I clearly remember seeing the coming attractions for this film, featuring two of my favorite actors, Clive Owen and Julianne Moore, and thinking that the story-idea  seems so far-fetched; what the heck are these two intelligent actors, who usually pick only decent projects, do here?
Children of Men, loosely adapted from a 1992 P. D. James novel of the same name, has a lot of elements going against it: it mixes way too many genres and subject matters into a plot that is highly inconceivable, for a setup that is not that far away into our own world’s future... Yet, almost magically, a very talented Alfonso Cuarón, who co-wrote and directed this memorable movie, makes it work. The film mixes despair with hope, religious notes with fanaticism, political and social commentary that avoid coloring in black and white. But most of all, the film is an investigation into human nature, wonderfully delivered by Owen, Moore, Michael Caine and the other members of the cast. Kudos go also to P. D. James, who’s novel I did not read, but from which the concept is taken, for recognizing how human hope is tied so closely with the need to produce offspring. This only highlights the irony behind the different agendas, various groups portrayed in the film, subscribe to. One of the most memorable moments in the film, is a beautifully constructed scene in which, in the midst of a bloody fight, the appearance of a baby freezes everyone for a moment that seems to last forever, until the sound of a few shots pull the armed forces back into their mindless actions.
Since I vowed to keep my reviews short, I will not add anymore though there is much that can be written about this film.
It is with great pleasure I rate this film with five stars.