District 9 is an effort to map the misery of black South Africans under apartheid to the imagined hatred for an alien form of life — by all South Africans, black and white. It was a silly concept, made downright stupid by bringing Nigerians into the story and putting them at the very bottom of this steaming heap.

Movies in which the action is so chaotic as to be indecipherable often rely on a narrator to tie up loose ends. Here, the loose ends require a chorus of narrators — four bureacrats of Multi-National United. (United Nations — get it?)

Still, people seemed to enjoy the movie.

I left the theater after the hero died as a result of his heroic deeds, but before the credits rolled. And maybe it was a dumb mistake on my part because one reviewer, among the hundred I subsequently read, wrote that this film had “…the most emotionally perfect final shot.”

So why was I reading reviews of a movie I disliked? Because contempt loves company.

I went to the bathroom and by the time I got out the remainder of the movie-goers were out of theater 15 and crowded around the escalator. I listened to the chatter. “God, those prawn faces could show so much emotion.” “I freaked when what’s-his-name’s arm turned into a claw.” “Did you think the little prawn was cute? I did.” “Wow, there were about three guys who looked like Bruce Willis — and they’re South African!”

Everything I heard was positive. It wasn’t helping my mood.

Out on the street I snooped on couples who might be saying something nasty about the movie. Shit. Nothing. Probably a good thing because I might have butted into a private conversation just for some contrary energy. It seemed I was going to have to stew in my minority opinion.

And I did, until I got home and went to Rotten Tomatoes. Whew! I got some relief. 11% of the reviewers agreed with me. I basked in that until I read “the most emotionally perfect final shot” comment. I had to admit I might have missed the moment that would have redeemed the entire movie. But I didn’t want its redemption. Thank goodness I went back to the reviewer and read his entire sentence: “The most emotionally perfect final shot since ‘Shaun of the Dead’.”