Children of Men (2006) 109 Minutes

Hallelujah!

After losing our Back Yard, our New Back Yard, our New New Back Yard, and

ultimately enduring five full weeks with a ceiling over our head and a four foot

wide screen Movienight was at long last back in the great outdoors!

To be sure, there are still some kinks to be worked out - our surround sound

has yet to be installed, set-up and break down procedures have yet to be

established, and the seating arrangement will surely be tweaked a bit, but

make no mistake - Movienight is back in all its splendid outdoor glory!

There were many heroes in the quest to return Movienight to its intended milieu: Wiener and his family deserve great credit for offering their home to our esteemed Crew, Tooda kept the ball rolling with our temporary Indoor home, but on June 13th their was one Member whose efforts made it possible for Movienight to present its sharpest picture ever. Benjamin Simonetti procured a perfect bolt of pristine white cloth to drape against our new Stucco (which is now a picket fence), and then implemented the brilliant plan of WildCard Slim when the two miraculously hoisted a piece of cardboard thirty feet into the air to blot out the light from a pesky street lamp.

With the picture perfected and the whole Crew assembled, Netti’s triumph turned quickly to poo as his invitee, Becky Wahlstrom, announced that her boyfriend and a buddy were running late. After all the excitement and effort, the entire Membership and our faithful friends were forced to twiddle our thumbs till nearly quarter to ten in order to allow Becky’s tardy companions to arrive. Netti’s welcoming of guests who were not cleared by Acting MOMO Tooda was a flagrant violation of Rule 7 of the Movienight By-Laws.

Finally Becky’s friends arrived (and scored some points for bringing their own chairs), and Nubs began his preamble. The entire Membership was there and joined by Amy ‘Bourbon Cookie’ Dudgeon, Johnnie G., Becky plus two, and late comer Pat Towne bringing the total attendance to eleven. Nubs announced that he had violated one of the By-Laws with his Pick, and when ‘Children of Men’ burst on the screen it seemed clear he was referring to Rule 6, Section C. Though it is true that ‘Children of Men’ is the first film screened that was produced and released while Movienight was in existence, Rule 10 does allow for the Pick if the Crew determines Nubs made a Slam Dunk with the Selection.

‘Children of Men’ marks the overdue Movienight debut of Sir Michael Caine (in a bob-illicious performance) and Clive Owen. Julianne Moore returns here for the first time since her role in the very first Movienight, Tooda’s ‘The Big Lebowski.’

MovienightNorth kept rolling as well this week, and their squeal-inducing Selection’s coverage can be read here.

Next week, Tooda returns to the SELECTOR platform and brings his first outdoor Pick since the lack-luster ‘The Sea Inside.’ If his Pick runs past midnight the Crew will be able to toast his 35th Birthday. He is the second Member this year to turn 35 at the end of a Selection - Mr. Wiener’s 35th followed the screening of Buffy’s ‘The Misfits.’

In the end, Nubs had good reason for showing a Pick about fertility, and though the deeper meaning of his Pick may have escaped the assembled throng’s attention, our resplendent return to an outdoor environment did not.

Bottom line: Movienight is back.

“Pull my finger.”

Written by: Alfonso Cuarón & Timothy J. Sexton and David Arata and

Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby

Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón

Brandon Comments:

"Cough...what do ya taste?"

When Nubs said he had the perfect pick for the night, and breaking one of the rules in the process, I knew I was in for a good film for this Movienight experience. And Nubs delivered with ‘Children of Men.’ All of the sure-fire signs of a good-themed Selection were there: Us finally being outdoors/the characters striving to get outside of London; Sir Michael Caine toking a lot/Tooda toking a lot...symbolism and themes were at hand all throughout the evening.

I only first saw ‘Children of Men’ two weeks prior, so it was very refreshing seeing it again so soon, with the taste of the flavored characters and rich story still fresh in my mind. The movie takes you on a journey—sometimes right beside the protagonist, sometimes AS the protagonist. Sometimes you feel like you’re actually inside the movie, running for your life alongside Clive Owen…bullets whizzing by you, the rumble of the tanks’ wheels as they pass, the deafening crash of mortar fire. If I was really an Entertainment Journalist, and writing a review piece of this film for a major newspaper, I would simply say in big bold letters: “Children of Men is an Intelligent Man’s Action Film…a blast!” Great choice, Nubs. A well thought-out gem of a choice.

And this review could not be complete without acknowledging being outside again! Mr. Wiener has opened the doors to Movienight’s new Back Yard home, and I thank you for that. When I first invented Movienight, I never thought it would be possible to see it hosted in such a lovely, lovely home.

Buffy Comments:

There was a certain giddiness to our gathering last week that perhaps may have come from our psychic knowledge that our return to the outdoors may be but a glimmer of hope in a longer journey, maybe not; all I know is it was delightful to all be gathered outside, and I hope we didn’t cause any permanent damage with Wiener’s neighborly relations. Sigh. Hollywood, why must you be such a fickle mistress??? Many, many thanks to all who made this lovely evening possible, from hosting to set-up to follow-up on the website…you are appreciated.

My few friends who saw this film at its release had not liked it—I didn’t know a thing about it going in. I can see how they might find things sentimental or preachy in parts, or too baby-oriented. In my case, I think I just went through some kind of chakra cleansing. Below are enumerated briefly, in the interest of science, the effects of this film upon my person:

1) Profound feelings of gratitude for the blue sky and drinking water and plants growing even if they are fucked up more than they should be;

2) Feelings of terror with an urgency that can’t be matched even by how much Freddy Krueger freaked me out—a terror containing personal investment the likes of which has not come upon me previously while watching a film;

3) The need to get knocked up within the next 3 months—I do have a few months to rethink that one but so far I’ve met at least one man who out of the blue let me know he’s a baby-making machine (but has not called, so probably not willing to do much more than make the baby which is ok in a pinch but not my first choice);

4) The understanding of why it’s a good idea to be able to defend yourself no matter what the situation, and why it’s a good idea to know when to run and when to slam on the brakes…Ninja 101 appears to be edumacating me, despite my rather inept nature with self-defense…

I’ve had a feeling (backed up by the Mayan calendar) that the world is on the cusp of going one way or another, and the depiction in ‘Children of Men’ makes for a pretty spot-on representation of my psychic fears concerning the matter. From a storytelling POV this is the first film in many years to present a powerful and believable apocalyptic vision of the future. It was extremely well-crafted in its intensity and subtlety and connection to the evolution of current circumstance. It was discussed how ‘The Departed’ won the Oscar and, though Leonardo DiCaprio officially became my boyfriend when I saw ‘The Departed,’ I agree that in comparison it’s a piece of shit. (‘Biggie and Tupac’ is a better gangster film, by the way, definitely a more updated version.) Fucking Academy. What a bunch of sycophantic posers.

So, anyhoo, I guess it’s just me and my feelings of gratitude and my warrior skills and my illegitimate child at this point. I knew there was a reason “Touch of Grey” came on just before entering the patio. We will survive…thanks, Nubs, for doing that Movienight thing you do so well.

Netti Comments:

How did this film not get nominated for Best Picture last year? This was definitely the best of the Mexican triumvirate that took critics by storm in 2006. Post-apocalyptic material is always difficult to negotiate, though I'm not entirely sure that this was post-apocalyptic. A more accurate term might be dystopian. Whatever one calls it, it hit the mark. I was with the premise from the beginning. The sudden and pervasive onset of infertility does not seem altogether out of the realm of possibility. Although, I will say, that a viewer staunchly opposed to the reality of that eventuality, would still find this film engrossing. The hand-held camera work was especially excellent (one has to mention the 8 minute one shot). The acting was superb. The writing had sufficient twists to keep us engaged. The characters were written with subtlety and played perfectly. My favorite moment had to be the birth scene. Clive Owen's character Theo Faron, who up until this moment had been consistently taking nips to greater or lesser degrees of bourbon, turned his alcoholic crutch to a practical use by using it to disinfect his hands before delivering the baby. See our alcoholic friend was the perfect man for the job. Another moment worth noting was the awe-struck soldiers, beggars, refugees, and rebels who stood still, dumbfounded by the sight of a newborn child. This scene has played out in many a film. A crowd that is supposed to be witnessing something totally unbelievable and inspiring often is rendered exactly the opposite. This film delivers the holy grail and we believe it.

To me the great story of this film is the story not of humanity writ large, but of Theo Faron's journey from one who, full of despair, had given up his youthful ideals to a hero who wasn't necessarily stronger, smarter, or faster but eternally devoted to his charge. A wonderful choice for father's day.

SELECTOR Comments:

I first have to thank the entire Movienight crew for the Herculean effort put forth to bring my baby to the open seas of Tomorrow on Wednesday. It was truly inspiring to have each of us contribute in such a way. It takes a village to raise a child as well as the cardboard street lampshade and white screen on the fence of our shabby-chic new theatre. The turn out as well as the best quality image to date brought us back to our infamous reputation.

My only regret is that I couldn’t spell out more in my preamble why I chose to challenge the ambiguous By-Law 6, Section C to bring ‘Children of Men’ 6 months after it came out. There are many reasons - the easiest being that I knew with one viewing that it was a perfect Movienight choice, but that’s not the reason. Another reason may have been the race to bring the pick before Movienight North steals it, but that’s not it.

No, the thought was that ‘Children of Men’ is ironically the best Movienight Father’s Day tribute. Especially for those fathers who prepare to give the world the last child the world will ever see, and it’s savior. Maybe that’s just me. Seriously, ‘Children of Men’ does speak to me in genuine paternal ways. A simple man, our anti-hero who has nothing to live for but drinking and smoking (yeah!), turns hero when he finds purpose at the responsibility of bringing a child into this harsh world. I think it’s as simple and non-biblical as that. It also seemed timely with our new space in that we were finally given hope and new life in Wiener’s Back Yard.

Along the way there are some cinematic feats that I could watch over and over and still be in awe. If you didn’t realize, as I hadn’t in my first viewing, two of the most important shots are seemingly one well rehearsed one-take that put Scorsese to shame. Speaking of brilliant direction, I adore this movie because of the complete world we are taken to. That is what I think a movie should do, let us escape to another place or time for a couple of hours. The clothes, the characters, the look, the amount of tension of this bleak future take more than some handheld shots to create. Alfonso Cuarón makes his vision into a reality and it should have been recognized more than here.

I was pleased as punch at our second attempt at a new space until I went to finish this review. It seems though we have escaped the prison camp we are not out of the dark waters yet. Perhaps I am a curse. My first screening at Wiener’s Back Yard, ‘Close Encounters,’ brought the house down, literally, and this time we have brought the pursuing bad guys that want to take our freedom, the complaining neighbors. It is frustrating to take setback after setback. I’m not sure how we will make it through this one, but I hope we can allow our beautiful baby, Movienight, to live and grow somewhere nice together.

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