Sharlto Copley

District 9's City of God meets War of the Worlds hybrid proves overbearing and under-convincing.

Frantic without bringing the fun.

There's a tough-mindedness there that's admirable, even if it's preaching to a mall-multiplex choir. But one wishes Blomkamp were less concerned with his Halo-style run-and-gunning and more interested in the subtler repercussions...

Almost certainly wouldn't have been made were it not for Angelina Jolie, whose extraordinarily striking presence recalls the Old Hollywood potency of Garbo. If only the film around Jolie were worthy of her.

I fervently hoped that some particularly annoyed soul would create a 'Slapheads Yell "Chappie"!' supercut...to refine the movie to its purest form of annoyance. As of this writing, internet, you disappoint me.

The real draw here is actually the photography by Oscar-winning cinematographer Philippe Rousselot.