Curiosities | “Sons of Hope”, the acclaimed film by Alfonso Cuarón, turns 15!

Alfonso Cuarón is known for a number of critically acclaimed and popular films including “Gravity”, “Rome” and “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”. However, one of its best known and most acclaimed titles is the 2006 sci-fi action thriller “Sons of Hope”.

The plot is set in a dystopian future in which women, for some reason, can no longer get pregnant. The youngest human being died at the age of 18 and humanity is seriously discussing the possibility of extinction. Theodore Faron (Clive Owen) is a disillusioned former activist turned bureaucrat who lives in a London torn apart by violence and warring nationalist sects. Wanted by his ex-wife Julian (Julianne Moore), Theodore is introduced to a mysteriously pregnant young woman. They come to protect her at all costs, believing that the unborn child is the salvation of mankind.

Starring Michael Caine, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Clare-Hope Ashitey, Pam Farris and Charlie Hunnam, the film won numerous awards at major Hollywood events, despite only grossing $ 70 million at the box- office (against a budget of $ 76 million).

To celebrate its 15th anniversary, CinePOP has put together a short list with some behind-the-scenes anecdotes, which you can check out below:

The film is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by PD James. On re-reading, the humanitarian crisis is the result of the infertility of all women. In the original book, this is the result of all men having stopped producing sperm. The sequels became the aesthetic benchmark of the feature film and captured the attention of critics. The most famous of these takes place in the wake of the Fiat Mutipla car, which is attacked by terrorists. The scene was shot with a type of camera and structure that could rotate inside the car (i.e. there are no visual effects present at this point).

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Caine based his performance on legendary musician John Lennon. In the middle of the movie, when Jasper and Miriam talk about good teams, Jasper mentions Lennon and Paul McCartney. When Miriam (Ferris) got off the bus in the refugee camp, you can hear the song “Arbeit Macht Frei” by the band The Libertines. Arbeit macht frei, which means work will set you free, was a common phrase written about the entrances to Nazi Germany’s concentration camps during WWII. Cuarón revealed in several interviews that he wanted to shoot the feature film based on “The Battle of Algiers” from 1966 rather than “Blade Runner: The Android Hunter” from 1982, as if creating a documentary about something. that happened in 2027.

Cuarón said he didn’t want to “make a movie that ends with the credits”. He wanted to make a movie that, when it got to the end credits, would start the real story. Theo (Owen) doesn’t even use or touch a weapon at any point in the film. The footage of the terrorist attack at the start of the film, on Fleet Street, was shot just two weeks after the actual London bombing by Al Qaeda operatives.

After screenwriter Paul Chart signed the first draft of the screenplay, the story was rewritten multiple times by other screenwriters, including Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby, Timothy J. Sexton, and Cuarón. The final version was written by Cuarón, David Sarata and Sexton. Moore was chosen to play Julian based on a personal desire from Cuarón, who wanted an actress who conveys the idea of ​​”credibility, leadership, intelligence and independence”.

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