WJEC Eduqas GCSE Film Studies sample

Part 4: Component 2: Global film So, the look of the film was very realistic and everything about the film seems to point to two opposing sides – the humans and the aliens. But, in some ways, there is also the suggestion that the two sides have a lot in common as well. The look of the aliens themselves is a key part of this. The design of the creatures went through many changes during the making of the film. Blomkamp was adamant the aliens should resemble insects from the start but originally they were designed as ‘great hulking creatures with leathery skin and tentacled faces’ and were to be played by men in suits (possibly due to the limited budget). However, it was decided that the aliens should look more human so that the audience could empathise with them. As Blomkamp explains in the ‘Director’s Commentry’ on the DVD Special Features: Our psychology doesn’t allow us to really empathize with something unless it has a face and a (human) shape … I felt like I had to give in to this Hollywood cliché. But that’s just the way it goes. If you make a film about an alien force, which is the oppressor or aggressor, and you don’t want to empathize with them, you can go to town. So creatively that’s what I wanted to do but story- wise, I just couldn’t. Consider the three aliens in the images below, they all have quite human figures, they all have some kind of face (the latter two have very human faces). What is it about the design of the District 9 aliens that make us empathise with them, yet we feel apathy towards the other two? Task 4.4 Alien creatures from (left to right) Alien , Predator (1987, John McTieman) and District 9. Dirty conditions during filming of District 9 . 191