District 9 director Neill Blomkamp has said his follow up, the dystopian future tale Elysium, was not “a good enough film”.
Interviewed by Uproxx while promoting his new movie Chappie, the South African film-maker said he regretted not being able to go back to the 2013 movie in order to fix the screenplay.
“I feel like, ultimately, the story is not the right story,” said Blomkamp. “I still think the satirical idea of a ring, filled with rich people, hovering above the impoverished Earth, is an awesome idea. I love it so much, I almost want to go back and do it correctly.
“But I just think the script wasn’t ... I just didn’t make a good enough film is ultimately what it is. I feel like I executed all of the stuff that could be executed, like costume and set design and special effects very well. But, ultimately, it was all resting on a somewhat not totally formed skeletal system, so the script just wasn’t there; the story wasn’t fully there.”
Elysium, starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster as denizens of a world where the rich live in luxury on a floating satellite while the poor suffer and die on the Earth’s surface, failed to achieve the awards season recognition garnered by Blomkamp’s 2009 debut. District 9 picked up Oscar nominations for best film and best adapted screenplay, as well as two technical nods, while Elysium had to make do with a decent critical reception and strong box office return of $286 million (Dh1 billion) worldwide.
Elysium is the only feature film of Blomkamp’s that did not involve his wife Terri Tatchell taking a co-screenwriting credit. Tatchell returns for Chappie, the tale of an intelligent robot fighting for survival on the mean streets of Johannesburg. The new film hits UAE cinemas on March 5 and is already attracting strong early buzz.
