Review of Children of Men (2006) by Norman B — 05 Oct 2013

20 years into the future, 2027 to be exact, people haven't been able to breed new life in 18 years, and with the death of the youngest living human, an 18-year-old named "Baby Diego," the world is looking even bleaker. Suicides are increasing with heavily advertised drugs offering an over the counter way of making it easier to die.

Despite nearly dying in a terrorist bombing, government worker Theo Faron isn't worried about what's going on around him, until his ex-wife Julian shows up after years to ask him a favor. She's now leading a rebel group called the Fishes who need to get a young immigrant girl named Kee to the Human Project, an organization trying to solve the issue of the world's infertility. The appropriately named girl has a secret one that could possibly change the face of this dire global situation, and Theo finds himself having to guide her to the British coast. Even after being abducted by his ex-wife, Theo seems relatively unaffected as they ride calmly through the countryside giving them a chance to reconnect, a brief moment of optimism that's cut short as Theo and Kee end up on the run, not only from the police, but also the rebels.

This incredible premise and vision is only partially what makes "Children of Men" so spectacular, the other part being Clive Owen himself. This very well could be Owen's best film as he plays a real person suffering from a great loss, but trying to endure and remain positive. Owen does a heck of a job acting as the viewer's eyes, the camera staying on him the entire film so we can see how the horrors of this world ultimately affect him. As grim as the future may be, the film allows for a few moments of humor in order to make light of a serious situation, much of it coming from Owen's cynical delivery and his interactions with Kee, played with suitable naivety by newcomer Claire-Hope Ashitey. Most of the film's more entertaining moments involve Michael Caine as Theo's weed smoking hippy friend Jasper who has a much more cordial view about the situation of the country.

When Theo and Kee arrive at a refugee camp with the help of Jasper's police friend Syd. It's not the best place for them to be, especially when the rebel uprising shows up, followed by the army turning the entire camp into a full upscale war zone. As Theo desperately tries to find Kee after being separated from her, the camera stays on him for an incredible extended long shot that puts the viewer into the middle of the warfare {like a first person video game}, as Theo tries to avoid being killed in the ensuing firefight. When someone nearby gets shot, splattering blood on the camera lens, it only takes you out of the moment for a split second. The impact of this climactic sequence makes you realize that you're watching something that's never been accomplished on a film, and it's something that's likely to be studied by film school students well past the year in which the film is set.

If the future depicted in "Children of Men" bears any resemblance to reality, things aren't getting any better. Despite that sad worldview, Cuarón uses this dark ideal future to show that however bad the world may get, there's always hope plus optimism on the horizon. As a whole the experience is effective at leaving you emotionally drained and breathless at the same time.