With District 9 and Elysium, Neill Blomkamp has shown himself to be one of the most intriguing directors of sci-fi action movies in recent years. His movies may not be blockbusters, per se, but their stories touch on compelling social issues while dazzling with impressive special effects that weave the fantastic and realistic together seamlessly.
Blomkamp’s latest movie, titled Chappie, expands upon a short film he made in 2003. The title character is a robot with a highly developed form of artificial intelligence that is eventually kidnapped by criminals. Hugh Jackman plays an anti-robot official who fears Chappie and his artificial intelligence being used as a weapon. As you can see in this trailer, his character also sports a terrifying mullet.
On one hand, Chappie looks as if it could be a sappy tale of a robot developing true feelings and bonding with its makers, yet having its innocent nature taken advantage of by forces looking to exploit its abilities. But this is also an R-rated film, and Blomkamp has brought the action and violence to his previous projects, so this doesn’t figure to be a Disney-type story.
Chappie is scheduled for a March 6, 2015 release.
