Children of Men runs the dystopian gamut, from V for Vendetta and 28 Days Later to Fahrenheit 451, THX 1138 and 1984, while capturing the dead serious urgency of current politics, thanks to heavy doses of xenophobia, insurrectionist violence, surveillance, imprisonment and torture. Drawing reverently from the story of Christ’s flight through Egypt, Alfonso Cuarón has made the dystopian thriller of our time — one rife with the paranoia, cynicism and inertia that have come to define our political time.
If there’s something missing from the film, it would be insufficient time to absorb the moral weight of the material without the needless intrusion of a music cue. It goes without saying the the images and performances communicate the film’s seriousness adequately; by comparison the music feels cheap. In some cases, the music misleads the audience. For instance, the strains of King Crimson’s “In the Court of the Crimson King” filled me with dread — I expected betrayal, detainment, torture…a traumatic workout wherein the film’s action forced the audience to suffer the fate of the character[s] in question. When nothing of the sort happens, the lingering uncertainty is still unsettling, but not as forceful as the outcome the music portends.
The music notwithstanding, Children of Men exceeds expectations with quick-paced action, on point polemics and overarching message of hope and optimism, making it an immediate classic in the vein of the dystopian thrillers that preceded it.
[See also: Children of Men earns Cinemarati’s top ranking]