Alfonso Cuaron’s dystopian thriller about an infertile, fascist future is fiendishly effective. More soon. Opens December 25.
Children of Men. Alfonso Cuaron, 2006. ****
[tags]4 stars, alfonso cuaron, michael caine, clive owen, julianne moore, thriller, scifi, dystopia, fascism, children, england[/tags]
I’m excited to read your review of this movie. I keep on thinking about it. Can you explain to me the pig in the still? I know it has to be a famous work of art, but I can’t place it.
It’s not the Guernica (which hangs on the opposite wall) but a reference to the cover of Pink Floyd’s Animals, by Storm Thorgerson (who also designed Slip, Stich and Pass for Phish). There’s a nice gallery here. I better put that on right away.
Here’s Thorgerson:
Perhaps our most publicised fiasco at Hipgnosis Design was the Great Pig
Escape, early 1977. Pink Floyd had rejected our suggestion for their
ANIMALS cover in favour of Roger Waters’ idea of a pig hovering over
Battersea Power Station. Despite serious misgivings about such a notion
(shades of Monty Python and the Goodies — was it not intrinsically silly?)
we offered to shoot the pictures and put the cover together. Contrary to
our advice the band didn’t want the pig “stripped in” which would allow us
to photograph the pig anywhere, but wanted it shot for real, the pig
actually floating above the power station. Thus the forty foot zeppelin was
crated to London and assembled on location. Timetable as follows:
Day 1. Still camera crew of eleven positioned at all good vantage points,
plus eight man film crew, helicopter, roadies, group and manager, and one
marksman with telescopic rifle to gun down the Pig in case it should escape
and fall on someone’s noggin (an insurance problem). Much puffing and
blowing, many gas cylinders etc. but the pig was not launched. A
beautifully moody sky, perfect photographic conditions, apart from being a
bit chilly.
Day 2. Eleven still cameramen, eight man film crew, helicopter, one or two
of the group, manager but no marksman (?). Pig launched successfully on
bright clear morning. Hauled slowly up side of building, everyone snapping
away. Near the top, betwixt the towers, a fateful gust of wind. The pig
turned suddenly, broke mooring cable and lurched rapidly towards the
heavens. No one had told the marksman to return. The pig sailed away and
was lost from sight in five minutes. Absolute horrors. All that time and
money and it had simply disappeared in front of our eyes. The police
trailed it to thirty thousand feet and then gave up, the cowards. That
evening, the dirigible came down on a Kent farm. The farmer was reported to
have said he thought it “a bit unusual”! Actually the Press made a bundle
out of the whole thing: “flying pig interrupts international flight
patterns,” “weird UFO spotted,” “flying pig heads for home” (it was made in
Holland). But the Floyd don’t give up that easily and the roadies rescued
it from Kent, repaired the puncture and we started again.
Day 3. Only four or five still photographers this time, plus depleted film
crew but everything went really well. Pig stayed in position perfectly and
everyone clicked away, the helicopter zoomed about, and we were all
delighted.
The band were equally delighted. The material, movie and still, was fine
(as it should’ve been after three whole days), but there was a snag. As if
the whole event hadn’t been enough of a fiasco, and very funny at that, it
transpired that the band liked the sky and power station from Day 1 (but
there was no pig) and the pig from Day 3, but the sky was boring. Well,
well. What could we do but strip it in after all? Pig from Day 3 dropped
into sky of Day 1 and retouched. It *is* true that we were seen to smile
somewhat when they decided to do that.
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Finally, the pig on YouTube.