I saw a lot of movies in 2006 but Children of Men, from director Alfonso Cuarón, was by far my favorite and it’s set to be released March 27, 2007 on DVD. Not since Sixth Sense, when I discovered that Bruce Willis was really a dead guy, did I feel so attached to a movie and its characters (I cried at the end of Sixth Sense).
Okay, on with the review. It’s the year 2027, only twenty years into the future; women are infertile and have been for at least eighteen years. To make matters worse, the youngest person alive was killed because he wouldn’t sign an autograph.
That brings us to Clive Owen’s character, Theo Faron. His ex-girlfriend, Julian (Julianne Moore), is one of Britain’s most wanted terrorist leaders. Julian recruits Theo to get a young refugee (fugee) traveling papers since he knows some of the wealthy upper class. He succeeds, but Theo must travel with the fugee because his name is also on the travel papers.
The plot seems simple enough until they are attacked on the way to their destination, leaving Theo and the young fugee, Kee (Clare-Hope Ashitey), to fend for themselves. I have a new respect for Clive Owen. At one point in the movie, he just stood there looking like “What the hell is going on? And what the hell am I supposed to do about it?” I don’t always know what to do nor what to say and I really related to his character. Theo, the reluctant hero, wasn’t really a hero at all. He was just a man trying do some good.
Best scene in the movie: A woman had her legs blown off, and as she sat on the ground, legless and bleeding, she was singing. Her beautiful voice echoed hope and salvation when she saw Kee walking past. Dude, I about cried.
Oh yeah, I can’t end my review without speaking of the director’s choice of using a young, black woman as a symbol of hope. I felt a tremendous amount of pride as I watched the movie. It’s not often that a dark, big-lipped, short, and wide-nosed black woman is portrayed as the symbol of hope in Hollywood. Nope, it’s not done often. It felt good to see someone who looked like me play such a great role in such a great movie.
Now, I’m off to Amazon.com to pre-order my Children of Men DVD.
Article comments
1 - Katie McNeill
great review Connie! I still haven't seen this one. I will have to buy a copy when it comes out. I did however buy a copy of the book with Clive Owen on the cover. Not the same thing, but I hope the book is just as good as you say the movie is.