Children of Men- A Gorgeous Exhilarating Masterpiece
After Cuaron's incredible ‘Roma' last year I was compelled to revisit ‘Children of Men' and I think this film proves Cuaron as an incredible visionary director that is adaptable, unique and personal with his storytelling. ‘Children of Men' is an astounding dystopian thriller revolving around the protection of the first pregnant woman in 20 years as Cuaron ties together breath-taking set pieces with emotional storytelling and biting commentary. The most memorable parts of his filmography have always been his cinematography, how Cuaron frames each and every moment with ambition and precision really stands him above most directors and 'Children of Men' is no exception.
Lubezki's cinematography feels uniquely observational with a flair of distracted subjectivity, the camera always feels glued to our protagonist and the world that is created feels impactful and dangerous to the viewer, we experience every bullet, explosion and moment without it feeling gimmicky and obtuse. Theo, played by Clive Owen, is always in the foreground of every shot both literally and symbolically, yet the camera gets distracted with details of this world as Cuaron chooses to bring the backgrounds the foreground in some of the most impactful scenes in the film. In a fantastic pacing decision, the narrative feels like a journey as you can very easily plot out the exact path and situation due to the fact that Cuaron persuades spectators to place a lot of faith in the protagonist as a result of the films constant moving and exhausting pace. He compels you to pay attention to the background as that's where the substance of this world is created, the emotional human story is shown with the chaotic dystopian setting taking place as a backdrop. It's character based narrative plotting on an epic scale.
As proven in his filmography, most of his films' narratives can be summed up in a short paragraph as he doesn’t want to get plot obsessed and messy, ‘Children of Men' put his focus on thematic storytelling with the plot acting as a symbolic journey for the audience to understand this world. With a flair of genius he manages to create some outstanding emotions in the spectator, the third act is an exhausting experience of emotions that pay off due to Cuaron's ability to embed his characters in this vivid world. The character of Theo Farran is someone who I could explore for days due to the incredible performance by Clive Owen, subverting the stereotypical concept of his character and subtly, through the use of visual motifs and imagery develops him into a sympathetic and fully fledged hero. Emotional journeys are usually at the forefront of Cuaron's protagonists, as the narrative takes its toll on Theo yet the focus is always on strength rather than needless trauma.
I adore the world of “Children of Men", it never relies too much on showing off how clever its dystopia is, which is a trope a lot of films get bogged down in, instead he lays out the world in a realistic, grim and all too familiar way. Cuaron’s comments on immigration, class and governmental control and portrayed honestly and without doubts, but the fascinating aspect is the film’s title “Children of Men" suggests a biblical perception and analysis of the human condition. It's vivid, upsetting yet full of hope and introspective filmmaking. I consider this to be one of the most well-crafted films ever created, the fascinating idea of using genuine thrilling and overwhelmingly tense action scenes with a symbolic and complex ideology results in a truly special cinematic experience.