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(About Our Ads) "CHILDREN OF MEN" (2006) (Clive Owen, Chiwetel Ejiofor) (R) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Heavy Extreme Extreme Heavy Extreme Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Mild Minor Mild None Extreme Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Heavy Mild Moderate Moderate Extreme QUICK TAKE: Drama/Action: In the near future when all women are infertile, a man is chosen to escort the world's lone pregnant woman to safety in hopes of saving humankind. PLOT: It's 2027 London, and everything is in disarray. Immigrants are being rounded up into detention camps, and due to unexplained fertility issues, no new people have been born anywhere on Earth for the past eighteen years. Thus, humans will become extinct in less than a century, a point that's led to chaos as well as people like Theodore Faron (CLIVE OWEN) seeing nothing but a pointless, bleak future. While he enjoys spending time with his reclusive, hippie friend Jasper Palmer (MICHAEL CAINE) who lives out in the woods, Theo can't get past all of the gloom and doom, unlike his live-in-the-moment cousin Nigel (DANNY HUSTON). Things change, however, when rebel forces known as the Fishes kidnap and deliver him to their leader, Julian Taylor (JULIANNE MOORE). She's his former wife who fights for equal rights for all people, and hopes he can get transport papers for an illegal immigrant, Kee (CLAIRE-HOPE ASHITEY), and her traveling companion Miriam (PAM FERRIS). Theo agrees for the pay, but then discovers the underlying cause of Julian's urgency -- Kee is pregnant. Realizing the ramifications of her state, Theo, along with Fish such as Luke (CHIWETEL EJIOFOR) and Patric (CHARLIE HUNNAM), then set out hoping to deliver her to a sort of seaside sanctuary known as "The Human Project." Along the way, Theo and Kee must deal with treachery from within their own ranks, various questionable outsiders such as Syd (PETER MULLAN), as well as traveling through a full-blown war zone where government and rebel forces are engaged in battle, unaware of what's in their midst and lies in the balance of their actions. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? Older teens might be interested, which also holds true for any who are fans of someone in the cast or the film's director. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R For strong violence, language, some drug use and brief nudity. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: CLIVE OWEN plays an ordinary man who's disillusioned not only with himself, but also the future of humankind since there doesn't seem to be one. He uses strong profanity, briefly smokes pot with Jasper, smokes a few regular cigarettes, and risks his life in trying to save Kee and her newborn. JULIANNE MOORE plays the leader of the rebel group who wants Theo to provide safe passage for Kee. CHIWETEL EJIOFOR plays her lieutenant who takes over the group and wants to prevent Theo from accomplishing his mission. CHARLIE HUNNAM plays his subordinate who roughs up and nearly kills Theo. CLAIRE-HOPE ASHITEY plays the world's lone pregnant woman, an unmarried immigrant who doesn't know who the father is and finds herself the object of much attention. She briefly uses strong profanity and must contend with going into labor in a war zone. PAM FERRIS plays the woman serving as her traveling companion. MICHAEL CAINE plays something of a reclusive hippie who assists Jasper, uses strong profanity, and smokes pot. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this dramatic thriller that's been rated R. Profanity consists of at least 72 "f" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are uttered. Some sexually related dialogue is present, as is the sight of a pregnant woman's bare breasts and belly (childbirth is partially seen later), while related thematic elements include all other women being infertile. Violence consists of realistic and graphic, "you are there" battle footage, while other deaths take place in various scenes. Much of that has bloody results, while those scenes and other moments of peril might be rather intense and/or suspenseful for viewers. Various characters have bad attitudes, while drinking, smoking and several instances of drug use occur. Tense family material includes the death of a former spouse, and brief talk of a dissolved marriage due to the previous death of a child. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, there's a great deal of camera movement throughout the film. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Theo pours liquor into his coffee. When Theo says he feels "like sh*t," Jasper says that's a hangover. Jasper comments on ganja still being illegal, but he then lights up a joint and shares it with Theo. Theo has a small bottle of whiskey. Theo and his cousin have wine and beer. Theo has several beers and Luke then gives him his. Theo has a beer at a dog racetrack. Theo drinks. Theo drinks from his small bottle. It's implied Jasper has recently done some drugs (we see some empty vials on the floor). We see something about marijuana written in a book's title, while Jasper has Miriam smoke some. At the same time, Theo refills his small bottle with liquor from a larger one. Jasper smokes pot. A miscellaneous woman smokes pot. Theo uses liquor as a sanitizer during Kee's delivery. BLOOD/GORE A massive explosion rips through a storefront just behind Theo moments after he passed by there. There's resultant chaos as well as a woman who appears to be carrying her severed arm. We see flash images on the news that show guns, fires, explosions, and dead people. We see what look like piles of burning animals. Jasper wants Theo to pull his finger. When he won't, Jasper does it himself and Theo then reacts to the smell of his fart. A person is suddenly shot and there's blood all over them, others and their car. A person shoots two cops and we see their blood on the road. Jasper tells a man to pull his finger, but the man's not up for that game. We see a dead, small animal along the road. We see Kee squatting down to urinate, but the view is from a distance and no details are seen. Miriam nose is bloody after a guard backhands her. Kee's water breaks onboard a bus, but we don't see anything. We see bodies burning in individual funeral pyres. A newborn has birth goo on it. Syd's face is quite bloody after being hit there with a car battery. We see a miscellaneous woman holding a dead and bloody man (possibly her husband). During and after a battle, we see various wounded or dead people, many of which are very bloody, while Theo has some bloody scrapes on him. We see many dead and bloody bodies on the ground after a battle. A man is badly wounded and quite bloody following a battle. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Theo lies to his supervisor at work about being affected by the death of someone he didn't know, just so that he can leave. We see that immigrants are being rounded up and kept in fenced off areas. Those who kill or abuse others obviously have bad attitudes. For those opposed to the racing of Greyhounds, there's a brief scene featuring that. Theo overhears that Luke was behind Julian's murder and that he plans on killing Theo. Seen from a distance, a man shoots another man (who's buying time for others) in the hand. He then shoots him twice in the body, killing him. FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed under "Violence" and/or "Blood/Gore" may be unsettling or suspenseful to viewers, particularly if they're sensitive to such material. A massive explosion rips through a storefront just behind Theo moments after he passed by there. There's resultant chaos as well as a woman who appears to be carrying her severed arm. A gun is held to Theo's back as he's kidnapped by a terrorist group, but that's just to deliver him to Julian, his former wife, who has a request for him. As Luke, Theo, and Julian transport Kee and Miriam, a burning car suddenly rolls down a hill into them. They back up, but people come out of the woods and throw stuff at the car. They also open fire on them, with one person in the car being hit in the neck (with very bloody results). As Theo tries to tend to that dying person, they drive in reverse as armed men on motorcycles chase after them, with Theo opening the car door into them, causing them to wipe out. They get away from them, but are then pulled over by the police who aim their guns at them. Luke then shoots the two cops dead (we see blood on the street). Luke holds his gun to Patric's head as a warning. Theo overhears that Luke was behind Julian's murder and that he plans on killing Theo. Accordingly, Theo sneaks out with Kee and Miriam and they try to flee from a rebel compound without being detected. He then removes keys from other cars and is nearly caught doing so, and the three then push a car away and try to pop the clutch and start it while it rolls down a hill. During this, rebels chase after them, with one being pushed aside along the car, while Kee opens the door into a man carrying a gun, knocking him down. They then get the car started at the bottom of the hill and speed off, finally eluding their pursuers. Theo thinks that Jasper is dead, but finally sees he's just soundly sleeping. An alarm sounds in Jasper's place, alerting that others are approaching. Theo races to get Kee and Miriam out of the place, with Jasper saying he'll stay behind. Seen from a distance, a man shoots another man (who's buying time for others) in the hand. He then shoots him twice in the body, killing him. Theo, Kee, and Miriam take cautious refuge in an old school. Syd arrives in a truck with a machine gun mounted on the top, and he acts as if he's going to strike Theo with a rod, but he's just joking (Jasper previously arranged for their meeting to help them). As their only chance to get to The Human Project, Syd fakes the arrest of Theo, Kee and Miriam and transports them to a prison/detention camp where they're put on a bus. Kee goes into labor but tries to hide that from others and the guard onboard the bus, with Miriam trying to intervene. But after grabbing someone else, the guard backhands her (bloodying her nose), grabs her by the hair, and drags her off the bus. Kee goes through a painful delivery in a dilapidated room, with Theo between her legs to help. In the dimly lit environs, we see the baby come out (it has birth goo on it) and briefly see a partial glimpse of her crotch area. After Kee has given birth, she tries to hide the baby from Syd and others who've entered the room. Once he figures out what's going on, he fires a warning shot to the floor, holds the gun on them and states, "I'll f*cking kill you, bitch." He then hits another woman in the gut, but she pushes him down to the floor where Theo wrestles with him over control of the gun that fires a shot. The other woman hits Syd repeatedly on the head with some sort of rod, allowing the others to escape. As they do so, Syd fires a shot that hits the door near Theo as he exits. As Syd then comes out that door, Theo smashes what looks like a car battery into Syd's face quite hard, bloodying it. Armed protestors enter the city, with a woman helping Theo and Kee avoid them as well as the military forces that have also arrived (seeking refuge, along with Kee's newborn, in various bombed out buildings where residents and/or refugees huddle). Patric punches Theo in the gut, Kee spits in Luke's face, and Patric executes one person. He's about to do the same to Theo but a gun battle suddenly breaks out where various people are shot, allowing Theo to escape and search for Kee who's been taken away, along with her newborn. A full-scale battle then breaks out in this city, with a tank firing into a building (with a resultant explosion), while many people are shot dead, and an anti-take projectile is fired into a vehicle, causing it to explode. A tank then fires into the building, with another resultant explosion. More people are then shot during this battle, and we see various wounded or dead people, many of which are very bloody. Theo finds Kee in a bombed out building, but there's a military tank down below. Luke is there, shooting at unseen people or vehicles below and then taking cover, but he also aims his gun at Theo and Kee to prevent them from leaving. He shoots out of the building again, they run, and a big explosion goes off in the bombed out room where he was positioned (but we don't know Luke's fate). As Theo and Kee try to make their way out of a bombed out building and city, her newborn infant causes forces on both sides to stop fighting. Once they've passed by, however, the fighting resumes. A major character dies at the end of the film. Kee and her newborn find themselves alone on a rowboat in the middle of dense fog, unsure of what will happen next. GUNS/WEAPONS Handguns/Machine guns/Tanks/Other war weaponry/Fighter jet bombs: Carried and/or used to threaten, wound or kill others and/or cause property damage. See "Violence" for details. We see flash images on the news that show guns, fires, explosions, and dead people. We see guards carrying machine guns. Syd arrives in a truck with a machine gun mounted on the top. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "Oh f*ck," "F*ck me" (nonsexual), "For f*ck's sake," "F*ck it," "This f*cking never happened," "All the f*cking time," "Sad f*ck," "F*ck you staring at?" "Get in the f*cking car," "F*cking sh*t," "He's a f*cking dead man," "What the f*ck are you doing here?" "F*cking disgusting," "Really f*cking safe," "F*ck you," "F*ck no," "F*ck off," "Yes you f*cking can," "F*ck knows," "Shut the f*ck up," "Felt like sh*t," "The world went to sh*t," "You scared the sh*t out of me," "No bullsh*t," "Piece of sh*t," "I just wanted to get laid," "The guy was a wanker," "A pain in the ass," "Piss," "Old farts," "Wanker," "Freak," "Little bastard," "You're a fascist pig," "A cheeky old bastard" and "Going to hell." We see graffiti on the outside of a train and then later elsewhere on other surfaces. A miscellaneous person has a tattoo on his neck. JUMP SCENES A massive explosion rips through a storefront just behind Theo moments after he passed by there. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) A mild amount of suspenseful music plays in several scenes. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 72 "f" words, 23 "s" words, 1 slang term for sex ("laid"), 4 slang terms for breasts ("t*ts" and "t*tties"), 3 wankers, 2 asses (1 used with "hole"), 1 crap, 1 hell, 6 uses of "Jesus," 4 of "Jesus Christ," 2 each of "For God's sakes" and "Oh Jesus" and 1 use of "For Christ's sakes." SEX/NUDITY We briefly see a billboard (for fertility tests) that shows some sperm swimming. The classic statue of David shows male full frontal nudity. About a hotel, Theo jokes that Julian promised him a little action (sex), with her then asking if he still likes it in the afternoon. Theo then replies that he "just wanted to get laid." Kee talks about cows' "t*ts" and then undresses in front of Theo to show that she's pregnant (we see her bare breasts and belly, and she then has her arms over her breasts). Kee jokes about being a virgin (while pregnant) and then states that she doesn't know who the father is to her unborn child. Kee goes through a painful delivery in a dilapidated room, with Theo between her legs to help. In the dimly lit environs, we see the baby come out (it has birth goo on it) and briefly see a partial glimpse of her crotch area. SMOKING Theo smokes several times. TENSE FAMILY SCENES We learn that Theo and Julian were once married and had a child who died. Julian expresses her condolences about Theo's mother, but we don't hear any more about that. Despite having been divorced or separated for a while, a man cries over his wife's recent and unexpected death. As Theo listens from another room, Jasper tells Kee and Miriam that the flu killed Theo's child in the past. And about Theo and Julian's former marriage, Jasper states that their faith lost out to chance. We see a miscellaneous woman holding a dead and bloody man (possibly her husband). TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT The notion of all women becoming infertile and the possible explanations of that. We see that immigrants are being rounded up and kept in fenced off areas. A person's comment that the mass infertility is God's punishment on humankind. About the bleak future, Theo's cousin says he just doesn't think about it. Kee jokes about being a virgin (while pregnant) and then states that she doesn't know who the father is to her unborn child. As Theo and Kee try to make their way out of a bombed out building and city, her newborn infant causes forces on both sides to stop fighting. Once they've passed by, however, the fighting resumes. The film being a futuristic allegory of the Nativity Story. VIOLENCE We hear that the world's youngest person (18) was stabbed to death over his refusal to sign an autograph. A massive explosion rips through a storefront just behind Theo moments after he passed by there. There's resultant chaos as well as a woman who appears to be carrying her severed arm. We see flash images on the news that show guns, fires, explosions, and dead people. Various people throw stuff at a train as it passes by (seen by Theo inside the train). We briefly see an article about the torture of a female photojournalist. A gun is held to Theo's back as he's kidnapped by a terrorist group, but that's just to deliver him to Julian, his former wife, who has a request for him. As Luke, Theo, and Julian transport Kee and Miriam, a burning car suddenly rolls down a hill into them. They back up, but people come out of the woods and throw stuff at the car. They also open fire on them, with one person in the car being hit in the neck (with very bloody results). As Theo tries to tend to that dying person, they drive in reverse as armed men on motorcycles chase after them, with Theo opening the car door into them, causing them to wipe out. They get away from them, but are then pulled over by the police who aim their guns at them. Luke then shoots the two cops dead (we see blood on the street). Luke holds his gun to Patric's head as a warning. Rebels chase after several people in a car that's rolling down a hill, with one being pushed aside along the car, while Kee opens the door into a man carrying a gun, knocking him down. Seen from a distance, a man shoots another man (who's buying time for others) in the hand. He then shoots him twice in the body, killing him. After grabbing someone else, a guard backhands Miriam (bloodying her nose), grabs her by the hair, and drags her off the bus. We hear the sound of gunfire outside a building. After Kee has given birth, she tries to hide the baby from Syd and others who've entered the room. Once he figures out what's going on, he fires a warning shot to the floor, holds the gun on them and states, "I'll f*cking kill you, bitch." He then hits another woman in the gut, but she pushes him down to the floor where Theo wrestles with him over control of the gun that fires a shot. The other woman hits Syd repeatedly on the head with some sort of rod, allowing the others to escape. As they do so, Syd fires a shot that hits the door near Theo as he exits. As Syd then comes out that door, Theo smashes what looks like a car battery into Syd's face quite hard, bloodying it. We see a miscellaneous woman holding a dead and bloody man (possibly her husband). A solider shoots one man. Patric punches Theo in the gut, Kee spits in Luke's face, and Patric executes one person. He's about to do the same to Theo but a gun battle suddenly breaks out where various people are shot, allowing Theo to escape and search for Kee who's been taken away, along with her newborn. A full-scale battle then breaks out in this city, with a tank firing into a building (with a resultant explosion), while many people are shot dead, and an anti-take projectile is fired into a vehicle, causing it to explode. A tank then fires into the building, with another resultant explosion. More people are then shot during this battle, and we see various wounded or dead people, many of which are very bloody. Theo finds Kee in a bombed out building, but there's a military tank down below. Luke is there, shooting at unseen people or vehicles below and then taking cover, but he also aims his gun at Theo and Kee to prevent them from leaving. He shoots out of the building again, they run, and a big explosion goes off in the bombed out room where he was positioned (but we don't know Luke's fate). Fighter jets fly overhead and we then see distant explosions in a nearby city. Reviewed November 15, 2006 / Posted December 25, 2006