An ex-gang member dying of radiation must find a way to get to Elysium, an orbiting space station that can instantly cure many diseases. The problem is that only Elysium’s citizens have the privilege–and they don’t take kindly to illegals.

Taken at face value, Elysium was a fun watch with gunfights and cool robots, but not much else. There is a love interest that provides some of the motivation for the hero, but is more of a plot device than character development.

But like District 9, which Blomkamp also wrote and directed, this movie carrys a clear an unambiguous political message. I wonder at whether this helps to make the movie better or drives it in the opposite direction–it isn’t clear to me. The message is about the classic one about the have and have nots, and the modern one about the U.S. keeping Mexicans out, depriving them of the benefits that U.S. citizens get such as free healthcare (Medicaid) and a higher standard of living.