City of Ember

City of Ember is an American fantasy film directed by Gil Kenan and loosely based on the 2003 novel by Jeanne DuPrau. The film stars Saoirse Ronan, Bill Murray, Harry Treadaway, Toby Jones, Martin Landau, Mary Kay Place, Mackenzie Crook, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, and Tim Robbins. Released on October 10, 2008, by 20th Century Fox under the "Fox-Walden" joint-venture, two months after the release of the final book in the series, The Diamond of Darkhold. The film received mixed reviews from critics and was a box office bomb, grossing only $17.9 million against a budget of $55 million.
==Plot==
In the face of an impending global disaster, an underground city called Ember is built to protect a significant number of survivors. Additionally, "The Builders" prepare a small metal box, set to open after 200 years, for a future generation of Emberites. This box is given to the first Mayor of Ember, with the tradition that each Mayor should pass it to their successor. The citizens of Ember thrive in a captivating world of bright lights. However, when the seventh Mayor dies unexpectedly, the succession is disrupted, and over time, the importance of the box is forgotten and it is neglected. The box opens on schedule, but no one notices. About 41 years later, Ember's generator starts to fail, leading to frequent power outages, and a critical shortage of food, medicine, and other essentials.
During the pivotal rite of passage at Ember City School, Mayor Cole, known for his incompetence, presides over the ceremony where graduating students draw lots to determine their future professions. Doon Harrow, whose father, Loris "Barrow" Harrow, is an inventor and repairman, is determined to rescue Ember despite his father's belief in its futility. Meanwhile, Lina Mayfleet dashes to arrive at the ceremony in time. Doon receives the role of "Messenger," and Lina is designated for "Pipeworks," under the mentorship of the aging technician Sul. Dissatisfied with their initial roles, they eagerly swap jobs and embark on their new duties—though Doon had hoped to become an Electrician's Helper, a role that Joss, the actual recipient, declined to exchange. Loris presents Doon with a graduation present, while Lina familiarizes herself with the regulations essential for maintaining Ember's stability.
Lina hurries to deliver her first message to Clary at the Greenhouse. A frail man emerges from the unknown region, and the locals quarantine him, marking him as contaminated. Lina reflects on her father's death due to an illegal excavation in search of salvation. She finds the mandible of an enlarged beetle. Doon assists Sul in securing leaking pipes. As Sul falls asleep, Doon, eager to repair the generator, enters an uncharted tunnel and discovers a storage room with empty shelves, until Looper, a worker, expels him. Following an intense blackout in Ember, Doon and Lina agree to work together. Joss declares that the generator is irreparable.    
At home, Lina checks on her grandmother, who is searching for something significant. She discovers her young sister, Poppy, gnawing on the contents of an open box. While delivering a message to Cole, Lina spots a portrait of her great-great-grandfather, the seventh Mayor, holding the identical metal box. Following another blackout, her grandmother passes away. Lina and Poppy then move in with their neighbor, Mrs. Murdo. Lina salvages the torn papers and, using glue, reconstructs them as well as she can. She seeks Doon's assistance to interpret the contents. He identifies the paper as having been typed by the Builders by comparing it to a restricted history book at school. They slowly uncover that it holds instructions and directions for an exit from Ember. The box also contains a partially intact key card. Lina asks her friend Lizzie, a warehouse clerk, to examine the key card. Meanwhile, customers are voicing concerns over the dwindling food supply. Lina accompanies Doon to a hidden vault where he previously found a clue, but they are thwarted by a massive star-nosed mole, which they narrowly avoid. Later, Lina, upon seeing her father's old helmet, earnestly questions Clary, learning that her father firmly believed in the existence of a path to the surface.
As Mayor Cole presents a comprehensive solution, Lina discovers Lizzie being bribed with food by Looper. During another exploration of the tunnels, Doon employs a specially crafted tool to open a secret vault where Cole has been stockpiling canned food for himself, leaving the citizens of Ember to starve. At Mrs. Murdo's residence, while tucking Poppy into bed, Doon plays an old answering machine tape belonging to the Mayfleets and hears his father's voice, realizing he too attempted to escape the city. He assures Loris that there is still hope. Meanwhile, Lina tries to expose Cole's corruption, but when she learns that the attendants are complicit, they attempt to apprehend her and seize the box. She manages to flee during a blackout and acquires the other key card Cole possessed.
Now on the run from the mayor's police, Clary conceals Lina and Doon in a secret compartment within the Greenhouse. They utilize a drilling rig, crafted by Loris, to stealthily bypass the guards. Merging two key cards, they reveal the generator's insignia. Lina and Doon resolve to embark on their journey to the surface, but not without Poppy. Amidst the city's annual choir performance, she captures Poppy's attention with a whistle. Together, they dash to the Pipeworks and decipher the document's message, discovering a chamber filled with lockers repurposed as boats for the exodus. They follow a boat on a conveyor belt that descends to an underground river, marking the path out of Ember. The final task is to enter an abandoned control room and use the key card to activate the massive waterwheels with a specific force and energy surge, enabling the boats to navigate through. However, one waterwheel is obstructed. With Sul's help, Doon, Lina, and Poppy navigate the boat past the immobilized waterwheel and descend through a cavern. As their actions incite chaos in Ember, Cole secludes himself in his vault, betraying Looper, who is then consumed by the giant mole.
Doon, Lina, and Poppy finally arrive at the stream's end. They light candles and ascend stairs to another room, where a banner reads "For The Good Of All Mankind!" Upon emerging onto the Earth's surface, they witness a sunrise for the first time. A large moth, which looks familiar, descends into a hole. They also discover Ember in the hole below, too distant to call out to anyone. Therefore, before setting out to explore, they send a letter detailing the escape route, secured to a rock, down into Ember, where Loris finds it.
==Cast==
*Saoirse Ronan as Lina Mayfleet
*Bill Murray as Mayor Cole
*Harry Treadaway as Doon Harrow
*Toby Jones as Barton Snode
*Martin Landau as Sul
*Mary Kay Place as Mrs. Murdo
*Mackenzie Crook as Looper
*Marianne Jean-Baptiste as Clary Lane
*Tim Robbins as Loris "Barrow" Harrow
*Liz Smith as Granny Mayfleet
*Amy Quinn and Catherine Quinn as Poppy Mayfleet
*Lucinda Dryzek as Lizzie Bisco
*Matt Jessup as Joss
*Simon Kunz as Captain Fleury
*Ian McElhinney as Builder
==Videos==
thumb|The City of Ember
Category:American films
Category:American fantasy films
Category:Fantasy
Category:2000s films
Category:2000s American films
Category:2000s fantasy films
Category:2000s American fantasy films
Category:2008 films
Category:2008 in film
Category:Rated PG
Category:Blockbusters