Cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, a two-time Oscar nominee ( Sleepy Hollow and The Little Princess ) for his ability to light a scene and bring an emotional intensity to the setting, displays that gift again in this movie.
The story is dependably Disney — directors John Musker and Ron Clements previously helmed The Little Princess and lead screenwriter Jared Bush co-scripted Zootopia — but the characters and visuals are highly distinctive.
Cuarn, who brought us the essential version of Francis Hodgson Burnett's "The Little Princess," the very sexy road movie "Y Tu Mam Tambin," and Harry Potter 3, has fashioned a futuristic drama for our times, a bleak yet oddly optimistic look at a world that is, quite literally, dying out.