An 18-year-old boy is killed in Mexico. At the same time, a baby is soon to be born in London. In the year 2027, these two seemingly happenstance occurrences mark climactic events in the dire race against human extinction.

Based on the dystopian novel by P.D. James, Children of Men portrays a world that can no longer procreate. Women are unable to get pregnant, young people no longer exist, the future only foresees the death of the human race and all of this is beyond any scientific explanation.

In the tradition of science-fiction cinema, the future is depicted as cold, dark, and apocalyptic. Children of Men , nevertheless, lacks the conviction necessary to make us sympathize with the notion of extinction as a plausible threat in the next 20 years.

Living in the totalitarian climate that is London, Theo (Clive Owen) has almost given up on the idea of salvation. That is, until he receives an unlikely visit by his ex-lover Julian (Julianne Moore). They have a charged and shared past that involves a son (who had died at a young age) and political activism.

Julian is still active in the movement to protect humanity and she seeks Theo out because he is the only one she can trust with a single mission. That mission involves a pregnant woman, Kee (Claire Hope-Ashitey).

As the only woman to procreate in the last 18 years, Kee's baby is a treasure which commands secrecy. Theo races to covertly transport Kee to “The Human Project,” where presumably she and her child would be safe from the manic intentions of the government and the world.

Even as infertility is marked as the greater cause for society's perversion, the background of the storyline focuses on immigration. The country is engaged in a chaotic battle to keep foreigners outside their borders. Kee and Theo's predictable route to safety and flight from authorities highlights the torturous campaign against outsiders as they find shelter and anonymity in the consuming violence between citizens and immigrants, authorities and dissidents.

In a world so grim, a happy ending is neither appropriate nor realistic but satisfying at its best. In a way, Kee and Theo both get what they need.

For Theo, however, it is more about resolving his inner demons. That past love, which was lost, is revived in his connection to the one being that has yet to be exposed to the bitter reality. Unfortunately, it is a reality all too unbelievable.

Grade: C