Review: Elysium

Happy 2014, Russ!

I figure I’ll start the New Year off with a review.

As a film critic, the number one factor that can affect your perception of a movie is your expectations going in. Expectations are huge. For example, I went into Skyfall thinking it would be a return to the mindless fun or so-called "typical" template of a Bond film - cars, guns, girls, bad guys and gadgets with an interesting yet slightly over the top story to hold it all together. And even though Skyfall had many of those things, it was certainly not what I expected it to be. That is to say, it was far from mindless fun. The darker and more personal story held together by exceptional performances and beautiful cinematography made it quite possibly the best Bond film ever made. Yet I didn't really realize these things the first time around. I was disappointed because my expectations had not been met. I thought Skyfall was a flop. I left thinking, "yeah, Javier Bardem was good, but can we seriously forget the drama and just get back to the belt grappling hooks and the Lotus submarine cars?" Don’t worry though. My opinions changed.

Such is the danger with expectations. Many of these expectations begin with the trailers for a film, which is why several of my more serious movie-going buddies refuse to watch previews for films that they know they will be going to see. The only expectations they have are born from knowing who is involved with the film. This brings us to Neill Blomkamp's newest film, Elysium. I went in very excited mostly because I enjoyed Blomkamp’s previous work in District 9. It looked like, based on the previews, the look and feel of Elysium would be similar to that of Blomkamp’s previously Oscar-nominated work and this made me raise my expectations for good reason. District 9 had a lot of positive things. The performances were excellent, especially from Sharlto Copley, who seems to be Blomkamp’s go-to star (and a fellow South African). But what was best about District 9 was the novelty. You can call it a science fiction film comfortably, but it felt more like a documentary about real-life xenophobia and discrimination, so much so that I walked out briefly thinking that a huge alien ship actually did park itself over Johannesburg. Such was the magic of District 9 – it wasn’t just an excellent science fiction piece. It also drew you in close enough that you left feeling personally involved and, as a result, almost guilty afterwards. This tone, executed by the screenplay and supported by little details such as the setting in South Africa, a country which not too long ago dealt with its own brutal policies of segregation and racism, serves to draw the viewer in close and make a story, which at first glance looks alien, surprisingly human.

In Elysium, Blomkamp attempts to direct the attention of the audience to a few present issues through the lens of a science fiction story set in the future. This purpose is further affirmed by the casting of Matt Damon, who’s outspoken political commentary has recently burst forth in his film career from Gus Van Sant’s Promised Land to Paul Greengrass’ Green Zone. At first the film looks merely like an intense science fiction adventure, but a closer look reveals underlying (and sometimes abundantly obvious) statements directed at modern issues such as income inequality, corporate stewardship, environmental accountability and even healthcare.

Set in a mid-22^nd century Los Angeles where the middle class has seemingly disappeared, Elysium follows the journey of Max DeCosta (Damon), a former career-criminal-turned-factory-worker who attempts to gain access to Elysium, the appropriately-named utopian ring-world that the super-rich have built for themselves in orbit above Earth. Not only do the rich enjoy the luxuries that one would expect, they also benefit from perfect health and immortality, as made available by Med-Bays, a one-stop-shop for healing any ailment once Elysium citizenship is confirmed. While working at his factory job on Earth, DeCosta is exposed to a lethal dose of radiation. Desperate to stay alive, he seeks out criminal leader Spider (Wagner Moura) who promises to help smuggle him into Elysium if he is willing to help steal valuable financial information from the head of John Carlyle (William Fichtner), a wealthy corporation owner. Pursued by the head of Elysium defense Jessica Delacourt (Jodie Foster) and her ruthless Earth-based agent Kruger (Sharlto Copley), DeCosta embarks on his mission to get to Elysium and save himself, not knowing that his actions may change the destiny of both Earth and Elysium for good.

Wagner Moura and Matt Damon

With a compelling premise and a backdrop of stunning visuals, Elysium has all the elements of a compelling adventure. One excellent quality of the setting is the obvious wear and tear of Earth. While many science fiction futures portray an unrealistically clean and organized world, Earth in Elysium actually looks like humans live there. Although much of Earth is now organized and run by AI, the world does not have a sterile look. DeCosta’s exoskeleton suit is worn out and has problems, the vehicles and weapons used are makeshift and have a frequency to malfunction, and the vulnerability of Earth’s citizenry and infrastructure is evident.  Earth is a literal desert of slums and industry. Get a ticket to Elysium, however, and that wear and tear rapidly disappears. The environment is lush, slick and refined. Here the sterile look makes its debut, but due to the fact that all citizens of Elysium are super-rich, this ultra-clean look is to be expected. Just like the setting, the action is gritty and believable. Max is obviously hardened by a life of poverty and crime and able to handle his own, but his skills are tested when he faces a clearly superior warrior in Kruger. Although the action seems to grow sluggish at times, (the use of slow motion is particularly prevalent and overused), the peril of the protagonists is never in doubt.

This is first a science fiction film. You could say that, by definition, science fiction is supposed to expand the imagination and stretch the boundary of what is plausible. But in a film that is also trying to make a political or social point, believability is vital to establish relevancy, lest a film be dismissed with “Okay, we would never end up like that.” In Elysium, the biggest element in the film is the gap between the rich and the poor. Blomkamp did an excellent job representing this visually. But to create believability, details are needed. And similarly to District 9, they are back. One in particular that struck me was a conversation on Earth that takes place in Spanish. This was followed directly by a scene on Elysium where citizens speak together in French, a distinction that plays on the viewer’s own perception of the stereotypes that exist between lower class and upper class. But nothing portrays the divide better than Elysium itself, a literal paradise where the extremes of affluence and influence are only matched by the insurmountable distance it has from the rest of the world. The dominance of the system over Earth’s citizens lies not only in its weaponry and technology but also in the system itself. There is no legal flexibility or compassion on Earth, for example, where DeCosta receives a fierce lashing for merely making a snide remark to a robot, but on Elysium Delacourt can literally kill over two dozen people by employing a psychotic agent and merely get a slap on the wrist.

Sharlto Copley and Alice Braga

The humanization of villains almost always serves to improve the credibility of a story. One example that can be pointed to is JJ Abram’s Star Trek. While it certainly can be said that Niro, the chief antagonist, has no concern for the loss of life he causes, the presentation of his motives – retaliation for a past (or should we say, future) transgression by his enemies – allows the audience to understand him, at least a little. A lack of humanization can make a story feel bland, such as in James Cameron’s Avatar, a film that too easily and too implausibly polarizes the good guys and the bad guys. This, unfortunately, is exactly what happens with Elysium. Antagonists in the film are unbelievably disdainful of Earth’s citizens. John Carlyle presides over his factories like a plantation owner and even when his factory manager brings matters to his attention, Carlyle orders him not to breath on him. This resentment does not make a lot of sense if he depends on Earth to make the products that he benefits from. The same is true for Delacourt. Due to her killing of dozens of humans attempting to enter Elysium, Delacourt is reprimanded by President Patel (Faran Tahir), who despite being a citizen of Elysium himself, believes that a moral high ground should be maintained. He threatens Delacourt with her job, but also makes it clear that it is possible to keep it and still protect Elysium without using such brutal tactics. But Delacourt, a villain who is initially portrayed as cunning and intelligent, attempts a coup d’état instead of revising her methods, seemingly for no other reason than to be able to kill people. This is where Elysium ceases being a compelling story and instead becomes a full-blown political parable. Delacourt and Carlyle are no longer interesting characters with believable motivations but instead simply serve to give a face to the system Blomkamp hopes to demonize. Blomkamp makes a feeble attempt to humanize Delacourt later when she angrily chastises Kruger for his reckless methods but this doesn’t make sense at all from somebody who is willing to stage a coup simply to be able to kill without accountability.

Jodie Foster as Jessica Delacourt

But it isn’t just the bad guys that fall into this trap. Even DeCosta is thrown under the allegorical bus. Throughout the entire film, DeCosta is selfish. He is ruthless in his effort to get to Elysium because he wants to live. He irrationally threatens Spider, seemingly the only person able to get him even close to Elysium, he denies the pleas of his childhood friend Frey to help her daughter, and even offers himself to Kruger (and, by proxy, Delacourt) so long as he gets to a Med-Bay. But for some reason at the end, DeCosta becomes a martyr. He decides to die to destroy the system when merely an hour before he was willing to give power to a dictatorial murderer just for the sake of saving his own skin. Max changes his mind when Delacourt orders that Frey be killed, but for a man who hasn’t seen Frey for many years, denied her earlier and even put her in harms way, this motivation doesn’t make much sense. And even if it is believable that DeCosta undergoes a complete change of heart and now wants to save Frey and her daughter, it still doesn’t make sense that he would be willing to die to do so, especially after all the things he has done just to live. Character development can certainly happen. People can change as time moves on and events occur. But DeCosta’s development seems to happen in the span of only five minutes and that is where the problem lies.

The only character that seems to make any sense at all is Kruger. You have to like Kruger because we finally have a character that’s interesting. He’s a bad guy and he knows it and even gets a sick pleasure out of all the things he gets to do as one. This is the only character that stays consistent throughout the film and as a psychopath he doesn’t need any motivations. He kills because he wants to and nothing more. This is also the only character that you ever feel has any power. To be honest, I almost hoped Kruger would win the big climactic fight at the end against DeCosta, because at least Kruger is passionate about something.

Overall, despite some glaring plot holes that I don’t want to spend the time going over, Elysium is entertaining. It wows visually, Blomkamp’s gritty style is appealing, and the plot is helped along with good performances by the supporting cast. However, the main characters suffer from bland and simplistic screenwriting that turns the potential for a meaningful adventure into a predictable and painfully obvious political rant that was slammed in my face. Unlike District 9, where I came out having been completely immersed, Elysium falls flat and is ultimately forgettable. It is a fun ride, but no more compelling than Avatar.

Hey look! Its Halo!!

Another reviewer mentioned that Elysium might just be a scrap for Blomkamp’s portfolio in his attempt to gain funding to direct a film based off the popular Halo video game series. In that case, I think Elysium scores high in Blomkamp’s capability to establish a futuristic universe with the breathtaking visuals that a Halo film would require. In fact, there are probably not many fans of the game franchise that didn’t say “Oh look! It’s a Halo ring!” when they first saw Elysium. But as a Halo fan myself, I just don’t see Master Chief becoming a character in a political allegory, and for that I must ask Mr. Blomkamp to hand the screenwriting off to someone else.

Elysium: a 6.5 out of 10.

Regards,

DCon