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Children
of Men
Genre: Drama /
Action
Rated: R
Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón
Starring: Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Claire-Hope
Ashitey, Michael Caine
Released by: Universal
Pictures
In
Short: Intensely violent and emotional,
this futuristic look at a bleak world where
all women are infertile is a strikingly prophetic—and
scary—work of art. |
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Bleak Future, Bright Movie
Is This World Right Around
the Corner?
by
Jenny Peters
Alfonso
Cuarón's “Children of Men,” a dark,
brilliant adaptation of British author P.D. James' bestselling
novel, is not for kids—nor for the weak of heart.
This bleak look at what our world could devolve into just
twenty years from now is a perfect fictional companion
to the popular documentary “An
Inconvenient Truth,” in which Al Gore chillingly
maps out the dire soon-to-come effects of human pollution
on the earth's ability to sustain life.
In
this quasi-science-fiction account, the human race has
made such a mess of the environment (through massive pollution,
devastating wars, etc.) that women worldwide have become
infertile with no baby born anywhere on earth in more
than eighteen years. The fact has caused much of the populace
of war-ravaged London and elsewhere to fall into real and emotional chaos, depression,
and a universal feeling of futility.
That
attitude of futility is embodied by Theo Faron (Clive
Owen), a jaded former activist who has become a cog in
the oppressive government's wheel. He slogs through his
daily life with the help of an alcohol-filled pocket flask
until the sudden reappearance of his ex-wife Julian (Julianne
Moore). She's stayed an activist, leading a growing anti-government
resistance movement.
Her
arrival back into his life is tied to both the coming
bloody revolt as well as a much more important event—Julian
has a young pregnant woman under her protection. Enlisting
Theo to use his connections to allow the miracle mother-to-be
to escape the war zone, Julian sets off a series of often
shocking events that unfold in breathtaking rapidity,
and that thrust Theo into the role of unlikely hero—and
possible savior of the human race.
Mixing
brilliantly constructed images of a fractured world with
intensely realistic scenes of armed conflict, Cuarón
has created a film that makes a strong commentary on today's
international political choices and their possible ramifications
for our collective future. At the same time, through the
powerful performances given by everyone involved and a
well-written script, the film also manages to be a personal
and emotional journey. It leaves the viewer with both
hope for the future as well as a burning desire to do
something now, in real life, to help stave off this terrifying
prospect of the soon-to-be future.
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