Movie Review: Children of Men

So its a little past midnight and I decided to write the first blog of the day. Well about 27 hours ago, my friend Tristan and I went to see Children of Men. We were bored at his house and decided to stroll to the theatre. So we pay at 9:45 pm, sneak in popcorn, and sit down for the view.


Instead of a chronological analysis, I opt for a sort of "big picture" analysis. The main character is Theo Faron(Clyde Owen). The setting is London, 2027. Its a world where every female is void of fertility. No one knows why. There is no explanation as to why procreation is impossible. The audience and the characters in the story are perplexed. The world is a disaster, save a few countries and noticeably Britain, and immigrants from all nations are clamoring to be in Britain but are summarily deported, confined, or executed. The State is supreme and imposes its will similar to that of George Orwell's States in the book 1984 A very, very grim reality. A world where death, tragedy, and dispair are the norm.

So there is a fringe group in the movie known as the Fishers. Led by Julian Taylor(Julianne Moore),a woman with a past history with Theo. He is brought in an operation because of his links with key figures in the British government. Well tragic events happen and he is forced to run away with Kee(Claire-Hope Ashitey) because she is the only pregnant woman on earth. Subsequently, the baby is born and they're in a struggle to reach the Azores Islands where there is a project to save the future of mankind. The ending provides clues she did make the but it never shows the arrival on the island.

Well I found this film confusing at times but also enlightening. Now in regards to the structure of the film, the acting was crisp, the cinematography was fresh, and the plot went smoothly. My qualms though were the explanations. Like there is never an explanation of infertility, the backgrounds of the characters, or even the chain of events leading to the nightmarish world.
The way the bureaucracy exploited the citizenry and committed atrocities to foreigners was horrendous. I look at that part is a foreshadow of the future, the police state and all. I don't see infertility becoming the norm though. The story in this respect provides a social outlook at what is in the realm of possibility.

I see movies like this as of a higher calling to show the audiences as to what the world can be unless changed. All around you can see people rising up in upheaval, most noticeably in the concentration camp known as Bexhill. Everywhere there is some sort of insurrectionary practice, whether fighting the State with physical force or even minute as growing Marijuana, as in the case of Theo's friend Jasper Palmer(Michael Caine). Of course this wasn't the direction of the movie, the direction was toward a journey to reviving fertility so humanity can live. With eyewitness of the new born child the masses are swayed and given hope. I believe that was another subject that the director was trying to convey, that something so inspirational and full of grace can provide a renewed sense in the worth of the populace.

Overall I recommend seeing the movie and taking in the whole outlook and not just the story line. With the a few of the holes displayed in the movie, the overwhelming brilliance of the movie lies in the triumph of hope and the possible rise of liberty.