I'd just like to point out that the IMDB horror board has picked it's new title for the book club. It was Stephen King month, and the users selected Salem's Lot. I urge anyone to participate if they can get through the book, as the Something Wicked This Way Comes discussion was very lonely. I fear the club will fade away into the growing pile of failed IMDB horror board projects and that makes me sad. And a happy, problem-free, president elect announced by strong margin week to you, too. Film Rec: Children of Men We are so close to hitting Oscar gold this year I can almost taste it. I'm struggling to remember a good film that fits the premise of the site without pushing the "writing" definition so far it becomes unrecognizable. This, gladly, is not one of those cases. Post-apocalyptic movies: are they completely played out? Bound to a critical "meh" like Blindness because we've seen it all before yet struggle to reconcile something different in storytelling style? I'd say no. The purpose of these dystopian (or however you wish to refer to them) films is to comment on society. In exaggerating the social ill to catastrophic levels, the artist attempts to demonstrate how imperative that issue is. Children of Men hints at a lot of broad sweeping themes that perhaps make it a bit more palatable: war, environmental destruction, poverty, discrimination, etc. The key to understanding the film's premise - a man must escort the only pregnant woman in the world to a safe haven after years where no woman was capable of giving birth - is the journey. All of these great issues are a misdirection to the true message of the film: our actions now will prevent our progeny from living in any way that connects to the positive elements of society today. So, does it express this clearly? Yes. In the last scene of the film, which I will not spoil because it's done so well. The message is defined throughout with the destruction of the main characters who try to change the world. What else works about the film? Well, the action sequences are so brilliantly planned they have to make an impact on the viewer. The intricate infrastructure is refreshing. It also prevents the film from being predictable in the least bit. Expectations are constantly flipped or dropped completely and you are left with a story that makes perfect sense in the world created. Children of Men is a film that actually becomes better on repeated viewings. If you haven't seen it in a while, or not at all, I suggest giving it a try. It really is well done.

Labels: film rec