A marvel

Rating: 10/10 (5 August 2007)

Dystopian futures never looked more blissfully bleak than they do in Alfonso Cuarón's anti-futuristic masterpiece, Children of Men. The year is 2027, and humans have lost the ability to procreate. With the death of the world's youngest citizen, people are coming to grips with the fact that their slowly aging population will one day become extinct. The city of London is embroiled in anarchy, with pillagers and terrorists taking the best opportunity from the surrounding chaos. Technology has indeed caught up with the times, but it's a far cry from the ultra-slick future envisaged by other movies in the genre. Amidst this paranoia-stricken populace, an ex-political activist (Clive Owen) unwittingly becomes in charge of protecting and transporting a mysteriously pregnant woman to the seaside sanctuary of a human research facility. Cuarón eschews the potential mawkishness of the story (glimmer of hope, anyone?), opting instead for gritty realism and a restrained background score. The film is also more rife with special effects than it lets on, with several sequences leaving you in complete awe. One particular motorcycle chase leaves you wondering about the logistics of filming it, with the camera playing tricks you haven't quite seen before. Ultimately, where the film fails is in its failure to bring any fresh insight into this oft-repeated premise. The film ostensibly traces its influences to the Orwellian landscape of 1984, but through dazzling cinematography and compelling direction, manages to leave an indelible mark of its own.