Children of Men
by Flick Chick Vique
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Children of Men survives with 4 Red Vines for being a Sci-Fi classic in the making |
I blame it on the name. When watching the trailer for Children of Men, I was turned off by the name of a shadowy terrorist group: The Human Project. It reminded me of the name of a phony charity George Costanza made up called The Human Fund. It just sounded silly. Way too silly for a gritty, sci-fi drama.
But when the crowds for the movies I really wanted to see drove me elsewhere I thought I’d give Children of Men a try. After all, it was being likened to Blade Runner, one of my dsytopian favorites.
Well, I went, I saw, I liked! But forget the comparisons to Blade Runner. If anything it was reminiscent of bleaker, grey colored futuristic fare like Soylent Green, 28 Days Later and The Prisoner.
The year is 2027 and the world hasn’t seen a human birth in over 18 years. For reasons not explained-perhaps the people themselves don’t know? -Mankind has grown infertile. With no hope for the future the world is thrown into Armageddon type chaos. Only ‘Britain Soldiers On’ with any kind of civilization at all.
Clive Owens (Derailed) plays Theo, a former activist kidnapped by a terrorist organization and enlisted to join their cause. At first he agrees to help them for the money but when he learns his mission he takes on the challenge body and soul. For miraculously, a young woman, Kee (Claire-Hope Ashitey) has conceived and is on the verge of giving birth! The problem is that she is an immigrant and immigrants are the scourge of Britain and are detained and deported on a non-stop basis. The fear is that she will be separated from her baby and the baby claimed as ‘English’. Her only hope lies in finding sanctuary with an almost mythical organization called The Human Project. And the only people who can hook her up with them are the terrorists.
Why has mankind gone infertile? Why are immigrants rounded up and treated like holocaust victims? Why are ordinary British citizens now terrorists? Who is The Human Project? It’s not so much that there are plot holes but more that there is plot incompletion. To be honest, I’m not sure if it’s deliberate or a just that writer/director Alfonso Cuaròn's (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) weak suit is writing. But to be honest, it really didn’t matter. He’s a good action director and this movie is one long cerebral chase scene. The action sweeps you up and you find yourself totally involved and praying Theo and Kee will find sanctuary in time.
The result is a visually stunning action film (oh that flying pig!) that will have you thinking long after you’ve left the theatre. The metaphors for today’s societal ills abound and Kee and Theo’s journey is not unlike one a certain Joseph and Mary made with their precious miracle. Clive Owen and Claire-Hope Ashitey are completely convincing in their roles. Owen in particular is heartbreakingly real. They are helped along nicely with great turns by terrorist leader Julianne Moore and the always incomparable Michael Caine as Owen’s best friend.
If you like your movies with a few blanks for you to fill in yourself then you will enjoy Children of Men. My suggestion: Go with a like-minded soul so you can engage in a very stimulating post-movie conversation!
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