Children of Men

I'm not sure why I felt compelled to see this film, but Kim and I watched it this morning, and I was transfixed. It is fantastic. No, a better description is 'mesmerizing'.

The story takes place in the tragically grim world of the year 2027, when the societies of man have broken down, and the idea of homeland security has achieved its inevitable goal of being a boot stamping police state, with Britain being the last bastion of civilization, no less, and due to unknown environmental reasons, all women are infertile and no child has been born in the past 18 years. The world is dying. There are no children.

Within this framework, a man is tasked with helping a special refugee to safety: a young Fuji woman pregnant with child. Their goal is to avoid government involvement, and to connect with the somewhat mythical Human Project, whose goal seems to be salvation of the Earth.

The film is remarkable in that it draws you in and gives you a completely realistic portrayal of this darkly apocalyptic future. Utterly believable and absolutely frightening. There was, however, one sequence that drew me out of my movie going experience by its sheer technical brilliance: an 8 or 9 minute one-take of a scramble through a battle zone in a refugee camp that was astonishing.

I keep thinking about this movie. It's disturbing and enlightening.