Elysium:
****/*****, or 8/10
A
fabulously dystopian science fiction flick in every sense of the
term, courtesy of the still fairly inexperienced South-African
director Neill Blomkamp, who continues treading the path he started
with the smash hit District 9 (2009). No extra-terrestrials
this time, as Elysium focuses on our own local troubles on Earth.
Overpopulation and pollution have taken their toll on our world by
the time the year 2154 arrives, but for those stemming from rich and
powerful families, life is a never ending vacation on the space
station Elysium, where the wealthy look down on their fellow man
below in excessive luxury. Alarmingly protective to make sure the
huge masses won't infect the beauty of their private Heaven, the
common man is not allowed to visit the station, and most travel
between locations is done exclusively by robots. There's no sickness
on these Elysian fields made reality, as each residence has its
private medical pod which immediately cures all ailments. The ex-con
Max (Matt Damon) is not so lucky, as he gets exposed to a lethal dose
of radiation at the shuttle factory – you'd think such dangerous
but important work was delegated to droids too, but humans are no
doubt cheaper and more expendable in this sorry state of affairs –
after which he is informed he's only got five days left to live. In
an effort to save his sad existence, but soon that of the daughter of
the love of his life (Alice Braga) too, he gets involved with a shady
criminal organization that seeks to infiltrate Elysium to hack its
systems and make illegal human trafficking easier. All Max needs to
do is kidnap a visiting station dignitary – the terrific and
terrifyingly rude and unsympathetic William Fichtner, who considers
his Earthly brethern little more than unhygienic cheap labour – and
break into his head via a comlink wedged in his brain to steal the
neccesary data. Unfortunately, things go wrong and the target dies
during the heist. What's worse, he happened to be involved in a
covert operation orchestrated by Elysium's Minister of Defense (Jodie
Foster with a funny accent) – who has no moral qualms in shooting
down refugee ships from earth to make sure no poor people invade her
homeland – to seize government control. Soon Max must run for his
life, both to reach Elysium before the countdown ends, and to evade a
particularly nasty and amoral band of ruthless mercenaries led by the
unstable, maniacal Kruger (Sharlto Copley, who starred in District
9).
Blomkamp
develops this disturbingly inhumane world with its outrageous divide
between the haves and the have-nots – a not all too inconceivable
and unbelievable scenario considering our present day social
situation – to a frightfully effective extent, hearkening back to
similar dystopian genre classics of the the notoriously gloomy
Seventies the likes of Soylent Green and Rollerball,
illustrating a future society where all our present day problems
continue to exist, except they've grown to seemingly unsolvable
proportions. The potential consequences of our everyday indifference
and our political inabilites to end such increasing social inequality
are amply showcased in Elysium,
but not in such a heavy-hearted manner they alienate the audience.
Similarly, Blomkamp has put his design team to incredibly good use,
creating a visually lavish world which does not seem so farfetched in
terms of technological capabilities and is clearly an extension of
today's tech, which makes for many a memorable, visually pleasing
shot and dynamic action scene. It looks and sounds amazing, yet
always serves both the story and this world's credibility.
Still,
despite its superior look, solid action and fascinating plot, Elysium
as a film is not as perfect and beautiful as the space station that
shares its name. The climax is rather a forced one, much more
cheerful than expected and warranted, wherein common criminals
inexplicably prove to be revolutionaries. Foster's conspiracy plot
line ends up underexposed and essentially unused in the last act,
while her character remains underdeveloped to be adequately menacing
and understandable. Both Foster and Copley are guilty of overacting,
the latter going a little bit off the deep end in his portrayal of a
bad guy that apparently does not have a shred of recognizable
humanity or redeeming qualities at all (though he does know his
South-African lullabies). Similarly, Damon proves a flawed casting
choice: true, Damon can act, but he's much too big a movie star to
convincingly play an everyday down-on-his-luck factory labourer with
a checkered past. A less known actor would have been preferable,
since all we can see now is Matt Damon looking goofy with a heavy
assortment of tattoos and all kinds of mechanical gizmos strapped to
his body. Despite these few shortcomings, Elysium is science
fiction filmmaking according to the finest traditions of the genre:
socially engaged, thematically rooted in the actuality of the day,
intricate and intriguing but grounded where reality is concerned in
terms of its futurist design, and simply never dull. Delivering a
worthy successor to District 9, Blomkamp is sure to become one
of the greats in contemporary science fiction cinema, deservedly so.
Geen opmerkingen:
Een reactie posten