Misery loves company, and if the abundance of half-baked apocalypse and zombie films dumped out by Hollywood these days says anything about the human condition of the 21st century, it certainly is not too pleasant. If the best we can imagine for civilization a couple decades down the road is a bunch of teenagers killing each other over food (or whatever), then, well, damn.

Not all of these films are quite so dour, however, and some even manage to end on a hopeful note. Among the best of the past decade or so’s crop is, without a doubt, Alfonso Cuarón’s CHILDREN OF MEN.

Set in (a now pretty damn close) 2027, the film opens with humanity trying to survive after 18 years of global infertility. Obviously, things are pretty damn bad. Like, totalitarian regime and global war bad. We spend some time with leading man Theo Faron (Clive Owen) seeing just how terrible life has gotten, before he is kidnapped, reunited with his estranged, kidnapping band leading wife (Julianne Moore), and coerced into escorting a young woman named Kee (Clare-Hope Ashitey) out of a major city.

Oh, and by the way, Kee is pregnant.

As part of Coolidge Corner Theatre’s Science on Screen series, this screening will feature a talk with reproductive endocrinologist and infertility specialist Dr. David Ryley. He’ll be speaking about infertility and where our birth rates are taking us, and will hopefully have some positive news.

CHILDREN OF MEN (2006) DIR. ALFONSO CUARÓN
9/22 – 7PM
$10.25 // $8.25 STUDENTS

Coolidge Corner Theatre
290 Harvard Street
Brookline, MA 02446