Children of Men

One admirer of Children of Men has claimed that the real story of the film takes place in the movie’s background, not the foreground.  From this point of view the story of Theo matters less than the depiction of the world around him that he simply takes for granted.  Do you see a particularly striking moment of this dynamic, where we (or the camera) might be focused on Theo, even as the most meaningful aspect of the scene is the depiction of some part of the world he lives in?

10 thoughts on “Children of Men

  1. Spencer Shores

    Throughout The Children of Men the background plays a crucial role about informing us about the world and the results of the disastrous infertility epidemic. This is particularly apparent to me in moments walking through the chain where we see immigrants being caged and deported, or when they are being deported via bus. Moments like these show that once the issue of future life and survival come into question people begin to try to hoard anything they can. In Theo’s country, they are trying to reduce that shared with the newest members of the country. It is a particularly striking viewing this film in 2019 when issues of immigration are at the forefront of the political news cycle in recent past. Similar sentiment appears both in the film and the modern day, where individuals feel the best way to preserve what they have and maintain their social-norms is to reject the influence of new assimilating individuals.

  2. Siena Truex

    One moment in particular in which Theo seemed less important to me than the background was when Theo was searching for Kee after being separated when Luke took Kee and ordered his men to kill Theo. The camera follows Theo as he dives for cover behind various walls and pieces of rubble, but behind him people are being slaughtered in waves. One striking example of such murder is when a group of people come out of a building that had been under fire and yell that they are citizens to prevent being shot at by their own government. They are almost immediately shot down regardless of their shouts, and it is clear that the street has become a warzone where nobody is safe. Everyone, regardless of their status as a citizen, a “fugee,” or a soldier, is a target. The only person that seems to be safe from the chaos is Kee, and that is only when her baby is revealed and all humans present are stunned into peace upon viewing the baby. This lasts only for a moment, leading to another case in which the background is more interesting than the foreground, as Kee and Theo run for safety and war is waged in the background. Throughout the movie there tend to be tracking shots focused on the main characters, particularly Theo, while revealing aspects of the world that he lives in are visible or audible in the background. Theo takes for granted a war-ridden London with cages full of refugees ready to be shipped off, as well as frequent scenes of death and tragedy on the streets that Theo walks past and the constant propaganda against immigrants.

  3. Fazl Shaikh

    A moment in the film that interests me regarding the dynamic that Professor raises is when Theo walks into work on the day Diego Ricardo died. The camera follows Theo as he walks in to sit down in his chair. The tracking shot takes the viewer into the Minister of Energy for Great Britain, and at first I observe is how everyones’ eyes are locked on their ultramodern computers, watching the tragic news. As I examine the scene closer, I notice the specific details of the room. Space is plentiful. The floors are clean and the lighting is abundant. It is an office space that seems to be a standard cubicle layout with each desk noticeably organized. Cuaron represents a striking contrast between the lives of the ‘ordinary’ working class of Great Britain and the that of the rest of society. Through the small details of the scene, these individuals of Great Britain residence show that they have access to basic needs. Whereas, we see later in the film that the ‘ordinary’ lives of others are situated in overcrowded, disease-filled, rundown camps run by the military. Fires are burning, houses are destroyed, and death is a common sight. I believe Cuaron aims to give the audience a short visualization of the office space to draw contrast between the vitally different livelihoods between the two groups of people.

  4. Jackson Atwood

    There are a few particularly striking moments that we, the viewers, are focused in on Theo, but the background is very important to what the director is trying to convey, and he is actually not the primary focus of the scene. Instead of having to explain that there is civil war and illegal immigrants trying to enter Britain, the director just constantly shows it, using Theo as a device, using him to move through different scenes, and the movement from one place to another allows the viewer to focus in on all the things the character passes by. An example of this that struck me is when he is getting off the subway early in the movie. He was quietly sitting on the train when suddenly people start throwing stuff that cracks the windshield, and you wonder what is going. Then, when he exits the train, he saw guards and giant German shepherds holding back and mediating the immigrants and the rebels. These rebels are screaming at the guards in all different languages, crying. It’s a horrible sight. He gets to walk right by, and that contrast makes for a very strong scene.

  5. Brendan Dawson

    I am most struck by the way in which the viewer of this film is able to see the setting, climate, and plot of the film unfold from the perspective of the film as a whole, rather than the perspective of the main character. In Children of Men I feel I view the majority of the film in a very clear manner, not through the lens of a specific character. For example, I do not feel I am on any character’s side, or have any biases toward the film’s other characters or plot as a whole. Instead, I feel very observant to the background of the film, especially in scenes depicting the state of Britain, which is the only stable government in the world. A perfect example of this is when the car is passing through the downtown area, the camera is panned far enough away from the car to include the people and vehicles behind the car. This shoes the “natural” state of the country, as I felt as the viewer I almost got a behind the scenes look at the way in which people interact in a public setting. This allows the viewer to make inferences about broader themes in the movie such as how the state of our world is unfortunately reliant on government politics and capitalism.

  6. Zachary Shapiro

    One striking instance where viewers could interpret meaningful information from the background of the film was when Theo, Kee, and Miriam entered the abandoned school. In the first part of this scene as Theo walks into the school, the camera pans away and focuses on the wall of the building where we see many children’s drawings with graffiti and vandalism covering them. There is a picture of a kid riding a bike, one of a child learning to rollerblade, as well as many others. The camera showing these drawings covered in vandalism makes viewers realize the idea that being a child has been forgotten; for example learning to ride a bike. Once the camera moves into the school, we see Theo walking through the hallways, but behind Theo there are more children’s drawings on the walls. In many of the drawings there seem to be smiling children doing various activities, once again depicting the past that reminds viewers of the tragic world Theo now lives in. Lastly, in this same scene of Theo walking down the hallway, everything appears to be dark. The floor, the ceiling, the vines, even the entire outfit Theo is wearing is dark. The brightest color that we notice is of the children’s drawings on the wall, which makes me think that Cuaron did this purposefully to direct viewers eyes away from Theo and onto this meaningful aspect in the background.

  7. Daniel Golstein

    As a Londoner, Children of Men strikes a melancholic, dissonant chord from the outset. Though littered with futuristic touches, the version of the city in which the film occurs is a dystopia defined by chilling regression. So much so, in fact, that I spent most of the film transfixed on the background, rather than on Theo. There are a few observations to be made. For one, the 1984-esque presence of anti-immigration warnings comprise most of the London-based backgrounds. These are exposed to us, visually, the second that Theo walks out of the coffee shop in the opening scene, and immediately indicate the sort of nationalistic dystopia that sends shivers down a spine. Following this, there is a noticeable presence of armed police, who appear to have a primary job of shoving all foreigners into cages – which are stood shamelessly in public places. The movie makes no secret of the fascist, racist political context, but to see it occur within the context of one’s own city – and for most of the population to seemingly be okay with this – supersedes focus on other elements of the picture. Secondly, Theo’s drive to the Ark of Arts is particularly marked. In a number of ways, Theo appears to skirt illusively in a clean, wealth-indicating car through a dismal, dirty street. The car approaches Trafalgar Square and passes several yellow raincoat-clad protestors, whose religious message emphasizes the apocalyptic state of the planet. Yet Theo’s car drives through a heavily guarded gateway and onto The Mall, from which we can see St. James’ Park – as full of life as ever. Yet there are fundamentally chilling elements to this setting. The Union Jack has fallen, and been replaced with a traditional English flag, indicating a nationalistic transition. Further, the soldiers on horseback are clad in the clothing of a feudal knight, with a pointed hat to emphasize the sinister racist undertones. In the background, the park is lively and vivacious, but appears to be drawn straight out the 1920s. All three of these aspects emphasize a historical regression to a time of isolationism, nationalism and class-divide, foreshadowing a dark and Orwellian future.

  8. Thomas Dowd

    I think that there are a few parts of this film where the foreground plays a lesser role in importance to the background. One scene in particular that especially startled me was when Theo and Kee enter the refugee / concentration camp. The presence of barking German shepherds, bright floodlights, and heavily armed sadistic guards is indicative of Great Britain’s society in this movie. From this scene the audience understands that these refugees are being treated inhumanely, a theme depicted in multiple ways, such as the refugees being held in cages. Additionally, the audience sees the inhumane treatment of refugees during this scene such as when people are being stripped, beaten by guards, forced to kneel with their hands behind their back, and the presence of dead bodies. All of this shows the audience that the British government is evil. Additionally it shows the even worse/hidden part of a police state. The presence of billboards on every street corner in London with the writing saying to “report any suspicious activity” or the constant propaganda of Homeland Security playing while on public transportation is just the exterior of a police state. We only see glimpses of its true horrors such as in Jasper’s wife who was tortured by the British government and in the depictions of the refugee camp. The story of hope and the future of humanity in this movie is interesting and entertaining, but an analysis of the world created in Children of Men is even more interesting when compared to our current world.

  9. Kyra McClean

    I was definitly aware of the graffiti around the cities. The physical turmoil of the world around the characters is evident; the gray skies, smog, and trash everywhere all add to the depiction of global collapse and social unrest. The pieces of graffiti are always in moving shots while something else is going on in the foreground making it, like the newspapers that Cole mentioned, easy to miss. When Theo is on the train and passes the group of people throwing rocks, the train passes a wall with the words “Last one to die/ Please turn out the light”. There is also a scene a few minutes later of a wall saying “The Human Project Lives on” being painted over.
    Another thing I noticed was the presence of advertising for the Quietus suicide drug, with the slogan “You decide When”. Theo and Jasper talk about it the first time they come together in the movie, an ad comes on for it on Theo’s TV as he wakes up, and there are ads for it on the side of busses and on billboards. The viewers attention is only drawn to it 2 or 3 times, but it is all throughout the film in inconspicuous places. The slogan “You decide when” and the quantity of advertisements makes it seem as that a lot of people are actually making that decision, as Jasper does for his wife and dog.

  10. Cole Easton

    I have seen Children of Men a few times, & due to the detail Cuaron puts into the world & background, it is a movie that rewards you with more & more details every time you rewatch. One particular moment that stood out to me this time watching were all of the newspaper headlines in the room where Theo first sees Julian after twenty years. The camera is focused on Theo & his reaction to his apparent kidnapping, but all around the room are dozens of newspaper headlines detailing the recent history of the world that has lead to its ravaged state. There are headlines on pandemics, nuclear fallout, resource wars, resource shortages & even the increasing infertility of the race. These are events that help shape the world that Children of Men takes place in, but they are only depicted in this one room by newspaper headlines. If the viewer just focuses on Theo, then they miss out on this treasure trove of important historical events.

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