Film Theory and Composition: Children Of Men study questions
Choose five of the following questions and answer thoroughly on paper. I’ll ask you to report out to the
class before the period’s end.
1. How plausible a view of the future did you find the setting of Children of Men? What made it
believable? How did the mise-en-scene(s) reflect this world-view?
2. To what extent could you understand the global grief over the death of Baby Diego? How do you think
attitudes to young people would change in such a world? Why?
3. Why do you think the Government is dealing with refugees in such a brutal fashion? What do you
think it would take to bring us to such a situation?
4. To what extent was the issue of illegal immigration examined in Children of Men, or was it nothing
more than a backdrop to other events? How does the film echo or refer to our current situation (including
Iraq, Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, etc.)? Mention the role of specific images, references and the role of
mise-en-scene in the shots of (re)fugees.
5. ‘Julian was wrong. They thought it could be peaceful. But how can it be peaceful when they try to take
away your dignity?’ (Luke)
Why do you think Luke sees violence as the only response to the treatment of refugees? Do you
agree with him? Why/why not?
6. How important is human dignity? How is it taken away or undermined within our world? What
principles does society need to hold fast to in order to preserve human dignity?
7. How do you regard the role of religion in this film? How does the film utilize our knowledge of
Christian mythology? Be sure to mention specific elements of the plot and characterization.
8. Fairly or not, critic Colin Cover wrote that, "[i]n most sci-fi epics, special effects substitute for story.”
Do you see this as true for most science fiction you’ve seen or is Cover wrong? Explain with examples.
Also, comment on the use of special effects (or lack thereof) in Children of Men and how this relates to
the storyline.
9. ‘At the end I cannot dictate a sense of hope for anybody because a sense of hope is something that’s
very internal. We wanted the end to be a glimpse of a possibility of hope, for the audience to invest their
own sense of hope into that ending. So if you’re a hopeful person you’ll see a lot of hope, and if you’re a
bleak person you’ll see a complete hopelessness at the end.’ (Alfonso Cuarón)
Do you see hope or hopelessness at the end of Children of Men? Why? Where do you see signs of hope
in our world?
10. Where do you ee points of comparison between the three sci-fi films (12 Monkeys, Gattaca, Children
of Men) thematically? How about stylistically or technically?