Children of Men is a 2006 British-American dystopian thriller directed and co-written by Alfonso Cuarón. The script, based on the 1992 novel by P.D. James The Children of Men, was credited to five writers, with Clive Owen making unaccredited contributions. The film takes place in 2027, where two decades of human infertility have left society on the verge of collapse. Illegal immigrants seek refuge in the United Kingdom, where the last functioning government imposes oppressive immigration laws on refugees.

The film was released on September 22, 2006 in the United Kingdom and on December 25 in the United States. Children of Men received critical acclaim and was recognized for its achievements in screenwriting, cinematography, artistic direction and innovative single-action sequences.

A forgotten work of art

Children of Men takes us to the year 2027 in a world on the verge of apocalypse because 18 years ago the women stopped being fertile and therefore no more people were born, this made everyone go into chaos and madness except for the United Kingdom that is the only stable nation and where all the refugees in the world try to enter.

We begin with the people moved by the murder of the youngest person in the world, our protagonist Theo Faron appears, a middle-aged man, former activist who is now a public worker. Theo is a man who became lonely and cold after the death of his son, Dylan.

When going out to a street a bomb explodes in a building, from the black smoke comes a woman in shock holding with one hand her other arm that took the explosion, then our title Children of Men appears.

In the next sequences we observe with a magnificent setting a London of a near future, worn and dirty.

The government has begun to capture immigrants who escape from the war and chaos of other nations, the immigrants are caged and then taken to the Bexhill refugee camp.

Theo is kidnapped by immigrant rights activists known as "Fishes" who are led by his ex-wife, Julian Taylor. She offers a payment to Theo to get transit papers for a refugee named Kee, Theo agrees.

Theo goes to visit his cousin Nigel who is government minister, Nigel runs a warehouse that recovers works of art around the world, Nigel sends a driver to pick up Theo and travels London while The Court of The Crimson King sounds, in the place we can observe the David of Michelangelo Angel that was recovered. When chatting with Nigel he accepts to give him the papers, while in the background we see a balloon shaped like a pig floating, a clear reference to the album Animals by Pink Floyd.

Kee must be accompanied by Theo, for that he is offered a larger payment which he accepts, they will be taken by a Fishes member, Luke, and an ex-midwife, Miriam, will also go with them. They must take Kee to a ship on the coast.

However, on the way they are ambushed by a gang that attacks them, which is undoubtedly one of the best scenes of persecution, with very well developed camera movements. Julian get shot in the neck and dies, after this they manage to lose the group of people.

When returning a patrol stops them in the way, Luke stops the car and kills the police officers, stops later the car where they bury Julian, Theo that at all times almost did not show expressions begins to cry.

Luke takes everyone to a Fishes refuge where they will spend the night, it is there that Kee reveals to Theo that she is pregnant while accompanied by a moving melody that reflects the hope that still remains.

Julian had told Kee to only trust Theo, who is the only one who can help her get to the "Human Project" which is a group of scientists trying to cure infertility. In the night Theo manages to listen to the conversations of the Fishes and it turns out that the ambush was made by themselves to kill Julian, making Luke his leader who will use Kee's baby as a political tool to make his revolution grow.

Theo after hearing this awakens Kee and Miriam, takes the car and try to escape but they are discovered. When they escape they arrive at the house of a friend of Theo, Jasper.

The ship will reach the coast of the Bexhill refugee camp, to go to the camp Jasper gives them a contact, a soldier named Syd who will help them enter.

The fish find Jasper's house, he asks Theo to leave immediately while he holds them, when Theo manages to leave, Jasper is killed by Luke. After this they arrive at a place that at one time was a school. Syd arrives at the place and takes them to Bexhill, posing them as refugees.

They board a bus to enter the camp where they observe how the refugees are treated cruelly, Miriam is taken off the bus by a guard. Theo and Kee continue their journey until they reach the entrance to the camp, a place full of despair and people of different cultures.

Upon entering a woman named Marichka, she offers them accommodation, in the place that is offered lee gives birth, the next morning Syd arrives at the apartment, warning that a war has begun between the refugees, the British army and the Fishes, with rewards for the heads of the two. Theo and Marichka confront him in order to escape to the coast, when they leave the building they have to sneak through the chaos that Bexhill has become.

Among all the chaos that, like the whole movie, has an incredible photography and setting compensated with the camera tracking that keeps the viewer glued to the screen. Kee is captured by The Fishes and taken to a building, Theo follows The Fishes to a building, he faces Luke who is killed by the arm. After rescuing Kee, Theo helps her out of the building while the astonished soldiers cease fire by a few moments The touching scene with all the soldiers looking at the baby with astonishment can be like the birth of Jesus, however Kee was not a virgin.

After leaving the combat zone the confrontation continues, Marichka takes Theo and Kee to an aqueduct where is boat, Theo row and they leave Bexhill finding a buoy that is the place where the ship will arrive. Theo tired tells Kee that he was shot in the stomach, with his last strength he asks Kee to always keep the baby in his arms, after this he dies.

After a while in silence, appears the Human Project ship that rescues Kee and thus it finishes the film with laughs of children sounding in the fund. Undoubtedly, a film to reflect that unfortunately was undervalued despite being acclaimed by critics.