CHILDREN OF MEN (2006)
Universal Pictures

By Désirée I. Guzzetta

Children of Men is a masterpiece of science fiction.

Set in England in 2027, where war has decimated the world and something unexplained has rendered all women infertile, Children of Men tells the story of Theo (Clive Owen), an ordinary bloke barely getting by in this cruel future. He spends his time at a dreary job, occasionally sneaking off to visit his hippie friend, Jasper (Michael Caine), for some relaxation away from the misery of London life, where immigrants are rounded up and sent off to concentration camp-style holding facilities and guerilla warfare is the norm. Theo himself barely avoids getting blown up at a coffee shop.

Back into his life comes his ex-wife, Julian (Julianne Moore), who is now leader of the anti-government group, the Fishes. She needs a favor only Theo can provide because of his government connections: transit papers to the coast so she can smuggle the aptly named Kee to safety. Kee is a Third World immigrant. Kee is also pregnant.

Children of Men resonates on several levels: political, intellectual, religious, and emotional. It's also easy to become involved in the story because of Theo, who is not some James Bond clone; he’s an ordinary man thrust into extraordinary circumstances who does his best to carry out Julian’s wishes and protect Kee.

The atmosphere of the film is disquieting, including the background touches that establish the futuristic world and anchor it in the viewer’s mind, such as 1984-style propaganda splashed on billboards and elsewhere encouraging people to rat out suspected immigrants or reminding them that avoiding fertility testing is a crime. Everything in this world seems drab and dark, from the preponderance of grey and black hues to the Blade Runner-like rain.

The acting is superb all around; Caine is poignant and hysterical as the free-living Jasper, and Moore makes a subtle commander. Ashitey’s Kee is also strong, but the picture belongs to Owen’s convincing Everyman; he allows us to see the conflicting emotions driving Theo without ever going over the top.

Alfonso Cuarón continues to cement his reputation as an exciting, inventive filmmaker. Usually having several screenwriters on one project is the kiss of death; here, they’ve managed to craft a consistent world and thrilling tale that is often despairing, but never without hope. Under Cuarón’s assured direction, Children of Men resonates long after the final credits roll.

Enter Dystopia: Official site

Universal Pictures
Strike Entertainment in association with Hit and Run Productions
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Screenwriters: Alfonso Cuarón & Timothy J. Sexton and David Arata and Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby
Based on the novel by: P.D. James
Starring: Clive Owen (Theo), Julianne Moore (Julian), Michael Caine (Jasper), Clare-Hope Ashitey (Kee), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Luke), Charlie Hunnam (Patric), Danny Huston (Nigel), Oana Pella (Marichka), Peter Mullan (Syd)
Running Time: 1 hour, 49 minutes
Rated: R

© 2002-08 Brenda Cowan & Désirée Guzzetta/Two Lazy Critics^TM. All Rights Reserved. May Not Be Reprinted Without Permission.
Two Lazy Critics^TM. Logo Designed by Tammy Ferranti. Website Designed by Amanda Paulette and maintained by the Two Lazy Critics^TM.
To report broken links or for general site information, translate the following into the proper form (look at how the site name is spelled out) and put it in your favorite e-mail client: info AT 2 La-zee Critics DOT com.
The Two Lazy Critics^TM brought to you by four not-so-lazy parental units.

All images (specifically, "official movie site" images, album covers, etc.) included on our site are used as allowed via copyright laws in accordance with the U.S. Copyright Office's "fair use" ruling for use of images in critiquing and reviewing and are copyright of their respective studios and/or companies and all that good legal stuff. Any images used that don't fall into the above categories are copyright of the respective people who took them and gave us permission to put the images on our site.