[Æon Flux] : Creative presentation
Director: Karyn Kusama
Genre: Sci-fi, action, chicks with guns
Year: 2005
Runtime: 93 minutes
Verdict: 6/10
When your movie plot takes a good 100–200 year leap in future, then it’s a paradise for all the creative jobs in the production unit. The no holds and rationale barred attitude reflects in the works of costume designers, weapons innovations, architectural marvels etc. The audience is generally so engrossed in things which are supposed to be just aesthetically pleasing that the plot and execution of the storyline have to acknowledge its overpowering presence. Such creative offspring is one of the reasons you make such films. Where all that innovation and creativity can flourish and prosper, attempting a look at the future as it might be. We have seen this happening in many futuristic movies; the terminator series, matrix series, and star wars saga are few such examples. Aeon Flux tries another modest attempt to enter that sci-fi world.
I first knew about the movie when I got a collection of super cool ultra modern set of wallpapers which showed Charlese Theron holding a glass of water, another with she holding a black gun, she sporting a weird yet modern looking hair style. Then I thought I should probably give it a try. I had not seen the IMDB ranking of this movie. The reason is, that this movie falls in the chicks with guns category. No boy would want to miss such one would it?
As clichéd as it can be, the whole mankind has fallen prey to some kind of virus and there is a very little section of human populace left. As the movie claims the incident happened in 2011-and now that when you see these movies after years, it feels funny to see the future already as past, but anyway-now we are 400 years ahead of that incident and live in a ultra modern singular city ruled by a government which is-as you would guess- autocratic and having no remorse about the way it functions. There is a small group of people with rebellious intent who wish to overthrow this rule and bring about the government of masses. Our lead actress, which is also name of the movie -it seems they could never come up with a better name for the movie and named it after the lead- is Aeon Flux. She is the most adept of all the agents of the rebellion force. She is told to infiltrate the government building and take out the leader. She reaches his chambers in about half an hour when the movie starts, but she cannot kill him. This is where the little mystery starts and the movie plays out.
Without adding any spoilers to the review it is a little hard for me to describe how the events go about, so I am skipping that. Though such movies are not about the Shakespearian drama and acting finesse, the plot is developed considerably nicely. There are possibilities of some psychological debates but the movie does not venture in those sections. It remains true to the purpose, chicks with guns, and action. After completion you do not much recall any specific action stunt or any special moves but still the action sequences run well. The director uses many outrageous escape tactics and goes much creative when showing the defenses of main government building. As he is in 24th century he has all the creative freedom to do so as well.
The movie opened with second rank in box office in the first week, which means it got a fair share of audience approval but critics have raised some concerns about the movie. Since the movie is an adaption, their comments also take into account the original source. I do not know the original and hence if I judge the movie alone, I’d recommend it for a one time watch with like-minded friends. :) And do let me know what you thought about it. :)
