Thursday, March 15, 2007

Waiting for the End of the World

Clive Owen has a remarkable face. His rough-hewn countenance holds pain, ferocity, amusement, cynicism, and resignation in equal parts. Alfonso Cuarón uses all of its disarming allure in his dystopian film Children of Men. Set in the near future, it tells the story of a world without children: tragically, the entire human populace has been rendered sterile by some undiscovered force.

Cuarón's command of his craft is evident from the opening sequence. This is bone-jarring cinema vérité in its most viceral form...

Oh hell. I can't even form coherent thoughts anymore. I'm sitting here watching Hot as a Pistol, Keen as a Blade, an Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint concert film from their tour last year. I was lucky enough to catch the show when it came to the Twin Cities. The arrangements in that gig absolutely floored me. And the horn section - man, those cats can blow. Even so, I've had a long day and a long week, and I can barely keep my eyes open. I've gotta hit the sack.

So where was I? I highly recommend Children of Men. It is a tale of fear and hope and loss, filled with gripping action and gentle humor. I confess it had me in tears more than once. Have a look at it before it leaves the theaters.

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