Last night I watched the film Children of Men and was mildly astonished. I had held off going to see the film when it was in the cinema, mostly due to the poor representation from the preview. Sometimes (Often) I wonder just what movie studios have in mind when putting a trailer together. Either the trailers reveal too much or they totally confuse the viewer as to what the story is actually about. In Children of Men, I thought the film was simply about infertility and the race to save the last pregnant woman alive, but it's much more than that. The film encapsulates so much of the angst and unsettled political climate in the world today, such as rampant terrorism, governments out of control, mass hysteria, and complete chaos. The lives of westerners today, especially here in the U.S., is very sheltered from the reality of life in most other countries and what a day to day existence is like in the presence of constant war. Westerners see it in the media and attempt to empathize with those suffering around the world, but the reality escapes most. For me, this film made that reality present and felt even though it is set in the future. The base story is that humans have lost their ability to propagate, but as the society ages and closes in on extinction, it becomes increasingly more violent. The entire educational system becomes unnecessary and all the people in that industry are out of work. Families disintegrate. Infrastructure begins to crumble as more people die off and there's no one left to replace them. When the pregnant woman is discovered, there are factions who see her as a savior and those who want to crucify her because they are afraid the hope she brings will destroy the chaos they've become accustomed too. Sounds familiar.
I'm no film critic but I highly recommend this film to anyone who is concerned about the world today and the impact of governments fighting for supremacy. I guess what I want to convey is that there's much more to Children of Men than just the base story. Also, there's a terrific documentary in the Special Features that is made up of various established philosophers and cultural critics giving their take on the world today, where it is going, what is affecting it, etc. over images of the decay taking place across the globe. It's really as fascinating on its own merits as the film is.
