District 9 is easily the most intriguing movie of the year, and no one is talking about it. I’ve tried singing it’s praises before, but despite my best efforts, I’ve encounter little to no positive buzz being generated for this film. Now, marketing for the film is in it’s early stages, but this is the internet age people! No reason for people to not be talking about a movie that hasn’t been marketed by it’s maker yet. I have absolutely no idea why people aren’t talking about it; the film is set to be a big sci-fi tentpole for Sony. It’s being directed by Peter Jackson’s protege Neill Blomkamp, and the effects are being done under the supervision of Jackson and his team at the WETA workshop. The viral marketing began at ComicCon last year, with the place plastered with “For Humans Only” signs and banners. But I guess none of that has registered with the internet blogging community. I’m okay with all this though, because I know that now that we have a teaser for the film, the buzz can only grow.
The film is set in a fictional world where extraterrestrials have become refugees in South Africa. The teaser is a little hard to decipher if you don’t know this going in, that is until the very end of the teaser where you see what I assume to be a giant floating alien city or space craft. You get a censored shot of the alien’s face, and cue ominous music. Now I’ve read that the whole project is really just a metaphor for apartheid, as the title was seen as a nod to District 6, the infamous forced removal of an entire so-called “Coloured” (or mixed race) residential area during the height of Apartheid in South Africa. It certainly makes sense. The only problem I have with that thought is “Why do a movie on Apartheid now, and why use Aliens?” I really can’t get a solid read on what exactly this film will be like or what they are going for, but I know I’m interested, and I fully expect the web to be interested now too.
District 9 is currently set for release on August 14th.