as the holder of a subscription to Gaumont/MK2 cinemas, going to the movies is a fairly regular activity for me. On average I probably go around 3-4 times a month, which considering my movie card costs 18 euros per month, makes it a pretty sweet deal for me (normal ticket prices are now at or above 10 euros). Without calling myself a true movie buff, I'd say I'm fairly knowledgeable on the subject, and I try to follow up on the main movie news : who's making what movie, who's the big star, which movie will probably flop... All this to say that I'm pretty aware of the movies coming out in any given month, especially in cases when I've seen the trailer for a flick before and it's given me hope that it might be a good one.
Today such a movie comes out, and though I won't be able to see it before this weekend, at the earliest, I sincerely hope I'll have this in my year-end best of list. The movie is Children of Men, starring uber-suave Clive Owen and Julianne Moore (what's she been up to recently ?), and directed by Alfonso Cuaron, who made the brilliant Y Tu Mama Tambien, but is generally presented as the guy who directed a Harry Potter movie (don't ask me which one, I read a couple of the books which were fine, but that's that). It's based on a novel by PD James, and since I'm pretty bad at describing movie plots, I'll give you the IMDB version (spoilers below):
In 2027, in a chaotic world in which humans can no longer procreate, a former activist agrees to help transport a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea, where her child's birth may help scientists save the future of humankind
I don't like sci-fiction movies that takes place in a far-away future or in space, but this sort of plot sounds highly appealing to me (kinda like Gattaca). What really sold me on the film was the egregiously manipulative trailer, which I've probably seen 6 or 7 times. In it you get the basic set-up, with admittedly nice visuals (Cuaron has proven to be quite good in that department), and a few scenes between Owen and Moore (who plays his ex and recruits him to take care of the pregnant girl). The manipulative aspect comes in toward the middle of the thing, when the first few bars of Sigur Ros' Hoppipolla start rising, and the song plays through the end of the trailer. That song, with those images, and Chiwetel Ejiofor saying "now you know what's at stake"... resistance is futile. Or maybe I'm just a sucker for that sort of cinematographic experience. After all, Spielberg is one of my favorite directors. Essentially that hope I feel before seeing such a movie is what keeps me interested in films. After all, if that didn't happen, I'd just rewatch old classics all the time, like one of those sore critics who think nothing made after 1976 has any significance. And there's definitely enough of them already.
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