January 29th, 2007 by Brent
With Children of Men, director Alfonso Cuaron creates a futuristic world that is not all that hard to believe in. Oppressive governments, terrorism, immigration, and nuclear war are all issues we face today that form and make up this fictional world.
Set in the year 2027, the human race finds itself in a race against extinction. Women have been unable to have children and most of the world has been decimated by nuclear war. Britain seems to be home to the only functioning government although it has also descended into chaos and war. The only hope this world has is that of a young girl named Kee (Claire-Hope Ashitey) who finds herself pregnant with what could be the first child born in around 17 years.
Theo (Clive Owen) helps guide Kee and her unborn child to The Human Project, an organization that is left without explanation. Throughout the film we see Theo slowly regain the hope that most of humanity has lost as they have fallen into war and almost certain extinction. It's both a touching and frightful look at the human race.
Noteworthy are the several outstanding sequences that involve very long takes that never cut away from the action. These scenes, while very action oriented, never lose focus of the plot, instead they pull you into it even more.
If I had one complaint it would be that some plot points could have been explained better, the rebels, the resistance, and specifically the Human Project. It would have been nice to know exactly what they are trying to do and why it is worth risking the life of Kee and her child. However, when you experience so many other powerful scenes and wonderfully shot action sequences, it is hard to hold the little things against it.
Children of Men is a must see film.
| Quick Review | |
|---|---|
| Plot/Storyline A grim and realistic take on the future of the world. A bit slow and hard to follow at times, but ultimately both a touching and frightful look at the human race. |
9 |
| Acting/Characters Great acting all around. Clive Owen and Michael Caine excel here. |
9.5 |
| Visuals/Sound Extraordinary single takes and powerful imagery that amaze, yet never lose the focus on storytelling. |
9.5 |
| Replay The ideas displayed in the movie are worth a second viewing as well as two action scenes involving impressively long takes. |
9 |
| Overall Rating: | 9.5 |
| All scores are out of 10. Overall score is not an average. | |
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