Thirty years ago, aliens made first contact with Earth. Humans waited for the hostile attack, or the giant advances in technology. Neither came. Instead, the aliens were refugees, the last survivors of their home world. The creatures were set up in a makeshift home in South Africa's District 9 as the world's nations argued over what to do with them. Now, patience over the alien situation has run out. Control over the aliens has been contracted out to Multi-National United (MNU), a private company uninterested in the aliens' welfare - they will receive tremendous profits if they can make the aliens' awesome weaponry work. So far, they have failed; activation of the weaponry requires alien DNA.

The tension between the aliens and the humans comes to a head when an MNU field operative, Wikus van der Merwe (Sharlto Copley), contracts a mysterious virus that begins changing his DNA. Wikus quickly becomes the most hunted man in the world, as well as the most valuable - he is the key to unlocking the secrets of alien technology. Ostracized and friendless, there is only one place left for him to hide: District 9.

The story revolves around the central character Wikus van der Merwe. He works for a weapons manufacturer and security force named Multinational United (MNU). MNU is hired to manage the alien race population whom are stranded below their hovering mothership in Johannesburg.

I don't like to give away too much of any plot line in my reviews so I'll share this much. Wikus finds himself in serious trouble while taking on a task for MNU. Ultimately the aliens he is hired to move about like cattle become his sanctuary and only hope for resolution.

During the story you find yourself both sympathetic to Wikus and upset with him as you witness his flaws. He is a simple man put in an extraordinary circumstance and a pawn to MNU's greater goal of finding a way to enable humans to operate alien weaponry.

There is an element of political and human rights lesson within the story but it's only used to drive the story and not to preach.

The visual effects are stunning considering the budget was approximately 30 million. Perhaps it's because the effects are used only when necessary and while District 9 is visually compelling the CGI (computer graphics: Computer Generated Illustration) is hardly noticeable. That's a big plus in today's film world. It could be that CGI has come along a great deal, or that Peter Jackson's crew is just that much better than the Star Wars film crews.

Another major plus for the story is the ending. In can serve as a pure ending or operate as a vehicle to a continued story. I say continuation as the term sequel just doesn't fit. District 9 is its own story and one that you can't repeat. The fate of Wikus is sealed at the end of District 9.

If you'd like to get a taste of District 9's remarkable setting, check out Alive In Joburg (short for Johannesburg). If you pay close attention you'll see the actor who portays Wikus in the Alive In Joburg short.

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