Stuck in a flux

Film: Aeon Flux
Cast: Charlize Theron, Marton Csokas, Frances McDormond

Director: Karyn Kusama

Not since the D W Griffith years in the early 20th century have original screenplays become such an endangered species. Theme park rides, video games and, of course, other movies have become regular sources of inspiration, besides anything on ink – children’s comics, graphic novels, short stories no one knew existed, and what not.

Aeon Flux takes off from a series of animated shorts that came out in the early ‘90s. In the year 2011, an industrial disease wiped out 99% of the world’s population. By the time a man named Goodchild found out a cure there were only five million humans left. For the last 400 years the Goodchild dynasty has been ruling what has been left of Earth. Curiously, the population still remains at five million.

Rebels, going by the name Morikans, have been slowly gathering in strength for many years. The best of them is Aeon Flux (Theron). Their aim is to strike at Trevor Goodchild (Csokas) and his oppressive regime. Aeon gets her chance to kill Trevor, but something stops her. She realises there is a lot she has to understand, a lot that is hidden.

Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi adapted the animated series with a central topic that has relevance today. But they forgot to give it life. And no amount of computer graphics and Kusama’s direction could hide that.

Charlize Theron is one of our most attractive actresses who can act. But she never gets under the skin of the character and therefore Aeon Flux is too distant from us. Marton Csokas is not only a good-looker, he has a presence too. None of the other actors make an impact.

The original Aeon Flux’s costumes were vetoed out by Theron (Do a Google search to find why). Beatrix Aruna Pasztor has come up with some innovative designs, including the sexiest nightwear I’ve seen on screen. But that’s about all one remembers of Aeon Flux one day later. This is one heck of a waste of a lot of money. But that is what happens when you lose originality. I shudder to think if Speilberg will one day come up with a film out of Letters to Penthouse.