In the film Children of Men the audience is thrust into the movie right from the start. The film takes place in a dystopian Britain where all women have been unable to procreate for 18 years. Chaos instils and Britain is the last beacon of hope for humankind. The youngest human has just been killed by an overzealous fan which is soon followed by a horrific explosion which involved Theo the main charcter. This was an effective start to the film because it draws you in and sets a very solemn mood which would be held throughout. Theo is thrown back into a world he once knew when he is kidnapped by Julian, an old friend. Julian is the leader of the Fishers, a terrorist group who like every other terrorist organization is opposed to the government. Theo is asked by Julian to obtain documents that would allow an 18 year-old refugee to travel to the Human Project, a sanctuary premised around saving humankind. Theo soon finds out the Fishers are corrupt to the bone when they kill their own leader Julian, Theo makes a drastic but much needed decision to flee and take Kee to the Human Project himself. Later in the film Kee delivers the baby without any complications but soon after the newborn is taken by the Fishers and Theo must chase them down through a warzone. Following this chaotic portion of the movie Theo is wounded but successfully gets Kee to the human project. The film had a very lacklustre ending with Theo dying from a gunshot wound and the audience having to infer if Kee gets picked up by the ship Tomorrow.
This film bares the what if question, what if we couldn’t procreate? What would happen to humankind? Because of that what if question I feel the film had a very interesting take on the future. I felt that it kept me interested because this could be very possible since unfortunately some women don’t have the ability to give birth. The main problem I had with this film was the fact it was tremendously predictable. I could especially see that Kee was pregnant because there was really nothing else the film could have done to keep the plot running. As well I didn’t like how the first women pregnant in 18 years was in laymen terms a prostitute who didn’t even know who the father was. It almost sends the message that the human race is worthless, that the new beginning for humankind will be of a baby with no father.
I found it interesting how animals would be attracted to Theo. I feel it sends a deeper message other than he probably smells of bacon. In my opinion it reminded me a little bit of Noah’s Ark because in order to start a new humankind Noah has to build a massive boat that will attract two of every animal. In this case all the animals levitated toward Theo who in this case was Noah’s Ark, but he had to get Kee the last hope for civilization to the boat Tomorrow. I liked that message and felt it added to the overall likability of the film.
Theo wasn’t the typical hero, he lacked the confidence of one and ended up dying. That being said I felt like I could relate to him more because he was an average guy who was trying with all his heart to do the right thing. Even though Julian and Jasper his best friends were killed he pushed on until the end. Not only did this film have a different take on a dystopian future but also had a more average hero. I would rate this movie 4 stars out of 5 because though I enjoyed the underlying messages and explosions I didn’t feel like the execution of the film was there. It was one of those movies you would rent and not see it in the theatres. That being said I would recommend it to all Science fiction lovers and anyone who enjoys a good dystopian film. All in all a very enjoyable and interesting film.
