Thanks to Steven Greydanus for catching this revealing admission from Alfonso Cuarón regarding Children of Men:
Filmmaker: Was there a script already written when you came on?
Cuarón: There was a script and I read the beginning of it and didn’t like it. I wasn’t interested in making a science fiction film and secondly I wasn’t interested in the environment that the book takes place, all this upper class drama. For me it was more important to explore the thematics that are shaping our contemporary world. The P.D. James book is almost like a look at Christianity, and that wasn’t my interest. I didn’t want to shy away from the spiritual archetypes but I wasn’t interested in dealing with dogma.
More’s the pity, though as a director I suppose that is his perogative. The book, indeed, is infused with a Christian sensibility and a broad, but strong, ethic that values and celebrates human dignity and life.
It is his perogative, but I think Sacramone’s suggestion is on-target. If Cuaron wanted to make a movie exploring the themes he suggests, then he should have done so and called it something else. Whether the line between adaptation and artistic hijacking is thin or thick, it seems he’s crossed it and left it far behind.
And no, I’m not going to post any comments that REVEAL THE “HOT FUZZ” CAMEO. Come on, folks!
I was pleasantly surprised to find out who the cameo really was. I made a guess, thinking it was someone who had worked with the fellows before on Spaced, but turns out I was wrong. Not that I mind, though. The “real” cameo is so much better.