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

Runtime: 1 hr 52 mins

Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy

Theatrical Release:Aug 14, 2009 Wide

Box Office: $115,646,235

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

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Release:

Dec 22, 2009

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Widescreen - 1.85

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital 5.1 - English, French
  • Subtitles - English, Korean, Spanish
 
 
 
 

Reviews for District 9

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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The disconnect between the first and second half of the movie shows you how great District 9 could have been, if Jackson and his financial backers had allowed it, instead of what it is, exciting, but with nothing lingering in the mind after it was over.

Full Review Source: Examiner.com | comment Comment
12/25/09
Adam Lippe
Adam Lippe
Examiner.com

Science fiction as it was meant to be: intelligent and challenging.

Full Review Source: Oscar Guy | comment 3 Comments
12/12/09
Wesley Lovell
Wesley Lovell
Oscar Guy

full review at Movies for the Masses

Full Review Source: Movies for the Masses | comment 1 Comment
12/10/09
Joseph Proimakis
Joseph Proimakis
Movies for the Masses

Since the metaphor itself is pretty clear, Blomkamp goes for the visceral quality of the images and situations.

Full Review Source: Window to the Movies | comment Comment
12/07/09
Jeffrey Chen
Jeffrey Chen
Window to the Movies

The film persuades us to look beneath the aliens' chitinous exterior, and slowly eats at us as the images of racism, subjugation and internment become familiar and prod our conscience.

Full Review Source: Cinemalogue.com | comment Comment
12/06/09
Rubin Safaya
Rubin Safaya
Cinemalogue.com

"One of the most intelligent science fiction entries in the last ten years..."

Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment 2 Comments
12/06/09
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed

Un entretenido ejercicio de ciencia ficción que es también toda una alegoría sobre la condición racista y discriminadora del hombre.

Full Review Source: Uruguay Total | comment Comment
10/18/09
Enrique Buchichio
Enrique Buchichio
Uruguay Total

Um presente inesperado para todos os fãs de uma boa e inteligente ficção-científica.

Full Review Source: Cinema em Cena | comment Comment
10/16/09
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

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 2 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 9 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 2 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 13 Comments
09/07/09
Anthony Lane
Anthony Lane
New Yorker
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The film’s tone moves easily from the comic to the cruel, and the alien creatures look authentic. From the start, the film promises a fresh and thoughtful slice of Swiftian sci-fi.

Full Review Source: Sunday Times (UK) | comment Comment
09/07/09
Cosmo Landesman
Cosmo Landesman
Sunday Times (UK)

District 9 ends on a touching scene that evokes Ridley Scott's Blade Runner, but it's an honest film that repays its debts.

Full Review Source: Observer [UK] | comment Comment
09/07/09
Philip French
Philip French
Observer [UK]

You have to go back to 1979 and the premiere of Alien to find a sci-fi ET movie as thrilling and innovative as director Neill Blomkamp's District 9. His satirical fable on racism delivers all the toys and ploys for the fanboys while teasing and teaching t

Full Review Source: Teletext | comment 1 Comment
09/05/09
Victor Olliver
Victor Olliver
Teletext

Perhaps we’re witnessing a new dawn for politically engaged sci-fi and horror, with Blomkamp as a latter-day George Romero. Either way, this is a stunningly impressive debut.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment 3 Comments
09/04/09
Tom Huddlestone
Tom Huddlestone
Time Out
 
 
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Latest News for District 9

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...

September 03, 2009: Neill Blomkamp talks District 9 - RT Interview
District 9 heralds the arrival of 29-year-old South African-born director Neill Blomkamp as a major new voice in science-fiction. Infused with gritty, hand-held authenticity,... More...

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