Style; Children of Men

Thesis: Children of Men and V for Vendetta: Narrative

Birth

•  Children of Men: Birth of the new baby: Baby Being Born: Actual birth
• V for Vendetta: Birth of new character development; God is in the Rain scene: Spiritual Birth

Redemption

• V's changing the government
• Theo determined to get Kee to safety due to his child dying

Terrorism vs State Control

• Is V a terrorist of freedom fighter? Oppressive, fascist government, controlling the public; curfews/media/propaganda
• Children of Men under fascist totalitarian government = oppression

Complicated stock characters; Theo vs V

Both have a female protagonist

V conveys more heroic stock character elements that Theo due to the realism in the film Children of Men.

Messages and Values:

V= warning

Children of Men = hope

Oedipal Complex

• Father figure = Jasper in Children of Men / Diestrich in V for Vendetta

To what extent is Children of Men a thriller or sci-fi?

Thriller:

• Dim/dark/ low key lighting 
• Blue colour lighting
• Follows a vulnerable female; Kee is pregnant

• No detective or set antagonist but the army/ opposition is male which is stereotypical in a thriller
•  

 Sci-fi:

• Set in the future; 2027
• Futuristic cars; speed dial holograms
• Media/advertisement moving on the side of the bus and streets/walls of buildings
• Anti-government 

Summary

The film Children of Men differs to V for Vendetta as it is unclear who is the good and who is the bad in the conflict and opposition. The film is produced by an independent production company therefore it subverts the typical conventions of a classic Hollywood narrative. This is portrayed through the themes, style and genre. The fact that it is an independent film it effects or has an impact on these MACRO factors. For example, the film brings up challenging ideas about war by not representing the good or the bad, or having it as the main factor in the film, but the theme of fertility is more prominent. The film also incorporates religious themes, for example when Theo, Kee and the baby are walking, the baby is a representation of Jesus, it is a savour that stops the war momentarily. Theo also dies for the baby towards the end of the film, this makes him a matyr.

Visceral: the impact a film has upon it's audience.

Monday 3rd November 2014: Children of Men

Why is this scene important for the themes of the film?

The theme of the film could be oppression, it portrays this as we see the conflict between the two groups, however this stops when they hear the child cry
Unity, peace, rebirth, fear, fascism


Representation of gender, why is this important in the film?

Mainly women trying to look
Theo protecting Kee and the baby, typical male role, a fatherly role
Kee is adopting the typical female maternal role
Macho men become maternal
The baby represents peace, hope and unity
Religious, biblical representation
Hope lies in the new generation

Style; the way it's shot/cinematography

Dim lighting

An independent film is designed to make you think/ make your own interpretation as it subverts a classic Hollywood narrative


War vs peace: contrasts/juxtaposition to draw attention to the differences

If you take away the children, you make women completely redundant, this enforces hyper-masculinity, but is instantly stopped with the child crying. Even the women are made hyper-masculine, for example Julie, who is a terrorist but was a mother, this was taken away from her and was made to lose her femininity and maternity when her child dies.