Children of Men

Civilization is in the throes of endgame with director Alfonso Cuaron’s Children of Men, a 100-percent bleak outlook regarding future times. Cuaron’s nightmarish vision of the future—based on the novel by P.D. James—sees a world overrun by military governments, a world where women are unable to have babies. The film opens in the year 2027, when former activist, now civil servant Theodore Faron (Clive Owen) is making a routine stop for a cup of coffee. As he pauses outside to mix his cup of joe, a bomb destroys the building he’s just departed. Shaken and dazed, he walks through the carnage, which includes a woman holding her severed arm, and probably wishes he had brewed at home. The story then follows Owen’s character as he finds himself protecting the first pregnant woman in 18 years. Owen gives a first-rate performance here, and the visual style of the movie is fantastic. There are a couple of small flaws (including the dopey wig that Michael Caine is wearing), but the movie certainly makes you think and has the capability of scaring the crap out of you.