A Wonderful Surprise

Rating: 10/10 (5 September 2006)

I saw this movie at a screening a few months ago. I admit I wouldn't normally buy a ticket based on the premise, but I love Alfonso Cuarons work and I covet Clive Owen. Here was a review I posted at the time.
Last night I had the opportunity to attend a screening of "Children of Men" which I jumped at. Although I love Alfonso Cuaron's work, the driving force in getting me to see this film is Clive Owen. I didn't read the book, but I knew a little going in. It is a Sci-fi piece that takes place in the near future, and the world is infertile. This is not something that I would normally buy a ticket for but again, my boyfriend was in it, so I was there. Firstly I can say that though this piece is touted as Sci-fi, it is a far cry from it. The whole movie had a very realistic feel to it. The time is 2027 and the settings are almost post-apocalyptic. There is a huge crack down on immigrants, who at this day and age, are treated with disdain, hatred and violence. There are key scenes in the movie that are reminiscent of Nazi Germany. The movie takes place between London and the English countryside. There is filth, trash, rot, decay and death everywhere. The attention to detail in this stark life is prominent in every scene, it's brilliant. I loved this movie!
The movie opens with the death of the worlds youngest citizen, who was just 18. This kid was a celebrity simply for being the last human being ever born, and the world goes into mourning, the inevitability of becoming extinct has just become even more apparent to all. Clive Owen's reluctant Theo is pulled into a plot by his activist Ex-wife, Julianne Moore, to save a girl who has a little secret. This girl, Kee (Claire-Hope Ashitey) is pregnant and an immigrant. Theo is pulled in different directions, not knowing whom to trust in a world which would embrace having a baby, but wouldn't acknowledge (and probably kill) the baby's mother because of her immigrant status. Theo is not a hero type, and would rather just take slugs off his Scotch Whiskey than save the world. He never even picks up a gun. Theo is aided by his friend Jasper, the Patriarch of pot, played to the hilt by Michael Caine. I couldn't help but smile every time Caine was on the screen, he was such a pleasure to watch, and you could tell he was having a hell of a good time with this part. Jasper lives in a house out in the woods with his sick wife and his pot plants. This house is the only place in the movie that translates to any type of peace or light, as are the scenes between Owen & Caine. Theo's ultimate plan is to get Kee and her baby to a boat that will lead them to safety and freedom. Along the way they learn that the people they should be able to trust, can't be trusted, and the ones who look a bit on the dicey side turn out to be OK, just a bit insane.
I don't want to go much more into the storyline, having been abused here before for including too much of the story. One thing I did notice early on, which became a main stay in the movie, was the presence of animals. Having not read the book, I am guessing that animals are more prevalent in families, to take the place of children. There are very few scenes in this movie where you won't see or hear a dog or cat. Also, this movie is a very visual one. I didn't expect as much violence as there was and some of it sneaks up on you and hits you on the head. There is a lot of hand held camera action, which can tend to get kinda shaky. And the use of sound in this movie is key. There is a scene towards the end of the movie done in long-shot where one sound literally stops the world, for a minute, it's literally breathtaking. It was also interesting to see how the immigrants were set-up in the camps. There was some segregation, but for the most part you had all different types of people from all over the world living together in these hovels; in the halls, on the stairs, every race and religion, crammed together, for survival sake. I guess some people might say the movie is slow, but Owen was on the screen the whole time and I AM biased, so I think at about 1 hour 35 minutes, it moved fine and overall I think it was a great film. I don't know how Universal is going to market this, but I think if they do it right they could have a sleeper hit on their hands.