Sunday 27 September 2009

More thoughts on District 9

I'm wondering what the merchandising teams are making of this film. Computer game programmers are probably rubbing their hands with glee - the action sequences in the second half are just a few steps away from being a first-person shooter, complete with alien weaponry and vehicles. On the other hand cuddly toy manufacturers may have to work a little harder on the Prawn image. However where there's a rand there's a way, and I look forward to seeing District-9 branded catfood on the supermarket shelf any day now.

This brings me to another point - over the years Hollywood has been accused of being run by Jews, gays, Freemasons, the FBI, the mafia, the popcorn lobby and even (heaven help us) actors. But in 2009 the true rulers of the universe have been subtly showing their paw through science fiction. Catfood plays a key role in District 9. The haunting landscapes of Moon were filmed in a giant cat litter tray. Coincidence? You decide.

The Minister for Human Affairs declined to comment.





6 comments:

Kaori said...

hey buddy thanks for the book recommendation, I will be checking out Innumeracy as soon as I get the chance! For now, I'm trying to read on as much topics as I can so I will get back to religions and maths a little bit later on :)


Your post on cats ruling the world reminded me of this theory my friend introduced me to, have you heard of the replitian theory?!?.... i don't know anything about it (just watched a few vids) and I'm not sure if it's just a joke buttttt its pretty weird!!!!! check it outt ha h aha

Sci-Fi Gene said...

Kaori, I think you're referring to David Icke's completely plausible and reasonable theory that 7-foot (2.1 m) tall, blood-drinking, shape-shifting reptilian humanoids from the Alpha Draconis star system are the force behind a worldwide conspiracy (search wikipedia for Reptilian Humanoids for more info).

I look forward to your review of Icke's writing along with other non-fiction books. Personally I have my doubts about Icke's theory - the cats wouldn't stand for it, for a start.

SpaceFairy said...

-and the kitties shall inherit the earth!! ;p

*rawr*

P.S. I recently heard that some Nigerians were peeved at how racist the film was and demanded an official apology, because they were depicted as the bad guys. Like whatever. It was a cool flick!

Sci-Fi Gene said...

I also read that. Think they've missed the point a bit - it's a film about man's inhumanity to man in general and no-one comes out looking particularly good.

Furniture said...

What I liked about it is precisely the fact that nobody is “the good guy” and the lack of the happy ending (which may be due to the intention of continuing with the story). I did think that the allegories may have been a bit to obvious in some bits; the whole ghetto and social outsiders theme but specially, the cat food as a drug and the black Nigerians being the ones selling it…I think, overall, it is a worthy movie and I also think that maybe the nakedness of the allegories (if we can call them that) may come from the will of a raw and direct criticism.

Sci-Fi Gene said...

I think the film took quite a lot of risks including the ending. I wonder if a sequel would work - while the ending wasn't exactly happy, and I can see several story hooks that could be used for a sequel, it did seem like a natural endpoint.