Elysium

Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga

Directed by Neill Blomkamp

Rating: B

In the distant future of 2154, Earth has been so overpopulated that the wealthy have moved off the planet to Elysium, a space station that is reachable by shuttles in nineteen minutes.

It's no secret that even today, the income gap between the rich and the poor keeps increasing (Face the Facts USA) and that the world's population today is climbing up to 7.1 billion people (US census). "Elysium" takes a real-world concern and puts a theatrical spin to it. By 2154, there is no middle class. Blomkamp's Los Angeles is a run-down city where no decent homes are left standing. On Elysium, the wealthy can live forever by using medical machines that can cure cancer in less than five minutes.

"Elysium" follows Max's (Damon) story. As a kid, he learns about Elysium and promises himself and his friend he will get them there. Grown up, Max has a criminal record (auto-theft, resisting arrest) and works at a low-level job working with machinery. When a complication arises at work, Max gets a death sentence after being exposed to a high dosage of radiation. With only five days left to live, his only hope to survive is by getting to Elysium.

Desperate, Max will do anything to keep living and that includes a dangerous job extracting important information from a billionaire's mind. This billionaire is the CEO of the company he worked for and also has the reboot information for Elysium in his head. This information was written for Delacourt (Foster), a government official with a better idea of how Elysium should be run under a new president who will give her more power.

I liked how "Elysium" had a realistic view on the future. While I'm not too sure how realistic technology will get by the year 2154 (machines that can cure cancer?), "Elysium" is a good sci-fi thriller. It's as gory as "District 9" and the camera does not shy away from exploding people. It's violent and is rated "R" for good reason, but fans of action, post-apocalyptic worlds, and Matt Damon will not be disappointed.