South African filmmakers Neill Blomkamp is best known for his sci-fi action thrillers District 9 and Elysium, and while his next offering is still very much a sci-fi film, it looks to have a decidedly different tone than his previous work. The story of an experimental humanoid robot, Chappie reunites Blomkamp and frequent collaborator Sharlto Copley, who provides the voice and motion capture of the titular machine.
Described as “a gentle presence with a bulletproof metal skin programmed to paint pictures, write poetry and have original ideas,” Chappie has apparently caught the ire of an anti-AI group, led by Hugh Jackman (sporting a spectacular mullet), but a group of criminals scoops him off the street before Jackman’s character can get his hands on the robot.
Earlier today, Entertainment Weekly debuted the first Chappie trailer, and you can check out right here:
EW described the film as “alternately whimsical and violent, it’s a Johannesburg-set coming-of-age story about a kid from a dysfunctional family struggling to make the right choices—a kid who just happens to be a machine.” That seems pretty accurate, as the tone of this trailer paints a very different picture than what Blomkamp has shown us in the past. This seems to have a much broader appeal – like E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial by way of Short Circuit – which makes the fact that it’s intended to be an R-rated action adventure a bit puzzling.
Expect to learn more about Chappie in the coming weeks. The film will open in theaters on March 6, 2015.
Every child comes into the world full of promise, and none more so than Chappie: he is gifted, special, a prodigy. Like any child, Chappie will come under the influence of his surroundings – some good, some bad – and he will rely on his heart and soul to find his way in the world and become his own man. But there’s one thing that makes Chappie different from anyone else: he is a robot. The first robot with the ability to think and feel for himself. His life, his story, will change the way the world looks at robots and humans forever.
chappie hugh jackman neill blomkamp