Review of Chappie (2015) by Grant S — 06 Oct 2017

Johannesburg, South Africa. In order to curb the high crime rate the police use robots to fight crime. This is an immediate success and the police order several more robots from the developer, Tetravaal. After falling foul of these robots, two criminals, Ninja and Yolandi, kidnap Tetravaal's chief engineer, and genius behind the robots, Deon Wilson, with the aim of getting him to deactivate them. To their surprise he is transporting one of the robots, Scout 22, as he is working on a personal project to give robots consciousness. Ninja and Yolandi see the opportunity to have a robot on their side and immediately set about attempting to train the robot to help them in their criminal activities. They also give him a name - Chappie.

Okay, fun movie from writer-director Neil Blomkamp. Not anywhere up to the standard of Blomkamp's brilliant debut movie, District 9, but it'll do (and it is heaps better than Blomkamp's second movie, the weak, irritating Elysium).

Pretty basic plot with low production values and a hammy clumsiness to it all, yet it is fairly entertaining. Maybe it is the crudeness of it all that makes it likable, as it is difficult to take too seriously.

Add in two of the most colourful criminals of all time - Ninja and Yolandi, played by the members of South African rap band Die Antwoord, and it is a rollicking ride.

Does get a bit silly towards the end as the capers get to be like a common-or-garden action movie. Also loses its lightness as Blomkamp tries to be serious and inject some philosophy and emotion into the movie, and this is out of place and half-baked.

Overall, hardly Citizen Kane but reasonably entertaining.