The year is 2027 and the world is grieving because the youngest person on earth just died at the age of 18 years and 6 months. A death of a young person is tragic, but what makes this one so heartbreaking is it was the last birth the world has seen.
The world is in chaos. Great Britain seems to be the one place on earth with stability, and they have cut off all immigration to the country. There are huge numbers of illegal aliens proceeding into the country. The government has been rounding them up off the streets into a refugee camp. The only way to move inbetween zones set up in the country is with special papers.
Theodore Faron (Clive Owens is approached by his ex-wife Julian Taylor (Julianne Moore), the leader of a domestic terrorist group that stands for the immigrants. She wants Faron to get papers that will allow an important illegal immigrant to get to a boat on the ocean.
Faron sees an opportunity to get back with his lost love and gets the papers. There is just one catch: the papers are for joint transport, and Faron will have to escort the immigrant.
Kee (Clair-Hope Ashitey) the immigrant lets Faron in on the secret of her importance; she is pregnant. Later that night, Faron learns of a plot to kill him and Kee after she gives birth. The group has plans to use the baby as a political tool. They flee the compound only to be pursued.
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón, Children of Men takes no prisoners in terms of suspense. It is a film that has you clutching the armrests of the seat. The director gives very little release once the action starts. It is just enough to keep someone from going into cardiac arrest.
The film is a bit violent but it is not meaningless; most of the film takes place in a war zone. It does get a little gory at times. There is even one scene where blood splashes up on the camera lens. Cuarón brings the reality and the grotesque nature of the violence.
The film, based on the book Children of Men, has many different philosophical and political questions to ask. If there were no next generation, what would we have to live for? As well as touching on some of the questions we face today about immigration in the United States, it gave an eerie realization as they ushered illegal immigrants into buses labeled “Homeland Security.”
This was an intense ride that takes you on a rollercoaster of thought. It is a great film with great attention paid to the technical side and outstanding performances from the entire cast. You leave the theater relieved it was all just a film … or is it?