Elysium (R)
13/03/14 22:00 Filed in: 2013
Starring: Matt Damon
August 2013
This review was originally tweeted in Real-time from the back row of a movie theater and appears @BackRoweReviews. Though efforts were made to tease rather than ruin this movie’s memorable lines and moments, some spoilers may exist in the following evaluation. The original tweets appear in black, while follow-up comments appear in red. For concerns over objectionable content, please first refer to one of the many parental movie guide websites. All ratings are based on a four star system. Happy reading!
Space station looks like it was borrowed from Kubrick’s 2001.
Vow made by boy and girl is similar to the one made at the beginning of Pixar’s Up.
Parole officer reminds me of Total Recall’s Johnny Cab.
Shuttles with invalid access codes...I’m having a Return of the Jedi flashback.
Wow, four movie references in a row. I was on a roll.
“Extraction!” Damon’s had better days at work.
Meeting with Spider—Damon gets Borgified.
Foster’s accent is more annoying than Bale’s gravelly Batman speech.
It’s painfully put on…so obviously not her normal mode of speech.
Damon uses pigs as a blanket.
“The hippo wants a friend.” A touching scene.
Facial reconstruction...like a Spielberg effect in reverse.
Final analysis: engaging dystopian yarn that falls short of District 9 despite topical themes and stark realism.
District 9 was also directed by Neill Blomkamp and starred Sharlto Copley, who plays the antagonist here.
Rating: 2 1/2 out of 4 stars. Mildly disappointing, but still a decent popcorn flick.
There are some gorgeous visuals in this film, especially those involving the titular space station. The Brave New World contrast between classes is pertinent as we continue to see the dissolution of the middle class in our society. The near-future world created by Blomkamp here is astounding, spring-boarding off the success of his similarly themed and styled District 9. Damon is solid, but understated in the film and everyone else is just kinda’ there…playing their parts exactly as you’d expect them to be played. For all of the unbridled, unqualified genius exhibited onscreen, the movie is largely unmoving. Sadly, there’s very little movie magic here…which is disappointing since this film appeared to have incredible potential to become a dystopian masterpiece.