Children of Men <<POSSIBLE SPOILERS>>

[aka]

I went to see the movie 'Children of Men' today and I thought it was fantastic.  My friend who accompanied me agreed that it is one of the best films we have both seen in a long time. 

I was looking on Rottentomatoes.com and saw that 93% of critics recommended it, yet several messageboard posters called it overrated and amaturish.  It was also described as boring and lacking a good story.

Am I crazy? Were these people watching the same film as I was?  I understand that many times people have very differing views on the quality of movies, but it seems odd for some people to find the film fantastic and others think it terrible.

So ehellions that have seen the movie, what did you think?

[aka]

I actually have not read the book, though I am considering doing so now.  And where do you go for movies that it costs $15?  I spent 6.50 for a matinee.

[MadMadge43]

I think it's entirely possible that someone see something as fabulous and a work of art and another sees it as junk. That's why the world is such a wonderful and horrible place.

[aka]

(and now you all know where my apartment is, please don't stalk me )

Well, considering that the farthest west I have ever been is Denver, Colorado, you need not worry about me.   
 

[amznprincess]

Well... to me, it may very well be a skillfully made movie (excellent acting, cinematography, etc.) and I still won't see it.  There seems to be an element of 'civilization is doomed, DOOMED I tell you because women in the 'good' countries aren't having 10+ kids anymore!!!' hysteria underlying the plot. 

There are 6.5 billion people now, double the population of just 45 years ago.  Somehow, I don't think we're in any real danger of dying out. 

[aka]

There seems to be an element of 'civilization is doomed, DOOMED I tell you because women in the 'good' countries aren't having 10+ kids anymore!!!' hysteria underlying the plot. 

Ok, this response made me laugh out loud.  I can just imagine someone flailing about screaming "but what about the children?  Oh no, there are no children!.. waaaaaaaaaaaaa"

There are 6.5 billion people now, double the population of just 45 years ago.  Somehow, I don't think we're in any real danger of dying out. 

I can see where you would get this impression from the trailers, though it was not my perception of the movie at all.  It takes on the premise that (highlight to view) for the past 18 years or so, no children have been born.  While the rest of the world has fallen into anarchy, Britain remains the sole 'bastion of civilization, but accomplishes this only through a totalitarian regime.  The movie does not attempt to explain why this 'plague' of infertility has happened or how; rather, it drops us into the middle of one man's life as he somewhat unwillingly becomes involved in an attempt to move an illegal immigrant out the the country.  The catch is, the girl is very pregnant.

[tendereyes]

It was a really great movie and in a way...if you look at it from this standpoint about children being our future...We have the responsibilty right now in the present to clean up what is going on, and taking care of what is wrong, because the trouble is...they are the ones that will inherit everything after we're gone...

It had a strong message that hello people, we're not going to live forever, we're not immortal and if there are no more children...we're stuck with what we've created...a dying planet...After we're gone...that's it for humans.

It really affected me deeply when one of the characters said, "As the sound of the playgrounds faded, the despair set in. Very odd, what happens in a world without children's voices. "

It can be looked on the level of if you have children...you understand their importance, but at the same time, if you don't have children or even want children, it asks the question..."What responsibilty are you willing or not willing to take?"

It was interesting that those who were in it for themselves...eventually just imploded so to speak, and those who weren't in it for themselves but for others as a whole, they knew what they were doing was for hope...

For me...my kids show me what the future hope is, something better than what we currently have...like steps on a ladder...you can't build anything if there isn't anything after that next step..and they are the next step...I don't think our future lays in our Blue Planet but beyond...and it takes people working together to accomplish that...

I guess I'm an optimist and would like to think that we are working toward something better rather than act like crabs in a bucket trying to pull each other down and that if not my children, but maybe their children or their children after that, will one day be reaching for the stars and planting the seeds of growth beyond that...

I know I'm not going to live to see that...but the fact that a little bit of me, and maybe a little bit of them if not them will see it one day....That's a good feeling there.

There comes a time in our lives we have to suspend selfishness for ourselves and start thinking of others. For me, Children of Men was about that...the willingness to sacrifice for the betterment of others and not just for ourselves.

I know after watching this movie...I came home and hugged my kids a little bit more closer and was thankful that I was able to have them...yes adults can laugh...but the sound of a newborn laughing at something he/she just discovered for the first time makes me realize how we sometimes take life too much for granted and having children can remind us of the little things that as adults we tend to forget because we are too caught up being ...well..adults..LOL.