Finally, the chance to see something I’ve been waiting for since last year… the chance to watch Children of Men. Some call Children of Men a modern day Blade Runner, or label it as Sci Fi, but all I have to ask is what are you smoking? Taking place in 2027, the movie’s setting is a war-torn future full of bureaucracy, xenophobia and filthiness. The filthiness and nearness of the movie’s future could be why some compare it to Blade Runner, but director Alfonso Cuarón’s story is far different. Perhaps the Sci Fi element to the movie is the fact that humanity has become infertile, its end is finally near.
Theo Faron, played by Clive Owen, is like a lot of movie heroes before him; reluctant and disinterested, but drawn in against his will and slowly committed to the cause. He plays a numb bureaucrat in a world where all countries have collapsed except the United Kingdom. Humanity is in its last throes and all hell is breaking loose and the government doesn’t help matters any. They instill hysteria and fear against foreigners.
Through is ex-wife Julian, played by Julianne Moore, Theo is drawn into a terrorist/political group that tries to secure rights for immigrants and bring the government to its knees. Theo is dragged into helping transport a young, pregnant African immigrant named Kee, played by Claire-Hope Ashitey, out of the country and to a group called The Human Project before the government can either exploit or bury her.
There’s a lot of unspoken commentary throughout the movie and it’s largely done well. One is how compromised the goals of the fighting factions are. There are terrorists, immigrants-rights fighters and the government, all of which have lost their paths due to greed, corruption, ego or want of power. With all of the backstabbing and lying, Theo and Kee are on their own and on the run to get to the Human Project.
The underlying message in the film though is hope. Is the girl’s promise a fluke, or is it something that the rest of the planet can share? Will the birth of the baby bring hope to the world or only fuel its inevitable downfall? Children of Men offers hope… but it does’t offer easy answers, or even answers, except that to give up is the worst way to face the end. This was an excellent movie and I’d highly recommend it to anyone.