SciFi (USA, NZ, RSA, CND — 2009)

Set in Johannesburg, South Africa, District 9 begins as a mock documentary about the imminent eviction of extraterrestrials from a pathetic shantytown (called District 9). The creatures, it turns out, have been on Earth for years, having arrived sickly and starving. Initially received by humans with compassion and care, the aliens are now mired in blighted conditions typical of long-term refugee camps unwanted by a hostile, host society. With the creatures' care contracted out to a for-profit corporation, the shantytown has become a violent slum. The aliens sift through massive piles of junk while their minders secretly research weapons technology that arrived on the visitors' spacecraft. Against this backdrop is a more personal story about a bureaucrat named Wikus who is accidentally exposed to a DNA-altering substance. As he begins metamorphosing into one of the creatures, Wikus goes on the run from scientists who want to harvest his evolving, new parts and aliens who see him as a threat.

Directed by: Neill Blomkamp
Written by: Neill Blomkamp, Terri Tatchell
Produced by: Peter Jackson, Carolynne Cunningham
Starring: Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, Nathalie Boltt, Sylvaine Strike

Length: 108 mins.
Rating: 15 (BBFC)

Audio Tracks: en, de
Subtitles: en, de, tr
DVD/BD Region: 2
Purchased on: 13 March 2012