Children of Men

So last night I went and saw Children of Men with my Dad, and I thought it was really great. After seeing the preview awhile back, I was interested in seeing it, but was not about to immediately run out and watch it. It wasn't on the absolute top of my list. We ended up seeing it last night because the timing and the location worked out best. What I had really wanted to see last night was Breaking and Entering, because I read a review recently saying that while not every part of the movie is amazing, it does a great job of portraying the heartbeat of contemporary life in London. Which for me is enough of a reason to see a movie. But it was playing too early and only at E Street, which was in the opposite direction of dinner with my brother, so we went with Children of Men instead. And while I would still like to see Breaking and Entering, I am really glad we ended up seeing Children of Men.

If you like dystopian stories (and it's based on the novel of the same name by P.D. James, so it's an actual story), it's a good one. What would happen to the world if humans stopped being able to reproduce? One might guess that most of the world would collapse, which is what happens in the movie, with the exception of the UK. And what is life like when you live in the only country left in the world, which has closed its borders, is in a constant battle to kick out illegal immigrants, and never has any new citizens born? Well that's what you'll find out if you see the movie. I've always really enjoyed this kind of story, so if you do too I think you will really like the movie. If dystopian stories aren't really your bag, then I would say that you might want to pass on this one.

But I will say that the historical and cultural references (mostly in the imagery) are pretty phenomenal. So if you see it, I would suggest you keep your eyes open, and if you can managed to not get SO wrapped up in the story that you can pay attention to what things look like (and I would guess that's gotta be pretty hard, because the story definitely consumes you) I would guess you will have an even more rewarding experience than I did. After reading about some of those aspects of the film I wish I could see it again. But it's not surprising, since Alfonso Caurón is really very talented, and seems to be an incredibly thoughtful director.

One last thought, I'm not really sure how I managed to make it this far without realizing how super sexy Clive Owen is, but I'm glad I'm in the know these days. I think I had just legitimately not noticed before, but it's kind of hard to miss in Children of Men.