South Africa: Chappie - a Modern Joburg Morality Tale, With Robots

Neill Blomkamp's back with Chappie, a typically thought-provoking foray into the perils of artificial intelligence. Sharlto Copley and Dev Patel star, as do Hugh Jackman's calves and the city of Joburg itself, which looks splendid as the brutalist backdrop to an action-packed but tender tale of a robot who find himself and a family - with a little help from Die Antwoord.
The denizens of Los Angeles may be used to seeing their landmarks immortalised on the big screen, but it's still a new feeling for us Johannesburgers. It feels good. There, driving out of the cinema parking lot at midnight, is the neon red spiral that crowns Ponte Tower, the same spiral that's just been the backdrop to two hours of car chases, shoot 'em ups and a surprisingly affecting love story between Die Antwoord, Dev Patel and a robot. Maybe Hollywood's not so far away after all.

Of course, this can only be a Neill Blomkamp movie.
Watch: Chappie Official Trailer
Chappie, the South African director's latest sci-fi action flick, is once again set in a gritty, anarchic, relentlessly urban Johannesburg. It's the story of the world's first artificially intelligent robot and how, instead of...

More on This

Chappie Soundtrack
CHAPPIE – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Varèse Sarabande will release the CHAPPIE – Original … see more »

Read the full story on the Daily Maverick website.