Æon Flux (film)
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''Æon Flux'' is a 2005 American science fiction action film based on the
animated Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...
science fiction action television series of the same name created by Peter Chung, which aired on
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
from 1991 to 1995. It was directed by
Karyn Kusama Karyn Kiyoko Kusama (born March 21, 1968) is an American filmmaker. She made her feature directorial debut with the sports drama film ''Girlfight'' (2000), for which she won Best Director and the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival an ...
, written by Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi, and produced by Gale Anne Hurd, David Gale, Gary Lucchesi and Greg Goodman. The film was produced by
MTV Films MTV Entertainment Studios (formerly MTV Production Development from 2003 until 2018 and MTV Studios from 2018 until 2021) is an American film and television Film production, production and Film distribution, distribution company and is the film ...
, Lakeshore Entertainment, Babelsberg Film Studio and Valhalla Motion Pictures. It stars Charlize Theron as the title character, Marton Csokas, Jonny Lee Miller, Sophie Okonedo, Pete Postlethwaite, and
Frances McDormand Frances Louise McDormand (born Cynthia Ann Smith; June 23, 1957) is an American actress and film producer. In a career spanning over four decades, McDormand has received numerous accolades, including four Academy Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awa ...
. The film was released on December 2, 2005, by
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The film was poorly received by critics and failed at the box office, only grossing $52 million against a production budget of $55–62 million.


Plot

In 2011, a deadly pathogenic virus killed 99 percent of the
Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
's population, forcing the survivors to regroup and scatter across the Earth. Four centuries later, in 2415, the remaining five million humans inhabit Bregna, a
dystopia A dystopia (lit. "bad place") is an imagined world or society in which people lead wretched, dehumanized, fearful lives. It is an imagined place (possibly state) in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmen ...
n walled futuristic
city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world throughout history, including cities such as Rome, ...
, which is ruled by a congress of scientists. Although Bregna is largely an idyllic place in the destroyed Earth, people routinely disappear and the population is plagued by nightmares. A skilled warrior, named Æon Flux, is a member of the Monicans, an underground rebel organization who communicate through telepathy-enabling technology and are led by the Handler. After a mission to destroy a surveillance station, Æon comes home to find her sister Una has been mistaken for a Monican and killed. When Æon is sent on a mission to kill the government's leader, Trevor Goodchild, she discovers that both she and the Monicans are being manipulated by a cabal of council members working towards a
coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...
, unrelated to the goals of the Monicans. Æon questions the origins of everyone in Bregna and in particular, her personal connection to Trevor. Everyone in Bregna is revealed to be a clone, grown from recycled
DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
. With the dead constantly being reborn as new individuals and bearing partial memories of their previous lives, their troubling dreams have increased. Cloning was required because the antidote to the virus made humans infertile. Trevor's ongoing experiments were attempts to reverse the infertility. His preceding clones had all worked on this problem. Æon learns that she is a clone of the original Trevor's wife Katherine and that she is the first "Katherine" clone in over 400 years. Una was one of Trevor's most successful experiments; part of a group of clones that proved to be fertile, with Una having been pregnant when she was killed. However, in order to keep the dynasty of Goodchild clones in power, Trevor's brother, Oren, had Una killed along with the other members of the fertile experimental group. He ordered all of Trevor's research to be destroyed. In a confrontation with Trevor and Æon, Oren reveals that nature has corrected the infertility problem and that some women are becoming pregnant without intervention by scientists. Oren has had them all killed to maintain the Goodchild reign. Æon then goes against both Oren and her former allies, who want to kill Trevor and also kill her for not killing Trevor. Æon convinces the other Monicans tracking her, including her friend Sithandra, to ignore the Handler and to help her kill Oren and his men. Æon goes to destroy the Relical, the dirigible that stores the DNA for cloning. There she meets Keeper, the old man who monitors everything. She discovers that he preserved Katherine's DNA for years, although an earlier Oren clone had ordered it to be destroyed so "Katherine" could not influence any Trevors. The dirigible crashes into the city wall, breaking it down to reveal the surrounding land for the first time in centuries.


Cast


Production

The screenplay was written by Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi based on the animated TV series by Peter Chung. In the early stages of production, actress Michelle Rodriguez was considered for the part of Æon. She had previously worked with Kusama in '' Girlfight''. Kusama had originally suggested filming in
Brasília Brasília ( ; ) is the capital city, capital of Brazil and Federal District (Brazil), Federal District. Located in the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region, it was founded by President Juscelino ...
, the capital of
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, because the 20th-century modern architecture of that city fit with her vision of Bregna. The producers rejected the idea because Brasília lacked the infrastructure and technical expertise to support a major film production. After several cities were scouted,
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
and
Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and largest city of the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the Havel, River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...
in
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
were chosen for filming. Berlin had several locations that fit into the organic yet structured world of ''Æon Flux''. The crew gained permission to film in several locations that had never allowed such access before, including the Treptow Crematorium, the Adlershof Trudelturm and Windkanal
wind tunnel A wind tunnel is "an apparatus for producing a controlled stream of air for conducting aerodynamic experiments". The experiment is conducted in the test section of the wind tunnel and a complete tunnel configuration includes air ducting to and f ...
facility, and the Haus der Kulturen der Welt ("House of the World's Cultures"). Additional locations included Sanssouci Park, the
Bauhaus Archive The Bauhaus Archive () is a state archive and Museum of Design located in Berlin. It collects art pieces, items, documents and literature which relate to the Bauhaus School (1919–1933), and puts them on public display. Currently, the museum ...
and a dissection theatre built in 1790 to train
veterinarian A veterinarian (vet) or veterinary surgeon is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, veterinarians also play a role in animal r ...
s, part of the Berlin animal shelter. It was used as the Handler space.''Æon Flux'' DVD, ''The Locations of 'Æon Flux' featurette''. Filming was temporarily suspended for a month during September 2004 while Theron recovered from a neck injury she sustained during stunt-work on the tenth day of shooting. She was hospitalized in Berlin for five days and required about six weeks of
physiotherapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...
to recover. Kusama says that after she finished the film, the studio took it away from her and heavily re-edited it, changing storylines and characters, believing that her version was too much of an
art film An art film, arthouse film, or specialty film is an independent film aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made prima ...
.


Release


Box office

Paramount chose not to screen ''Æon Flux'' for critics prior to its release. The film opened at number two at the U.S. box office, making $12,661,112 in its opening weekend, held off the top spot by ''
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling. It is the fourth novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. It follows Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, a wizard in his fourth year at Hogwar ...
''. ''Æon Flux'' suffered a decline of 63.97% in box office earnings, going down to number six the following week when '' The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' and ''
King Kong King Kong, also referred to simply as Kong, is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. The character has since become an international pop culture icon,Erb, Cynthia, 1998, ''Tracking Kin ...
'' were released during the holiday season. On February 9, 2006, it completed its theatrical run, grossing a domestic take of $25,874,337 and a worldwide box office total of $52,304,001.


Critical reception

The film holds a 10% approval rating on
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
based on 105 reviews, with an average rating of 3.5/10. The consensus states, "''Aeon Flux'' lacks the gravity-defying pace of its animated predecessor, and, despite some flash, is largely a dull affair." On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
it has a weighted average score of 36 out of 100 based on reviews from 23 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. '' Variety'' said it was "savaged by terrible reviews". Theron said that she had doubts about the project but trusted Kusama, whom she respected. Theron said they "fucked it all up" because they did not know how to execute the concept. Audiences polled by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...
gave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale. Although Peter Chung was initially optimistic about the film and was impressed with the sets, he ultimately described it as "a travesty," adding: Chung primarily objected to the film's portrayal of Æon and Trevor, and their re-imagined history and relationship. He said, "Ms. Flux does not actually appear in the movie." Screenwriters Hay and Manfredi said in an interview that the film was re-cut by the studio prior to release, but that the original director's cut contains nearly 30 minutes of additional footage, which Chung acknowledged in his criticism.


Music

Graeme Revell composed the score for ''Æon Flux''; the soundtrack is available via
Varèse Sarabande Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, owned by Concord Music Group and distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and cast recording, original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums, as ...
as advertised on the film's official website.


Comic book prequel

In late 2005,
Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, manga and Artist's book, art book publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon, by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, O ...
published a four-issue
comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
limited series tying in with the movie. The storyline serves as a prequel to the film and is a mixture of Chung's original TV series designs and characters, combined with the setting and story elements of the film; the comic book version of Æon loosely resembles Theron, while her colleague Sithandra, played by a black actress in the film, is depicted as white in the comic book. The first issue sets up Flux's mission for the miniseries: sabotage the Bregnan government's plan to destroy the forest outside of Bregna's walls. The last two issues of the limited series were published after the film had been released. By the time the final issue was published, the film had already ended its run in most areas. Dark Horse has not announced whether additional ''Æon Flux''-based comics will be published.


Video game

On November 15, 2005, a video game tie-in prequel of the same name was released in North America for the
PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October, in Europe on 24 Novembe ...
and
Xbox Xbox is a video gaming brand that consists of four main home video game console lines, as well as application software, applications (games), the streaming media, streaming service Xbox Cloud Gaming, and online services such as the Xbox networ ...
gaming consoles. The game takes place in eras before the film's setting of 2030 to 2338. The likenesses and voices of actors from the film were used. To help add to the box office gross of the film and to sell more games, specially marked copies sold in the US came with a pass to see the ''Æon Flux'' film.Æon Flux game manual Many people considered the game to be better than the movie it was based on.


References


External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aeon Flux
Film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...
2005 films 2005 science fiction action films 2000s dystopian films American science fiction action films 2000s English-language films American dystopian films Films produced by Gregory Goodman Films set in the 25th century Films set in the future Films shot in Berlin Girls with guns films Live-action films based on animated series American post-apocalyptic films Lakeshore Entertainment films MTV Films films Paramount Pictures films Films scored by Graeme Revell Films produced by Gary Lucchesi Films directed by Karyn Kusama Films about cloning Babelsberg Studio films Films produced by Gale Anne Hurd Films adapted into comics Superheroine films Films about coups d'état Biopunk films Films with screenplays by Phil Hay (screenwriter) Films with screenplays by Matt Manfredi 2000s American films English-language science fiction action films