A dystopian masterwork

Rating: 9/10 (12 January 2007)

"Children of Men" opens with a bang that echoes throughout the film's entirety. It's a loud, progressive sound that unleashes the darkness of humanity and the chaotic depths of a hellish dystopia. The year is 2027 and humanity is one the verge of extinction. Women are infertile and all hope, innocence, and civilization as we know it has plunged into despair. Only hell itself can rival the idea of this sort of future, where humans are divided, compassion and innocence is nonexistent, and the warmth of a child's heart is nothing more than a long lost dream.
Alfonso Cauron has already established himself as an admirable visualist, and a versatile one at that. From the voluptuous and angelic frames of "Great Expectations", "A Little Princess" and "Y Tu Mama Tambien", to the grim and melancholy vision of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", Cauron always manages to elevate the material, good or bad, into a much deeper, profound, and personal work by utilizing in his style and through his own eyes, even to the point of adapting a Charles Dickens novel into a film whose visuals are as lyrical as the source material itself. With Children of Men, Cauron not only succeeds in providing a profoundly haunting vision of an intriguing future, but, he also succeeds in launching his capabilities as both a visionary and as a director to a whole new level, perfectly establishing the film's style and atmosphere with the use of hand-held cameras, elaborate and chaotic set pieces, and an emporium of symbolism and subtle meaning.
The story has a concept that's strikingly unique, yet, told in a traditional and engrossingly symbolic fashion, perhaps almost to the point of being biblical. Theo (Clive Owen) lives his days like any other civilian to Britain's dystopian society. He knows there's no hope, no faith, and no future. He's just counting the days before humanity reaches its end. Yet, all of Theo's thoughts and regards are immediately uplifted once he is reunited with his ex lover, Julian (Julianne Moore), who is now the leader of a terrorist organization whose goal is to stress the meaning of humanity and what is left of it. First, take into consideration the fact that the presence of Julian in Theo's life is more than a breeze of fresh air. She's the last thing on Earth that he love and to have her back in her life is like having sunlight on a day that's bound to bring thunderous storms. We know that the two have a passionate past, yet, one that was destroyed by the loss of their baby child. Theo's remaining feelings for Julian are then delved deeper as he discovers a vital secret...a young woman's pregnancy.
The character of Theo is depicted in a sort of biblical manner, making him the shepherd that God trusts upon in order to expand the affections of his miracles. The film itself can be considered as a deep meditation on the science of theology and the philosophy of nurture and its effect on human nature. Is the resulting chaotic society a reflection upon human nature, or is it simply the dying need for the warmth and nurture we witness every day, yet, never fully appreciate? The performances given by the cast are all astounding in their own way. Clive Owen is an actor whose always benefited from his deep voice and suave persona, like the ideal James Bond. Yet, as Theo, Owen gets a chance to explore a character with profoundly deep emotions, from the troubling grief of loosing a son to the inexplicable capacity of saving humanity's last hope. Owen delivers an all out sublime performance and carries the film beautifully. Julianne Moore, although with limited screen time, delivers a fairly fleshed out performance that enables the audience to have an overall good understanding of her character, her goals, and her feelings and intentions towards the fate of humanity and Theo. Claire-Hope Ashitey, the newcomer of the ensemble, delivers well as Owen's opposite and as playing the pinnacle role of the film, giving a performance that utilizes on her amount of realism and believability.
From its opening scenes, Children of Men is a panorama of not only a brilliantly crafted, nihilist dystopia of a future, but, also of the capabilities of human compassion in the face of hellish darkness. Cauron has created his own personal masterpiece with his own personal and unique style. From his use of excessive tracking shots to the emphasis of hyperrealism, he fuels the film with both technical and emotional nuances that will stray in your mind for days. The ever-lasting message of hope is one we hear every now and then, yet, Cauron presents the moral of the story in a way audiences, and mainstream ones especially, aren't use to seeing. It's a moral that isn't afraid of being too bleak or too sober  just as honest and poignant as a newborn baby's cry.