In the near future, crime is patrolled by a mechanized police force.
When one police droid, Chappie, is stolen and given new programming, he
becomes the first robot with the ability to think and feel for himself.
Director:
Neill Blomkamp
Writers:
Neill Blomkamp,
Terri Tatchell
Stars:
Sharlto Copley,
Dev Patel,
Hugh J
Storyline
In the near future, Indian born Deon Wilson (Dev Patel), is a high
ranking executive in a Robotic Police Force company. When he comes up
with an idea to make a self conscious robot named Chappie to protect
better, his higher-ups disapprove it. Nonetheless, he makes it and when
the company finds out, scraps the robot. When 2 small time criminals
planning a $200 million heist find Chappie, they kidnap Deon and force
him to program Chappie to assist them in their heist. When
power-corrupted military general Vincent (Hugh Jackman) finds out, he
rallies all forces to stop Chappie, at any cost that leads to an
monumental showdown between Good and Evil.
User Reviews
I
went into Chappie as a huge fan of the gritty action and social
commentary of District 9. I expected that this would be more of the
same. Both are still present, but surprisingly, with laughs.
This
is one of the more entertaining movies from every angle that I've seen
in awhile. I described it as I left as funny, sad, uplifting, dark,
light, silly, and tense.
The center of the story is Chappie. He
is a hero you want to shelter, even though you want him to learn. But
even as you love his curiosity, you fear his naiveté. He is the most
complex character, and gives a fascinating paradigm into how children
must receive and process human society and contradiction. There are some
inconsistencies in Chappie's character (is he already programmed to
raise his voice if he's scared, or did he learn that?), but he still
succeeds as a dynamic, independent being.
Yes, the humans
characters are flat. They are merely roles. The Maker. The Villain.
Mommy and Daddy. The friend. But as Chappie begins to learn, you see why
they have to be flat. They are trying to exert influence on a (robotic)
child. Therefore, they must simplify their own motivations and desires
into the most basic explanations possible for Chappie to understand.
This leads to hilarious imitation and thought-provoking perspectives.
Chappie's
curiosity was once ours. Chappie's confusion was once ours. Watching
Chappie is like watching a sped-up version of childhood social and moral
development, with all of the Hollywood tension, explosions, and naughty
words to keep you interested, too. There are parts to laugh at because
it's funny, parts to laugh at because the costuming and set design is
ridiculous, but you still end up thinking seriously the whole time.
Give it a chance. You might love it. I did.
Comments