Æon Flux (2005)

Director:

Karyn Kusama

Writers (WGA):

Phil Hay (written by) &
Matt Manfredi (written by) ...

Release Date:

2 December 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

The Perfect World Meets The Perfect Assassin

Plot:

Aeon Flux is a mysterious assassin working for the Monicans, a group of rebels trying to overthrow the government. When she is a sent on a mission to kill the Chairman, a whole new mystery is found.

Plot Keywords:

Female Nudity | Beautiful Woman | Wilhelm Scream | Dystopian | Superheroine

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Charlize Theron	...	Æon Flux
Marton Csokas	...	Trevor Goodchild
Jonny Lee Miller	...	Oren Goodchild
Sophie Okonedo	...	Sithandra
Frances McDormand	...	Handler
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Keeper
Amelia Warner	...	Una Flux
Caroline Chikezie	...	Freya
Nikolai Kinski	...	Claudius
Paterson Joseph	...	Giroux
Yangzom Brauen	...	Inari
Aoibheann O'Hara	...	Scientist
Thomas Huber	...	Scientist
Weijian Liu	...	Scientist
Maverick Queck	...	Chemist (as Maverick Quek)

Also Known As:

Aeon Flux (USA) (alternative spelling)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sequences of violence and sexual content.

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Germany:12 | Australia:M | Canada:14A | South Korea:12 | Argentina:13 | Norway:15 | Netherlands:12 | Canada:14A (Alberta/Manitoba/Nova Scotia) | Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-15 | France:U | Canada:PG (British Columbia/Ontario) | Ireland:15A | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | Brazil:14 | Philippines:R-13 | Iceland:16 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #42053) | Malaysia:18SG

Filming Locations:

Babelsberg, Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Famke Janssen turned down the lead role.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the fight scene with Sithandra and Aeon, the part in Aeon's hair switches from right to left to back to right.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Æon Flux: [narrating] Some called Bregna the perfect society. Some call it the height of human civilization. But others know better. The Goodchilds built Bregna to ensure us a future. They built the Relico, a memorial to remind us of what we've survived. They built walls to protect us...

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "Robot Chicken: Donkey Punch (#2.19)" (2006)

Snatches defeat from the jaws of victory

It's a bit unnerving when a studio declines to screen a film for the press before it goes into wide release. That many movies suck is no surprise, but when a studio itself admits as much ahead of time, the process of movie-going becomes a passion play of sorts. Consider it an early Christmas gift from Hollywood, then, that "Aeon Flux" isn't nearly the affront to taste and decency one might expect, given the above. Though ultimately overwhelmed by its flaws, it at least has (sort of) an idea with which to toy around. Too bad director Karyn Kusama seems to have little clue how to execute it all.

It's the future. There's been a plague. There is a dictatorship, and there are rebels. The latter are known as the Monicans, and far from being a cult of beret or tennis racket worshipers, they're into attempts to overthrow the former, called the Goodchild regime. The regime is occasionally mean to the citizenry, which is more than Aeon Flux (Charlize Theron) and her pals can stand. Through some sort of biochemical virtual reality technology, the Monicans receive orders from their dear leader (Frances McDormand), a mystical priestess-type who appears to have been cross-bred with a carrot. It falls to Aeon to strap on some form-fitting, futuristic spandex get-ups to carry out the High Carrot's orders, which are of course some version of "destroy the regime." Having years earlier watched her sister get liquidated by the Goodchilds, she needs little convincing.

Not surprisingly, things get complicated. The Goodchilds might not be quite what they seem, and Aeon herself might have an unexpected history with them. Though occasionally muddled, the film's central conceit (of which I won't reveal more) contains some neat notions about the nature of human existence and survival. There's room for much more examination of which the film doesn't take advantage, but the ideas are there, at least. The big problems of "Aeon Flux" are technical. Kusama has made the baffling decision to film nearly all the action so close that we can rarely follow what's going on. To make matters worse, it's edited in a flurry of jump cuts that leave us completely lost. The result is some serious spacial disorientation that takes over the film. "Aeon Flux"'s aesthetic is one of sleek costume, oddly-angled architecture, and nimble characters. Much of the action occurs in minimalist, open spaces that beg for some unbroken long shots that might convey the grace and athleticism implied by the above. Instead, we get split seconds of flying limbs, breaking glass, and accompanying sound effects.

There is a pretty good movie trying to get out of the morass of "Aeon Flux." Put this stuff in the hands of the Wachowski brothers, say, and the results could be quite different. As it is, though, I felt like "Aeon Flux" was willfully pushing me away from a movie I wanted to enjoy. This film is unattuned to its own strengths. Like a novice poker player dealt a royal flush, it somehow finds a way to lose in spite of its potential.