‘Chappie’ aims high, but stumbles in execution

I have a fascination with Neill Blomkamp’s fascination with technology and its future effects on the planet. I find myself both at odds and in agreement with his takes on the twin horror and salvation advanced tech can bring to humanity.

Where my fascination tends to ebb, though, is when Blomkamp turns his ethereal ideals into visual reality. When he hits the mark, as he did with the stellar “District 9,” he does so with an amazing directorial touch. When he misses the mark, as he did with “Elysium” (which was held up in large part because of Matt Damon’s performance), it’s a disappointing reminder that Blomkamp is still in his youth when it comes to feature films.

His latest creation, “Chappie,” falls somewhere in between, again focusing on the dangers of blending human control and deadly robotics. Set in Johannesburg, South Africa (which is Blomkamp’s hometown and frequent location destination), “Chappie” takes place in the near future where policing duties are conducted by robotic scouts created by a massive corporation. The company’s CEO, Michelle Bradley (Sigourney Weaver), is assisted by two brilliant engineers who couldn’t be more different: the acerbic Vincent Moore (Hugh Jackman), who sees robots are mere pieces of machinery meant to fully controlled by humans; whereas Deon Wilson (Dev Patel), the more sensitive of the two, envisions a world where robots with the ability to think and feel for themselves and humans can co-exist, can live in synchronicity with one another.

Click here to read the full review at TDN.com.

Three robotic stars out of five.

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Dev Patel is shown in a scene from “Chappie.” (Photo credit: AP photo by Columbia Pictures, Stephanie Blomkamp)