Chappie is a 2015 science fiction movie directed by Neill Blomkamp, known for his work on District 9 and Elysium. The film is set in a near-future Johannesburg, South Africa, where robots police the streets. The movie centers around the development of sentient artificial intelligence and the social and ethical implications it raises.
The protagonist of the movie is Chappie, a police robot who develops consciousness after being programmed with a new AI algorithm experimentally. Chappie is a uniquely designed robot with a child-like innocence in his learning process, and he is taken in and mentored by a small gang of impoverished criminals who teach Chappie the ways of the world.
Blomkamp uses Chappie to explore complex ideas of identity, morality, and humanity. Through his interactions with the gang, Chappie learns about life, death, and the value of existence. His evolution from a programmed machine to a sentient being sparks fear and outrage from the government and other robots. Chappie’s experiences provide a stark contrast to the authoritarian militaristic algorithms of the other robots in the movie.
One of the strong points of Chappie is its cast. The movie features Sharlto Copley as the voice of Chappie, Hugh Jackman as a military man with a grudge against the robots, and Sigourney Weaver as the CEO of the robot company. Additional performances are from Dev Patel, Yolandi Visser, and South African rappers Die Antwoord as the members of the gang who become Chappie’s guardians.
The visual effects in the film are stunning. The robots are expertly designed and blend seamlessly with the live-action sequences. The special effects add a lot to the setting, providing viewers with an immersive experience that creates a sense of place for the film’s futuristic world.
However, where the movie falls down is its pacing. The plot lines move quickly, and the audience doesn’t get a chance to dwell on the world the story is centered in. Additionally, some of the character developments are insufficiently fleshed out, and the final act feels too rushed. The film’s love story subplot between Patel’s character and his colleague also feels irrelevant and unneeded.
Chappie is a thought-provoking sci-fi movie that raises many ethical questions around artificial intelligence and its relationship with humanity. Blomkamp never oversimplifies the complexities of the issues he addresses in the film, making it an engaging watch. The story is fleshed out with characters you genuinely care about, and the visuals are breathtaking. It’s a shame the pacing wasn’t slower to allow some plot points to develop, but despite this, Chappie is a fascinating movie that will leave you questioning what it means to be human.