Children of Men

Why is it so hard to write about movies one enjoys, but so easy to waste hundreds of words on films one hates? Don't ask me about Poseidon, for instance, or we could be here all day. Anyway, I've been sitting here for about 30 minutes trying to write something about Children of Men that will convince you to go and see it, as it's not getting a lot of write-ups or publicity etc.

All I've come up with is this: Children of Men is an excellent movie, much better than other recent sci-fi efforts such as the Wachowskis' V for Vendetta, or the rather incoherent Aeon Flux.  Brilliant performances, a tense and unnerving narrative arc, absolutely fantastic camerawork and incredible mise en scene. The future London looks incredibly real, and the scenes set in the Bexhill Camp are utterly chilling.

Other thoughts that I don't have time to explore right now include the significane of Theo's relationships to animals, the relationship of the gender of the child to the particular use of 'Men' in the title (from the novel by PD James, I know, but I don't think it can be dismissed), as well as a broader set of ideas and themes in sci-fi that deal with the fraughtness of reproduction (see movies as diverse as Code 46 and Alien and Bladerunner, just to name a few).

There was a lot going in this movie, which you could see as a downside, but I loved the polymathic sprawl of it all which is, and I know this sounds very contradictory, enclosed in a very taut and tense thriller.

I'm also quite keen to read the original book now too, so I'm adding that to the TBR pile.

Anyway, go see it and let me know what you think.

Comments

[Ariel]

I had forgotten where I'd read the post that first made me want to see this film - I now remember it was here and Sars.

This film completley blew me away. It profoundly moved me more than any film I have seem in a long time.

I thought it was incredibly timely - the idea of the planet deteriorating to the point where only a small part is inhabitable and the refugee issue being so huge. With global warming, it may well hapen to some extent.

Like The Road, I thought that it had similarities to Lord of the Flies - the idea that people don't behave well when civilisation is stripped back and we are forced to compete for limited resources. It was a terrifying mirror to what we could be.

But it was also incredibly hopeful, I thought. Just a small sliver of hope, but so effective. The redemptive power of love and intuitive trust in the goodness of people (and of children) was such a force - that Julianne Moore's character took that huge leap of faith to trust Owen, and it paid off. That Kee took the leap of faith to trust them both. That moment when Clive Owen handed the gypsy woman the baby - and she handed it back. And the enormous leap of faith to belive in The Human Project, though no one had seen it.

And definite religious overtones. The baby as saviour, the virgin birth joke. And the above - the focus on faith.

Sorry to ramble. LOVED the movie and thanks for the original post that piqued my interest.

[Kate]

Thanks Ariel. I obvs loved this film too, unlike Jimbo. Drive-by-film reviews are a new one to me, I must say.

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