Children of Men (2006)
Country: Great Britain, United States
Genre: Dystopian, science fiction, thriller
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Cast: Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Charlie Hunnam
Romanian Character: Marichka (Oana Pellea) - Gypsy woman (speaks Romanian)
Children of Men is based on the 1992 novel of the same name, written by P.D. James. The storyline takes place in a near future (2027) when society as we know it has collapsed, mainly because humanity is dealing with a huge issue – global infertility.
The film is set in the United Kingdom where the Government, as the last functioning political institution in the world has adopted very harsh anti-immigration laws. Despite that fact, many refugees seek sanctuary in the UK.
Theo Faron, played by Clive Owen is caught in the violent conflicts while trying to help a refugee escape the chaos. The reason why the immigrant girl is so important is that she is expecting a baby – the first pregnancy in the last 18 years.
On their way to board the ship known as Tomorrow, belonging to the Human Project - an organization focused on trying to cure infertility – Theo and Kee meet Marichka, a Romanian woman.
While Marichka provides them with a room where Kee can give birth to her baby girl, war breaks out between the British Army and the refugees.
The Romanian character is very interesting and three dimensional, despite the limited number of scenes in which she appears.
The first thing we notice about her is that she does not speak English but that does not stop her from talking a lot, in Romanian. Furthermore, she is obviously of Rroma origins judging by her clothing. Our assumption is soon confirmed by one character who screams after her “I’ll f***ing murder you, gypsy b**ch!”
The way in which the character that seems to come out of nowhere becomes crucial to the survival of the two main characters is fascinating.
Her characteristics are a balance of positive and negative but considering the social situation in which she is and the fact that her good features trump the bad, the character is full of meaning.
Marichka may be uneducated but she is a strong woman that seems to thrive in chaos. Her make-shift hotel brings her a source of money and she is also very connected with the members of the refugee camp despite the language barrier. She is governed by a survival instinct that saves, more than once the often panicked Theo and Kee.
In the end, Marichka is the one who leads Theo and Kee to a boat so they can escape the warzone and head for the Tomorrow.
However, regardless of the complexity with which she is portrayed, generalizations and stereotyping of Romanians may still arise because of the film.
