Elysium

Blomkamp, Kosinski, Snyder, etc. are all cut from the same cloth. Visually, they are very original, with an incredible sense of innovation and aesthetic creativity, usually producing simpler, even skeletal films. It's not always necessarily bad, but Elysium was in many ways very clichéd and unnecessarily simplistic. Of course, there is a political subtext with references to this or that regime, and a twisted rhetoric of "the poor, dirty and smelly" being the good guys and the "rich, successful, and thriving" being the bad guys. No matter how you look at it, we have a predictable plot with a clear script, several thrilling action scenes, and unbelievably polished and over-the-top shots that you'll want to see again and again. It's an unprecedented mix of futuristic sci-fi with brutally raw action and blurry imagery, that continues the trademark of District 9, just with a slightly bigger budget, so everything is smoother and more refined. Finally, we can't forget the show-off objects like the Versace lounge chair or the private Bugatti jet. The director is a big fan of image, and unfortunately, this film is purely "image-driven". Nevertheless, it is incredibly captivating filmmaking. (09/02/2013)

The classic writer's evergreen about how a promising debutant from a remote corner of our planet came to Hollywood only to be scrapped by the very next film makes me want to sing along this time. But this is Blomkamp’s own fault. I would have also tolerated the leftist agitprop about an individual rebelling against a ruthless system this time if I hadn't had to ask so many questions during the screening, especially regarding elementary logic - How does Elysium work? Why does his defense work in such a stupid way? Why is the Minister being punished for defending him? And many others. It functions mostly because action-wise it's probably the best in years, and Blomkamp delivers the shots and moments in that central cut with such certainty that other directors would sell their mothers and their souls for it. Go back to the slums, Neill. And take those metamorphosis ideas with you. One day you will be a worthy successor to James Cameron. (03/06/2014)

A story comparable with the picture book about the hippo that Damon quotes from in the movie, but the way they did it! A flawless rendition of the future that meets my demands. Perfect atmosphere and awesome action which sometimes stops short of the proverbial icing on the cake (which is a shame). The exosuit fight at the end is one of the best action sci-fi (hand-to-hand) fights I’ve ever seen. Blomkamp has gone a bit soft since last time and even though most of the characters behave like swines, they don’t mean it badly, which is a drawback compared to D9. The main powerhouse of the picture is the fantastic Sharlto Copley as Kruger, a fanatical psychopath (and my favorite character) whose alternative would probably have made for the best ending. Max, where are you?! (09/06/2013)

I considered District 9 a revelation in the field of dying sci-fi, and Blomkamp as a herald of a better future for the genre. Not that I didn't find any weaknesses in that movie, but it falls into the category of likable where you tend to overlook the flaws. Elysium was supposed to confirm Blomkamp's position as a promising talent and genre specialist. But alas. Elysium is a dull B-movie in terms of content, where the attempts at an intellectual superstructure come across as untrustworthy. The characters are flat, the story shallow, and the world Blomkamp created is naive and dysfunctional. I felt sorry for the actors, especially Jodie Foster. She belongs in A productions, but in movies of this kind, it feels inappropriate. For people who follow these types of productions, the film may be average, but I really expected more. A lot more. And I was warned about it by a number of negative comments. Overall impression: 25%. (10/27/2018)

The shaky (like really!) camera and crazy (like really!) editing hand in hand kills all action in this movie; and the stupidly and superficially forced social conscience would also have killed the action... If there were any. Simply awful. And if that wasn’t enough, it seems that half of the movie is missing. And of course it’s the half where Neill “I like to make ‘too many cooks’-style movies" Blomkamp devoted to the story, characters, elementary inner logic and the links between the (unlinked) scenes. (08/28/2013)