10 "Important" Movie Characters Who Were Mere Plot Devices

3. Julian - Children Of Men

Alfonso Cuarón's bleak take on a future without fertility, Children of Men, was undoubtedly a powerful movie. It follows world-weary Theo Faron (Clive Owen) as he is drawn back into the world of activism by his estranged wife Julian. We learn that her group 'the Fishes' have a girl with them who has miraculously become pregnant and they need Theo to obtain travel documents to get her to safety. Despite acting as a catalyst for all the events to follow, Julianne Moore's role in the film is over the moment she has explained all of the relevant plot details. She essentially recruits Theo, gets the audience up to speed and is then promptly executed. The dramatic effect of this heart-pounding sequence could be argued but in reality she only exists in the film as long as she is useful. From the moment she steps on screen she bombards us exposition; letting us get to know and empathise with Theo and his story. In death she also reveals a sinister plot within her own group so she does a rather good job of keeping the story ticking along for the first half of the narrative. The only downside to her limited characterisation is that although it's a shocking moment to see her death, it's quickly forgotten in the events that follow. We don't leave the film mourning Julian as she was taken away when her narrative relevance came to an end.