n 2011, a plague wiped out 99 percent of the Earth's population. Scientist Trevor Goodchild (Csokas) came up with a cure, and the remaining 5 million people retreated behind the walls of the planet's last remaining city, Bregna. There they have lived for the last 400 years.
Now, in the year 2415, life seems perfect. But it's not: "We traded freedom for a gilded cage," rebel Aeon Flux (Theron) says in a voice-over. It seems that something sinister is going on beneath the surface of the idyllic life of Bregna. The city has been ruled by generations of Goodchilds, the latest another incarnation of Trevor. The government includes a council of scientists and Goodchild's brother, Oren (Miller).
But people in Bregna occasionally disappear without warning, never more to be seen. A group of rebels has formed, called Monicans, which includes Aeon and her friend, Sithandra (Sophie Okonedo), who has unusual feet. The rebels' mission: to bring down the autocratic government of Chairman Goodchild and get to the bottom of things.
To avoid the ruthless soldiers of Chairman Goodchild's army, the Monicans operate in secrecy, communicating through mind connections. Flux receives a new assignment: Infiltrate the government's surveillance operation and take it out. Flux's sister, Una (Amelia Warner), doesn't think Aeon should go. But Aeon tells her that she's got to do something.
The mission is a success. But upon her return Aeon makes a shocking discovery, which sets her up for her next assignment: assassinate Chairman Goodchild.
A lot of Flux capacity
Aeon Flux is a live-action movie based on the quirky MTV animated shorts and short-lived series created by Peter Chung, but it takes from that notable show only the characters, the premise, a few technical ideas and a couple of the film's weirder scenes (as well as a modified real-world version of Flux's outlandish haircut). Aficionados will appreciate the fly-in-the-eyelashes opening, a pretty good real-life approximation of the animated logo, as well as the tongue-to-tongue pill transfer from an early episode (played by Theron with her real-life paramour, Stuart Townsend, in an unbilled cameo).
Otherwise, this Flux is a creation of its own, with an entirely different sensibility, several new characters and a complete backstory and arc. Not difficult to do, particularly since Chung has famously said he intended his Aeon Flux not to tell a conventional narrative but to consist of peculiar, highly sexualized futuristic vignettes that almost always ended with Aeon's death.
Kusama (Girlfight) has created a stylized futuristic tale of her own, and the movie is great to look at, with otherwordly costumes and production design and seldom-photographed Berlin locations standing in well for Bregna. Aeon Flux's future is sunny, colorful and full of flowers, a counterpoint to the usual dark dystopia.
To its credit, the movie also features some great action (including a lot of acrobatics by Theron, which painfully remind a knowledgeable viewer of her near-disastrous neck injury during rehearsals), though at times there's a little too much conventional gunplay.
And the film also appears to have a heart and mind, though the sketchy script by Hay and Manfredi doesn't delve too deeply into either, and the movie's themes get a bit muddled.
The main problem with the film—ironic for a live-action adaptation of a cartoon—is the two-dimensionality of its characters and the bloodlessness of its performances. There may be a reason for this, which this reviewer can't discuss without giving away key plot points. But the effect is a complete lack of affect: Oscar winner Theron, strapped tightly into her S&M catsuits, betrays few emotions throughout, though she seems at points to be struggling to rein them in. Csokas, the supposedly charismatic ruler of this future world, has the placid demeanor of Mr. Rogers, even when being shot at. There's a certain hypnotic quality to all of this, which some viewers may find simply boring.
