'Children of Men' - Near Sci-Fi Movie

First, check out this awesome trailer (with some beautiful music).

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808715896/trailer

This is obviously more 'Twilight Zone' than 'Star Wars' (I'm betting that their booth at the San Diego Comic Con was a graveyard compared to 'TMNT' or 'Spider-Man 3'), but I think it looks really good and provocative.

I don't know whether the story is meant to be an allegory about the plunging birth-rates in developing nations (virtually every European country, Japan, and the white population in America), or if it's just supposed to exist in a narrative vacuum, but I think it ought to be tremendously cool either way. The director's made some really great-looking pictures in the past, and the clips in this trailer seem to follow suit.

 

Do you know of another site that has the trailer? I always seem to have trouble with Yahoo! clips and trailers.

 

Well, the YouTube videos are always really pixel-ated and grainy, but here's a link there:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=8q2Aq9Z0cIE&search=children%20of%20men

Presumably, you could also get it on Apple's movie preview site.

 

Thanks for the YouTube link, quality was decent enough. I must say that it does look interesting, but I doubt I'll see it in the theater. The concept is not outside possibility.

 

I have this feeling that it won't achieve the audience it needs. Probably another great lowball like Serenity or Island.

 

Well, it probably won't be a huge smash in theaters or anything. On the surface, it looks kind of gloomy and there aren't any real box office stars in it. But, if it's as good as it looks, hopefully it'll get good word of mouth and become a hit over time.

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I just read at the Yahoo message boards that that really beautiful music in the trailer is 'Hoppipolla' by Sigur Ros, from their album Takk.

 

It looks to be an interesting film.

 

It certainly isn't in the same blockbuster or want to be blockbuster vein that Serenity or The Island were. Its a much more intimate movie that looks even more Sci-Fi-ish then your average summer blockbuster ever gets.

Looks surprisingly good actually. I may have to check it out.

 

I'm just saying it's going to end up with Serenity/ Island numbers. Between 25-40 but it wasn't screaming blockbuster in the first place.

 

I think that both The Island and Serenity were about as science fiction-y as you can be. Maybe they weren't totally centered around action and wit moreso than the exploration of ideas, but they both did cool jobs in creating future worlds, in my opinion.

But I agree that comparing Children of Men to these pictures is a little off just because I don't really think that Children of Men is really expected or budgeted as a blockbuster.

 

We were talking about that when the forum first started up. What really makes Science Fiction "Science Fiction". In the early days it was taking a scientific principle and showing how change in it would effect the world and its inhabitants. In this example women not being able to produce children.

So its an example of the "Hard Sci-Fi" which you don't really see very often anymore (and very seldom in film to begin with). Most Sci-Fi movies anymore are that "Soft Sci-Fi/Science Fantasy" where its more about the fancy world, pretty toys, and stuff that blows up real good. Not that those movies are bad or inferior but its a lot different showing and explaining how the world got to that point then it is just to jump into it and tell a story there.

So I was just pointing out that where your title says "near Sci-Fi" IMO its the very definition of Sci-Fi

 

While I appreciate your thoughtful approach, I really have to point out a few flaws. First off, the definition of science fiction you supplied is hardly sacrosanct. In fact, it sounds like you guys were just having a casual bull session, so I don't quite know why you'd put so much stock in it. (And this isn't to start a fight, but just to point out that I think you might've overreached on a few of your statements without knowing it.)

I mean, I think that The Island meets your criteria almost perfectly. It takes the core ideas of organ harvesting amongst the rich and it shows how that might hurt the "donors" (in this case, unknowing clones).

I'm really just opposed to the idea of concocting some official brand for what is or what isn't science fiction. I've seen Harlan Ellison and others do it before, and it always seems elitist and, more importantly, fundamentally impossible, as even a seemingly air-tight definition would be subject to infinite interpretations.

 

Well pretty much any conversation on a message board is a "bull session"

I wasn't specificaly refering to the Island either as I'll agree that it did put more stock in ideas then your average summer Sci-Fi movie tries to (then again it was plagerized but thats a different story for a different thread). It was more of a comment on the average summer blockbuster that gets lumped in to the sci-fi genre. Again, I'm not trying to make the comments on quality that you are trying to read into it. Like any genre its filled with sub-genres and twists on the genre that are necessary to take it to another level or appeal to a different audience. I mean five years ago some one gave the swashbuckler another shot after it had effectively died out and now you've got one breaking BO records or fantasy which is enjoying a re-surgence and gathering in new viewers/readers all the time.

Thats all I've been trying to point out here. This may not be the kind of Star Trek/SW Sci-Fi epic we all think of when we hear Sci-Fi but it certainly is Science Fiction.

Edit: You're right though its hard if not impossible to come up with an all encompasing definition of Science Fiction. I was looking through the wiki article on it earlier and it had a quote from Vladimir Nabokov where he pointed out that if we were rigorous with our definitions, Shakespeare's play The Tempest would have to be termed science fiction.

 

This looks interesteing. I will definately check it out when it comes to video.

 

I saw the trailer while browsing through Apple.com's selection. Looks cool.

 

Weezer,

I don't think you'd get too many arguments against the statement that this doesn't look like a traditional big-budget sci-fi spectacular. It doesn't look like it, and it's coming out in September, not traditionally known for major releases.

And I agree with Nabokov. I mean, it's just so silly trying to rigidly define these genres. They're all relative, and, ya know, I think it's best of we all admit that. (That's not to say I'm against having discussions about what sci-fi is, but just that I think that, ya know, it should be stated beforehand that doing so is more just a mental exercise than a serious inquiry.)

 

Upping this. I really want to see it.

 

I'm curious about the movie, but not enough to see it in the theater. It should be a decent rental

 

I saw this movie in an early preview last month, and I'm about to take my roommate to go see a 2PM showing.

I CANNOT recommend this movie enough. It is the best movie I've seen all year, possibly the best of the last three years.

Even though it doesn't look like it from the trailers, it IS a movie that you'll regret not seeing on the big screen if you wait for DVD. See it on a big screen with a good sound system, ideally with a first-time audience. It's outstanding.

M. Scott

 

I'm quite intrigued by the subject of Children of Man. It might actually say something worthwhile, unlike most modern films.

 

I wholeheartedly agree - I saw "Children of Men" earlier this week, and it is possibly the best movie of 2006 - absolutely superb. I recommend seeing this in the theatre -don't wait for the DVD.

 

how odd, this film came out aaages ago in the uk! i saw it back in september. i thought it was awesome. highly recommend it to anyone.

-doodie

 

^ Indeed. For once I ge tto see something before the damn americans, and I live in Romania. I liked the movie for its mood mostly. I put it in the same category as Code 46, although COM is slithyl better. Surreal movies, that you don't really get, but you definetely feel.

 

Looks very good. If I have time I'll definately check it out.

 

My theater gets it on Friday. I didn't think it would at first.