Bleak, British Science Fiction (Children of Men (DVD))

Member Name: Midrange

Product:	Children of Men (DVD)
Date:	25/06/09 (5 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Believable, engaging and tense

Disadvantages: It does feel quite long

This film feels fantastically real. For me, this really makes it work. Yes, it's science fiction, but it's dealt with in a very detailed and believable manner. There's no extended exposition - which I'm always grateful for in sci-fi because it credits the audience with enough intelligence to piece the story together for themselves.

Suffice to say, it's the year 2027 and women are no longer fertile. They have not been fertile since 2008 and, since then, society has degenerated. The film follows the journey of a group of freedom fighters, on the run from the authority and even from their allies. For maximum enjoyment, I would suggest emersing yourself in this film with as few preconceptions as possible. The picture is built in a lot of detail and the plot unfolds cleverly. I didn't find myself getting too confused and I always felt the urgency of the group's mission.

There is one scene in this film which I found particularly effective. I've already alluded to the realism within the movie. One scene consists of about 4 minutes of entirely unbroken footage in a car. It really is tremendously impressive - so much so that I had to research how it was put together. As far as I can remember, the film does not rely heavily on incidental music to create tension. Car chases and fight sequences are gritty and plausible. The characters are complex but not alienating.

Summary: Film exploring a seemingly hopeless future and society