Children of Men

No children. No future. No hope.



An intriguing movie, filled with twists and double crosses. The first 30 minutes are kind of slow moving as we learn about the possible future and the possible end of humanity.

VIA a newscast played on a screen in a coffee shop, we learn that the youngest person alive has been killed for spitting on a fan. He was eighteen.

Clive Owen plays Theo Faron an ex-activist enlisted to help transport a woman to a place called The Human Gene Project. He learns later that she is pregnant. This is a huge deal. She is the first in 18 years.

The initial trip is ambushed and they just escape although Theo's tie to the activists is severed when his ex is killed. A shot gun blast to the neck can do that. They race to a safe house, where Theo learns he is to be killed and the woman to be controlled by the activists (more like terrorists by their actions. References to Belfast here, especially with the imagery).

Theo and Kee escape, barely and rush to the only friend Theo has and can trust, a pot smoking, pot dealing Julianne Moore played wonderfully by Michael Caine.

With his connections, he helps Theo and Kee get to the Human Gene Project. They have to meet a boat that will take them there. And this is where the movie picks up a pace and we learn more about the childless world. There is a lot of action in this film and the camera always keeps Theo
in the scene. The entire movie is told from his point of view. We know
exactly what he knows as the story develops. This is a good thing.

Interesting but not fantastic. DVD watchable but that's about it. I wouldn't own it.

COM

The film has a lot to say about immigration, government policy, overpopulation, ambition, the chasm between the classes, but as all good films should, it shows us rather than telling us.

Cuarón uses his hand-held cameras to set us alongside Theo; we don’t see anything unless he does, as he caught up in a situation where he has no control. He’s just trying to survive from one moment to the next. Cuarón uses extended takes to place us within the scenes themselves, particularly in two remarkable set pieces. There were times when I was reminded of Act II from Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket and the comparison is not without justification. This is a director dominant behind the wheel.

There is a lot to admire in Timothy Sexton’s screenplay, based on P.D. James’ novel, who understands the film language that less is more.

This film works as a taut thriller, but also acts as a warning. For too long we have sat idly by enjoying the fruits of our development without thought to where we are going. I truly beleive it was one of the better films of 2006.

Ahh, but we DO see something he doesn't...at the very end, when it's just the woman and the baby.

I loved the part when everyone stopped firing and just stared at them as they passed by. I really felt the awe in that scene.