What if all the men and women on earth suddenly became infertile? Thats the premise of the book
The Children of Men (opening January 5 throughout San Diego), written in 1993 by P. D. James, the British novelist best known for her murder mysteries. Now Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron brings
The Children of Men to the screen.
Clive Owen stars in The Children of Men
CLIP News Report: The Homeland Security bill is ratified, after eight years Briti borders will remain closed.
London, 2027.
CLIP News Report: Our top story: The world was stunned today by the death of Diego Ricardo the youngest person on the planet. Baby Diego was stabbed outside a bar in Buenos Aires after refusing to sign an autograph.
Eighteen-year-old Baby Diego had been the last person born on earth. With no new births, the human race is slowly dying out. People have lost hope in the future. The government markets a mass suicide product for the elderly on the omnipresent TV screens. And violence on the streets has turned London into what looks like a third world country. The politicians blame the violence on terrorists but rebel fighters accuse the authoritarian government of bombing its own people in order to maintain fear and control.
Through all this, Theo has managed to create a numbing routine of sleep, work, alcohol and an occasional visit to a pot-selling, ex-political journalist friend. Then his routine is interrupted A radical group calling themselves the Fishes, kidnaps him
Clive Owen and Julianne Moore in The Children of Men
CLIP JULIANNE: Hello Theo. Its me Theo, its Julianne. Im sorry about the theatrics
Julianne is Theos ex-wife and she wants him to use his connections to help them transport a young woman named Kee who symbolizes hope for the future.
CLIP THEO: Shes pregnant
LUKE: Now you know whats at stake. Its a miracle, isnt it.
Amidst the pessimism, despair and social disorder, the pregnancy of this black illegal immigrant does seem like a kind of miracle. Even the disillusioned and disengaged Theo allows himself to be caught up in wonder.
CLIP THEO: Whos the father
KEE: Im a virgin [laughs]
For a split second, Theo and the audience become gullible to the idea that miracles are possible. As played by the soulful Clive Owen, Theo is a man who finds hope unexpectedly reborn in himself.
In bringing The Children of Men to the screen, writer-director Alfonso Cuaron significantly alters the character of Theo and P.D. James novel. He streamlines the plot, simplifying the dystopian, anti-authoritarian work into something of a futuristic road trip about saving the human race. The physical pursuit that moves the plot forward takes us across a lot of territory just as Cuarons Y Tu Mama Tambien gave us snapshots of Mexico from the moving car carrying its characters across the country. But while the film has the trappings of a chase film as rebels and police chase Theo and Kee, Cuaron continually tweaks expectations.
Alfonso Cuaron's The Children of Men
CLIP THEO: Miriam, jump start the car
A tense pursuit is unexpectedly slowed down by the fact that Theo has to push his getaway car. Cuaron also delivers a sci-fi film in which the futuristic elements are casually layered into a gritty, realistic background. In fact, Cuaron layers a lot into the busy background of his film. Rather than having characters telling us what has happen to the planet, Cuaron lets information filter through graffiti, photographs, news reports and TV ads
CLIP Immigration TV spot
Cuaron hones in on issues in James novel that prove particularly resonant for contemporary audiences--themes such as immigration, terrorism, infertility and social decline. The prison camps recall images weve seen from Guantanamo, Baghdad and Afghanistan. This is a sci-fi film that feels firmly rooted in a world that seems chillingly familiar. One way that Cuaron maintains that real world connection is in how he depicts violence.
The violence here is abrupt, often shockingly so, and it has an emotional impact. During a massive shootout between soldiers and the rebels, Cuaron offers an amazing single take that follows Theo through the carnage and places the viewer right in the middle of the fighting for a very immediate sense of danger. Cuaron takes us to this extreme point, showing us the absurdity of a race not only dying out but exterminating itself. Then amidst the bleakness allows for a flicker of hope.
The cries of Kees baby, the first baby born after eighteen years, prompts a moment of wonder and awe. We need the extremity of this situation to remind us of the importance of a single, tiny life. With The Children of Men, Alfonso Cuaron delivers a provocative piece of popular entertainment.
Companion viewing: Y Tu Mama Tambien, 28 Days Later, Blade Runner
