Anyone who went to see Neill Blomkamp's sci-fi film District 9 during its opening weekend in Britain will know that it's a blast from start to finish. Filmed in a real-life district of Soweto, it is shot using a compelling blend of documentary-style camera work and voiceovers, spliced with impressive CGI.
What has rendered the film such a success is not only the wild and unceasing action, but its more subtle political dimension. The allegory of apartheid is clear: the stranded aliens, who arrive in badly damaged spacecraft, have to endure a life subject to unbearable restrictions; their status is second class and there is a pervading sense of utter hopelessness at their situation.
And yet, for all Blomkamp's cutting-edge cinematic technique and social commentary, the film is ultimately disturbing for another reason - it appears at times to be an extended advertisement for the South African arms industry, which has its roots in the apartheid era on which the film is commenting.
District 9 offers an awesome showcase for South African expertise in the design and engineering of small arms and high mobility mine-resistant vehicles. The country's arms executives must be rubbing their hands in delight.
