Imagine the near future, 20 years or so from now.  Al Gore’s dire predictions are beginning to come to fruition. The world is falling apart, cities and entire countries have disappeared. And on top of all of that, women have been unable to conceive children for almost two decades. It all makes for some depressing thoughts, but it also makes for the backdrop of the brilliant new film, Children of Men, by Alfonso Cuarón, best known for Y tu Mamá También, and moderately well known for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. 

It’s not just the case in this movie that the story is a good one, though the bleak look into a future where the world is ending due to the infertility of all women is both horrific and somehow believable. It’s not just that it’s ably acted, though Clive Owen does a fantastic job, as do Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, and virtually everyone else. It’s not just that the film’s depiction of how our present day actions will significantly impact our future and that we need to actually consider what we do is important, though that is an unquestionable truth thrown into stark relief here. 

That’s right, on top of the wonderful story, allegories, acting, et cetera, Children of Men is also brilliantly filmed and edited. Virtually every frame of the film is completely filled with part of the story or part of the reality of the world in which the characters live. There’s always something taking place in the background, some little thing going on in the corner of the screen. And yet, for every frame being jam-packed with information, it never seems overly crowded or busy.

The film also utilizes several long tracking shots of Owen, which serve to help the audience better feel as he does: the nervous tension of what lies around the corner, the death and carnage that occurs all around him, and the general sense of unease that has a hold on everyone that populates London in 2027.