TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

Several weeks ago in early July, I claimed that this film would  be the next big thing in science fiction. Was I right? Well not exactly. Here's something I didn't take into account for: the budget. When your budget enters the nine digits you know sometimes that size and scale will come before the characters and storytelling. But wow, with "Elysium," what size and scale. Still retaining the gray and brown color palate for a ravaged Earth as he did in his directorial debut "District 9," which shocked everyone with four Oscar nods, Neill Blomkamp displays what he does best (well, with two movies anyway) a dystopian universe with an underdog hero who becomes strapped with some serious tech. But that's where the similarities end. I have deep respect for any writer/director who can craft a movie solely out of their imagination, and not rely on any other sources. Blomkamp partly does this; he takes the decidedly American topics of  healthcare, the 1%, etc....

Science fiction peered over its glasses in interest when the seventh "Star Wars" movie was announced in what feels like years ago. The genre, and let's be real here, has had only a few gems in the past few years, obviously "Inception," "Avatar" and "I Am Legend" have provided memorable genre astounding moments, but movies like "Prometheus," the grandson of the "Alien" series was received lukewarmly with critics and fans alike. Remakes last year like "Total Recall" and "Dredd 3D" underwhelmed audiences, perhaps because they don't want to see retreads of their science-fiction staples on the big screen. Before "Inception" and "Avatar" however, was "District 9." A wholly original sci-fi tale cleverly wrapped with themes including xenophobia, poverty issues and social problems, "District 9" also provided gorgeous (if grotesque) special effects and a riveting stor...