First, off no spoilers, I promise.

District 9 is a fantastic movie but you might not enjoy it. You should see it anyway. I think this is an important movie.

Now, those of you that know me know that I’m a big science fiction fan. I’ve read countless books and stories and watched everything. I’m a hard sell. I think this is one of those movies that truly transcends the genre. The thing about great sci-fi is that it is always about much more than is on the surface, it challenges you, it makes you think. But it’s not always fun.

District 9 is a hard movie to watch because it really touches on significant and painful social issues. I think it hits a nerve. Or three. I understand why you may not enjoy it, but you can’t say isn’t a fantastic movie. Well, you could, but you’d be wrong.

I think that District 9 isn’t an enjoyable movie in the same way most enjoyable movies are enjoyable. It’s not really escapist entertainment. District 9 stabs you right in the eye with sharp scissors right out of the gate. The way it’s shot, with the flat colors, in hand-held documentary style, definitely didn’t produce a lot of eye candy. In fact, I was a bit off-put by this. At first.

Right away it ripped me out of my comfort zone. It’s not pretty or glamorous. It’s not an idealized version of Hollywood reality. It says something about us, our fears, our flaws, our culture. It makes a painful point about who we are.

This could really happen.

That said (the part about it being harder to enjoy than a normal movie I mean) – I enjoyed the hell out of it. I enjoy a well crafted story. Great dialog. Great plot. I actually was surprised a few times by what happened (which, sadly for me, hardly ever happens). There was a couple of times I wanted to stand up and shout, did you see that? Did you? There’s actually a character arc in this movie, the main character learns, and changes, and surprises. He transforms. Don’t see that too often. The character even has a specific moment of epiphany. And I was loving it.

The attention to detail was staggering. I wanted to rewind and watch some parts again. The special effects may be the best I’ve every seen. I forgot about them and just enjoyed the movie. I forgot that the aliens and spaceship were computer generated. Normally, in other movies where there are virtual characters, I never quite forget they’re computer generated. I did in this movie. Probably the only other time that’s happened for me is Gollum in Lord of the Rings.

I’m still thinking about the movie. That never happens to me. (Nearly) ever.

There’s my thoughts on it. So there.