Chappie (2015)

Terrible. Terrible movie. It is one long "Die Antwoord" music video loosely based on RoboCop and Short Circuit.

I saw this in the cinema and loved it. I recently purchased the DVD to watch again and it made me realise what a sappy person I've become in those 3 years. I had way too much pathos for the childlike kill bot, Chappie. Chappie (the film) highlights just how corrupt, self serving and downright cruel humans can be. The titanium bubba really wasn't shown much love throughout the film. So why watch it? Because Chappie is such an endearing, likeable character and his character arc is fascinating to watch; you get to see Hugh Jackman play a mullet wearing bully-boy who bandies about Australian idioms (which, as an Australian, we really don't say) with aplomb; robots- killer robots everywhere!I feel like if you've seen any of Neill Blomkamp's films you know what to expect. High tech, abused innocents and psychotic villains. It's just with Chappie, some of the psychotic villains show more compassion than those on the side of "good". I know why this film divides viewers. The acting isn't slick (but for me it adds to the realism) and the story isn't the most cohesive or believable- but hey- it's escapist sci-fi- not a bio-pic!Watch Chappie. It's a dystopian Aesop fable with heart. That we should all be as honest and decent as that flicky-eared assassin.

I was already familiar with some of Neil Blomkamp's work, namely District 9. Viewers of that film will recognize his style in the use of TV newsbits (featuring a very real Anderson Cooper segment) and documentary-style filmmaking to drive his point home. Yet what makes this film a standout is the way in which it portrays AI, making the experience seem almost relatable to that of fathering a baby. While the movie does take a few predictable turns, and the climax is stretched-out beyond belief, it is a decent piece of work and one that took me by surprise at a few moments. The amount of emotions the film conveys are surprising, given that the main character is supposed to be a robot, but we come to love and care for him nonetheless through his struggles in the slum. The actors do a terrific job of harnessing these emotions, and conveying all the ethical quandaries that one would have creating AI, but also raising a child. Dev Patel, as always, is fantastic. Hugh Jackman does a wonderful job of making an otherwise-unbelievable villain slightly more human, but the real spotlight goes to Ninja (south-african rapper who portrays a fictionalized version of himself in this film) and Yolandi Visser as Chappie's "parents", namely the thugs who try to give him an education. Their evolution as characters, particularly Ninja's, is fun to watch throughout the entire movie, and provides a redeeming storyline parallel to Chappie's own. Finally, Sharlto Copley steals the show as the title character, even if his role is essentially a voice one, by making us believe that Chappie's angsts are very real, and that yes, robots can have a soul. I must say Chappie's literal evolution as a character was pleasant to watch, and, while the action at the end was a bit overkill, it helped make this is a very decent film. While this movie helps to open a conversation about AI, don't trust this film to venture too far into it. Instead expect a fun, decent and intriguing sci-fi movie with a premise not-all-that unbelievable.

'Chappie' is Blomkamp's third film, after 'District 9' and 'Elysium' and easily sits between them in terms of quality. It's a near-future tale of artificial intelligence and how this could play out on a small and large scale. It's nothing new ('Terminator', 'Short Circuit'), but it is done in an interesting way. Deon (Patel) develops "scouts" (basically literal robocops), which Vincent (Jackman) wants to supersede with his mech-warriors. When Deon creates an AI "conscious", Chappie is "born".Unfortunately for Chappie, his "parents" are Ninja & Yo-Landi from 'Die Antwoord', a South African rap-rave "band" (thanks Wikipedia. If you haven't heard them before, don't bother!) I can only assume Blomkamp loves their music (god knows how) and asked them to be in this as a favour. Their faux-gangster act forces Chappie into doing things he doesn't want to and disaster ensues. Jackman is adequately douchey as the Aussie-redneck, Sigourney Weaver is massively underutilised, Patel is solid and Copley is great as the South African-accented voice of Chappie, providing most of the laughs due to his interpretation of sayings.The visual effects - particularly of Chappie and the other scouts - is superb. There's not too much philosophising on the impacts AI could have on humans/the world. The ending was a little drawn-out and obvious - not necessarily good or bad.