that point. All the rich people have packed up and gone to Elysium, a beautiful and pristine space colony that has no pollution, no disease, no crime...it's basically perfect. Max DeCosta (Matt Damon) lives on Earth, and after he experiences an accident at work that leaves him with very little time to live, he realizes that the only way he can stay alive is to get to Elysium, and he's willing to do whatever it takes to get there.

I'll start with the good; the movie looks gorgeous. The space station itself looks amazing, and so do all the ships, the architecture, and the visual effects. The action is sharp and intense, and made all the more memorable thanks to sudden bursts of extreme violence. Seriously, plenty of heads get blown off in this movie.

I also really love that Blomkap's movies always have some social commentary, and although this may have felt a little preachy at times, it still has something to say about our society and where we could be headed, and not many sci-fi movies do that today. Blomkap has only made 2 films, yet they're both completely original, personal, and intelligent.

Matt Damon does a great job as Max; he's a likable and relatable character, yet you don't quite feel much attachment to him. That has nothing to do with Damon's performance, he's quite good, but the character's story arc is given away very early on in the movie, so you pretty much know exactly what's going to happen to him 5 minutes into the film. Jodie Foster is fine as Elysium's secretary of defense, Delacourt, but I personally wasn't feeling the "future Elysium English" accent she had going. The true star of "Elysium", however, is Sharlto Copely, who once again does a brilliant job. He plays agent Kruger, a badass mercenary sent to terminate Max, and he is all kinds of crazy. After watching this, I can comfortably say that Copely is now one of my favorite actors.

Now for the less positive aspects of the film: I had a hard time connecting to any of the characters (except Copley's). Some of the storytelling was a little heavy-handed, which robbed many scenes of any emotional weight, especially when you consider that the opening 5 minutes pretty much tell you exactly how the movie will end. The soundtrack is also distracting, with loud instrumental music playing in the background when two characters are just trying to have an intimate moment, so none of it feels real. The movie really shines when it focuses on the action and the Max/Kruger conflict, though, as well as the aesthetic differences between an overpopulated and polluted earth, and Elysium's perfection. It's just unfortunate that all the emotional stuff just doesn't resonate.

Anthony's Verdict:

While I do have my fair share of issues with the movie, I still think it's great. The more I think about it, the more I like it, and while I definitely wish the emotional stuff worked more like it did in "District 9", I can't deny that "Elysium" does manage to get a lot right. Original, expertly directed, and featuring another incredible performance by Sharlto Copley, "Elysium" is one sci-fi movie you don't want to miss.

Numerical Score: 8/10

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