Elysium (FILM REVIEW)
Elysium
Film Review
by Kam Williams
Sick Seek Help at Utopian Space Station in Futuristic Sci-Fi Thriller
It’s 2154, a time when the Earth has
become so polluted and overpopulated that all of the idle rich have abandoned
the planet to loll in the lap of luxury on a state-of-the-art space station.
Their decadent enclave, Elysium, looks suspiciously similar to Beverly Hills, being dotted with palm trees,
mansions and built-in swimming pools.
Down below, the teeming masses of
poor people struggle to survive, with escape to Elysium being their only hope
for a decent existence. Of course, that’s easier said than done, since you have
to be able to afford a ride aboard an expensive rocket ship just to get there.
And, even after arriving, you have to provide the authorities proof of
citizenship in order to stay.
The job of preventing illegal
immigrants from entering Elysium falls to its steely Secretary of Defense Jessica
Delacourt (Jodie Foster), a heartless ice princess who has no qualms about shooting
unauthorized space shuttles right out of the sky. She ostensibly does the
bidding of John Carlyle (William Fitchner), the nefarious CEO of Armadyne
Corporation, much to the chagrin of the orbiting outpost’s president (Faran
Tahir).
For, it’s impossible for any
politician to reign in the powerful defense contractor, a fact which humble
everyman Max Da Costa (Matt Damon) is about to learn the hard way. He only has
five days to live after being exposed to a lethal dose of radiation in an
industrial accident.
After his request for medical
treatment readily available on Elysium is summarily denied, he becomes
determined to breach the border of the remote oasis by hook or by crook. He
also wants to bring along his childhood friend, Frey (Alice Braga), and her young
daughter (Emma Tremblay) who is suffering from acute leukemia. Standing in
their way, however, is Kruger (Sharlto Copley), a blood-thirsty, heavily-armed
mercenary deputized by Delacourt to patrol Los Angeles make sure no unworthy earthlings
ascend to her exclusive abode.
Directed by Neill Blomkamp, Elysium is
a distinctly disappointing sophomore effort from the South African wunderkind
who‘d made such a spectacular splash in 2009 with the sleeper hit District 9.
This film feels like he’s all out of ideas, between the exploration of similar themes
revolving and a cliché-ridden script filled with hack, action flick lines like:
“That’s what I’m talking about,” “You have no idea,” and “I’m just getting
started.”
An underwhelming, sci-fi adventure
more akin to After Earth than District 9.
Fair (1.5
stars)
Rated R for pervasive profanity and graphic violence
Running time: 109 minutes
Distributor: Tri-Star
Pictures
To see a trailer for Elysium,
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