Children Of Men (Cuaron, 2006) - 10/10
Alfonso Cuaron has successfully brought to screen the most frightening, believable and haunting vision of the future I have ever seen. Women are infertile, Britain has closed itself off from outsiders, and the entire world is on the brink of collapse. What Cuaron does so well is that he paints the future as a slightly enhanced and rapidly decaying version of today's world. There are no flying cars, androids, or any of the usual sci-fi conventions to be found here. People still live in the same manner, and discrimination, fear, and especially hate are all still emotions that drive people. Cuaron explores this world, and navigates us through the story of a people without any faith left, who are miraculously and inexplicable given a glimmer of hope, in the form of new life. The birth of the first child in two decades represents some hope and optimism for the future, when it was thought that both were lost forever. Cuaron delivers the story to us with such class that no blatant message is forced down our throats, and we are left to make what we will of things. What I see is a film about hope even in the worst circumstances, and a film that is a masterpiece on every single level.
Alfonso Cuaron's direction is masterful in this film. I absolutely loved the way he relayed information, not through exposition, but through bits and pieces of information we pick up. Be it a news telecast, a paper, an overheard conversation, or a note, the information we are given is fractured and incomplete, which serves to make everything seem more real. This is probably the main reason, along with the dysotopian depiction of the future, that I have heard people compare Half-Life 2 the game, to this film. The decision to only feed the viewer as much information as the characters themselves get is an inspired one.
Clive Owen turns in another excellent performance as Theo, the protaganist of the piece. His performance is largely an internal one, and he portrays the initial feelings of numbness, and later the outbursts of emotion with honesty and the utmost believability. Michael Caine steals the show in his small role of Jasper, the pot-smuggling hipster with a heart of gold, willing to make any sacrifice so that the child can be born. The rest of the cast is filled out by uniformly excellent performances from a mixture of familiar faces and unknowns.
Possibly the most incredible thing about the film is the ground-breaking cinematography. There were several moments and scenes that had my jaw dropping from the incredible things I was witnessing on the screen. There are at least 2 scenes in the film (the car escape, and Theo's rescue in the finale) that run on for at least 10-15 minutes without any visible cuts, through chases and battlefields, constantly tracking the action and moving throughout the chaos. Both of these shots are pretty much the most impressive things I have seen this decade from a cinematography persective. What really seals the deal is the subtle way CG effects were used. The mark of great CG is when you can't tell it's being used. Aside from 1 or 2 obvious scenes, I could never tell if it was being used, although it obviously was in many of the scenes. An excellent visual package from top to bottom.
Alfonso Cuaron's film also manages to throw the viewer several unexpected twists, always keeps moving at a great pace, and packs one hell of an emotional punch. For all the reasons stated in this review, and for creating the most believable and frightening version of the future I have witnessed, and for accomplishing all this with an auteur's touch, I call Children of Men a masterpiece. Film of the year.
