Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6383 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-03-19
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 105 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Presenting a bleak, harrowing, and yet ultimately hopeful vision of humankind's not-too-distant future, Children of Men is a riveting cautionary tale of potential things to come. Set in the crisis-ravaged future of 2027, and based on the atypical 1993 novel by British mystery writer P.D. James, the anxiety-inducing, action-packed story is set in a dystopian England where humanity has become infertile (the last baby was born in 2009), immigration is a crime, refugees (or "fugees") are caged like animals, and the world has been torn apart by nuclear fallout, rampant terrorism, and political rebellion. In this seemingly hopeless landscape of hardscrabble survival, a jaded bureaucrat named Theo (Clive Owen) is drawn into a desperate struggle to deliver Kee (Clare-Hope Ashitey), the world's only pregnant woman, to a secret group called the Human Project that hopes to discover a cure for global infertility. As they carefully navigate between the battling forces of military police and a pro-immigration insurgency, Theo, Kee, and their secretive allies endure a death-defying ordeal of urban warfare, and director Alfonso Cuaron (with cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki) capture the action with you-are-there intensity. There's just enough humour to balance the film's darker content (much of it coming from Michael Caine, as Theo's aging hippie cohort), and although Children of Men glosses over many of the specifics about its sociopolitical worst-case scenario (which includes Julianne Moore in a brief but pivotal role), it's still an immensely satisfying, pulse-pounding vision of a future that represents a frightening extrapolation of early 21st-century history. --Jeff Shannon

Synopsis
Set in a dystopian future where infertility has led mankind to the brink of extinction, a sole pregnant woman holds the key to the survival of humanity. In 2027, the world's youngest person has died at the age of 18. Infertility has ravaged the world, leading it into anarchy. Eastern European and African societies have collapsed, causing their remaining populace to flee to England. Set against a backdrop of warring nationalistic sects, mankind's last remaining hope arrives in the form of Earth's only known pregnant woman. It is up to bureaucrat Theodore Faron (Clive Owen, Sin City) and his revolutionary former wife Julian (Julianne Moore, Magnolia) to help deliver the woman to a sanctuary at sea where it is hoped that the birth of her child could help scientists to find out how to save humanity. Based on a dystopian P.D. James science fiction novel, Children of Men is set in a dying anarchic world, devoid of hope, until a pregnant woman proves to be a possible saviour of mankind. Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron (Y Tu Mama Tambien, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) has made a powerful, slickly shot film set in an all too believable dystopian future. The tense thriller focuses on various present day concerns of nationalism, racism and government control over its citizens, much in the same way that V For Vendetta did. Children of Men features a superb cast and rattles along with restless energy.

Customer Reviews

2006 best movie
I was lucky enough to go to watch this movie during the opening week without reading hardly any reviews.

The action is based in 2027 , no child has been born in 18 years and the human race faces extinction . Law and order have broken down all over the world and only Britain stands , all immigrants are declared illegal and face immediate extradition .Is based in a book by P.D. James and one of he few examples when the movie is much better that the book is based upon.

With very clear references to the Iraq war and pacifism and raises issues such as immigration and violence, for example the main character never touches a gun.

All the 5 main actors are brilliant, my favorite being Michael Caine , who based his character in John Lennon.

The action sequences are like nothing seen before for their realism and the way they were filmed , it certainly would make the viewer want to watch them again and wonder how the managed to shoot them ( some up to 6 minutes long ).

DVD extra., the most interesting is the short documentary explaining how the managed to shoot the long shots in one go

Children Of Men - Puzzling - Thought Provoking - Worth A Look
Odd film - it's direced & shot like an extended British ITV drama rather than a movie. It has political & religous overtones running through it but at the most basic level it's a thriller about UK society in 2027, where women are infertile, or so it is thought, .....

Thought provoking, sometimes violent, and engaging at times, but with some dreary dialogue too at times: there's also an interesting cameo role for a long haired Michael Caine; there's an unsatisfying and depressing ending which I think was intended to be inspirational but just falls flat.

A brave attempt, and an unusual story, but could have been much better.

Delivers as a realistic piece of science fiction and as an exciting thriller
I finally got around to watching this fantastic film. It definitely holds its place at the top of the 2006 films I really regret not seeing at the cinema list after actually watching it. Alfonso Cuaron brings a digital video realism to a near future Britain that was pleasingly authentic for a foreign director. I wish Northern Americans could learn to do the same! The film is set in a dystopia where the entire human race has become infertile. Britain has sealed its borders and all foreigners are treated as illegal immigrants. Civil unrest is everywhere and terrorism is a constant threat.

Clive Owen dependably anchors the film. He doesn't seem to do much as an actor but he does it well. His character is a withdrawn alcoholic who was once an activist himself and the subtlety of the performance is welcome. He is entrusted with the safety of a miraculously pregnant woman by his estranged love. The story follows their attempt to flee Britain and find safe haven with a mythical group known as the human project. Both the oppressive regime and an activist group must be avoided along the way.

The film delivers as a realistic piece of science fiction and as an exciting thriller. Cuaron puts together some fantastic action sequences, particularly an elegiac shoot-out in a tower building. Well worth checking out if, like me, you missed it in cinemas.