I really, really wanted to see this movie and was

1. seriously miffed
2. pretty indignant
3. somewhat put out

that my friend Silvery Dude got there before me, and it became a point of honour to make sure that I saw it as soon as I could after him, so here we go:

The plot = so we are in Johannesburg twenty years after a space ship appeared in the sky above the city, filled with aliens who are ill, malnourished and unable to get home. They have been shunted into a refugee camp and treated as a lower form of life , and have become known (unpleasantly) as “prawns”. The camp has deteriorated over time, is riven with crime, and the local community wants to see it moved on, so a military unit backed by a weapons manufacturer is contracted to make this happen, led by a civil-servant-type called Wikus ven der Merwe. Things don’t go according to plan……

Not saying any more, you really need to see this to find out what happens.

What I loved about the movie = considering the budget for this movie the special effects are fantastic – the aliens and their interaction with human society really works and I forgot they weren’t real; the spaceship hanging over the city is really iconic; the development of Wikus is really effectively done; the gore is brilliant.

Dislikes or quibbles = minor thing (which others have pointed out I’m sure) about the documentary bits and whether they work with the main story, but this is really a very, very tiny issue and shouldn’t put anyone off.

Rating stuff = 15 (one use of very strong language and strong bloody violence)

Tissue count =  a little wobble at the end (which I found very moving)

Safety cushion = a couple of really gruesome moments which made me wince

Verdict = Grim, bleak, thought-provoking and highly recommended. This film led to one of the longest post-movie-discussions-over-dinner with the Book God since Knowing but for very, very different reasons. As far as I’m concerned one of the best films of the year.