for sequences of violence and sexual content.
Æon Flux is a mysterious assassin working for the Monicans, a group of rebels trying to overthrow the government. When she is sent on a mission to kill the Chairman, a whole new mystery is found. (from IMDb)
The 2005 sci-fi action flick Æon Flux was a big budget effort starring rising star Charlize Theron. I did a little digging at the time of this review and found that it was "based on the animated MTV science fiction series of the same name created by Peter Chung" (according to Google). Aside from this film, I actually have never heard of the character or any other series, but I do remember checking the movie out once almost 20 years ago.
The dystopian sci-fi action story takes place in the very distant future after society as we know it has completely broken down and is under the oppression of a government of scientists, led by Trevor Goodchild. Æon Flux is part of an underground group of rebels and she's sent on a mission to take out Goodchild - something that becomes quite personal when her sister is murdered.
It's interesting because Æon Flux has pretty decent production design, and even casting. I have since become a fan of Jonny Lee Miller's US-based Sherlock Holmes show, Elementary, so it was a little trippy to see him in this film with a substantial presence. But Æon Flux has a knack for feeling like those big budget early-to-mid 2000's futuristic movies that feel more like feature-length music videos than actual movies. It tries so hard to be cool and stylish, but it just doesn't come together well enough as a movie. It's sad, but Æon Flux is one of those movies that is pretty much instantly forgettable once it's over. The movie feels like a mix of Christian Bale's 2002 dystopian thriller Equilibrium with Ethan Hawke's Gattaca, with a dash of Angelina Jolie's Tomb Raider. It's not a great mix. I have to wonder, though... is the problem that the movie takes itself too seriously? Or not seriously enough?
Charlize Theron seems to do the best she can with the material in Æon Flux. I can totally see why this movie might fall under "cult classic" or "guilty pleasure" status (I have some of those myself -- movies you know aren't very good but there's something about them that you like), but it's also one of those movies where the mediocrity of it is just... glaring. It's not boring, but maybe its weirdness lends to the feeling of it lacking. For example, early on in the movie, a pill or something is passed to Æon via a French kiss, basically, and this pill allows her to somehow communicate internally - or spiritually? - with the rebel leader... or something? Later, she meets up with a fellow rebel who "upgraded" herself to have an extra set of hands in place of her feet - but of course this also makes her super vulnerable in the action scene that follows when blades of grass they try to cross react as thousands of sharp little spikes. (C'mon, girl - we all know the importance of good footwear! And... couldn't she have used, like, cut-proof gloves?) The weirdness is strong with this one. Despite the crazy things that happen in this dystopia, the climax is largely just a big messy shootout. It's like the equivalent of a Michael Bay CGI-fest, but with guns instead of gigantic computer-generated robots. It's chaotic, and bodies drop like flies in PG-13 fashion.
The content for Æon Flux might feel a little like an edited R-rated movie at times, but mostly just lands like an edgy PG-13. The movie leans hard into Charlize's peak sexiness, so it frequently shows her in revealing or skimpy outfits. One scene shows her wearing a top consisting only of vertical strands of beads that just barely hides chest nudity. And with a 4K presentation, it's hiding even less. There's a brief sex scene that is a mostly implied and results in a physical altercation immediately afterwards, and there's plenty of violent sequences scattered throughout the film. The most gruesome has her literally plunging her fingers into a man's fresh bullet wound to fish out the bullet. Another scene shows her touching some weird white orb in her skin that shows some fleshy skin around it. It might make some squeamish squirm a little.
I suppose Æon Flux has its place as weird, "sexy" dystopian sci-fi, but it just doesn't really do it very well. Yes, I've seen worse -- much worse -- than Æon Flux, but this film just lacks the heart, impact, and basic DNA to make a truly memorable movie that can stand the test of time.
Regarding Æon Flux's 4K UHD transfer, it's quite good. Some of the effects feel dated with the limits of them in 2005, but overall, there's a sharpness and colorfulness that definitely comes through with this transfer. Fans should be pleased.
- John DiBiase (reviewed: 10/29/25)
Sex/Nudity: A man and Æon French kiss. He passes a pill on her tongue. It's shown graphically in close-up. We see it going through her organs into her body. And then we see her cleavage in the outfit she wears; Æon shows the side of her chest in her top, as well as the bottom of her butt. (It's a very revealing outfit); We see a closeup of Æon kissing a man; Æon and a man kiss passionately and then she wakes up in bed with him. We see her bare back. She then turns and strangles him. We see his fingers gripping her back briefly as he passes out. We then see a closeup of her putting her leggings on; We see an overhead view of Æon and a man in bed, her arm blocking any torso nudity; We see a couple under the covers while someone else talks about having babies.
Vulgarity/Language: None.
Alcohol/Drugs: None.
Blood/Gore: Sithandra jumps and lands on razor-sharp grass that impales her feet-hands. We see blood on the tops of them and as she rolls her hand-feet off the grass; A bullet grazes Æon's arm and we see a bloody cut. Then we see blood droplets slowly falling; Æon uses her tongue to loop a woman's ear ring in her mouth and rip it out. We see a little blood on the side of the woman's head. The woman grabs her chain gun and fires at Æon as she jumps away; A man has blood on his head and mouth. He's shot and killed off screen; A device crashes through a window and goes off, shattering all the glass and causing Æon's nose to bleed; We see some blood blood coming out and onto her hand after Æon stabs someone with a glass shard; Æon has lots of blood on her hand; A train is shot up with lots of bullets. We see people dead inside and blood all over the walls and on some of their clothing; We see a closeup of a bloody bullet wound. Æon sticks her fingers into it and digs the bullet out. Then she puts a patch on the wound and we see it sizzle. She pulls another bullet out from another wound, but it isn't focused on; Æon touches a white ball under a flap of skin on the back of her neck. Sithandra does the same thing, next to a bloody mark on her skin. (It's kind of gross); Blood splatters out of a man's back when he's hit with a bullet; A man is shot and we see blood on his neck; A man has blood on his face. We see blood on Trevor's hand and cheek; Æon has blood on her hand that's bandaged up; A couple characters have blood on their hands.
Violence: A person is grabbed slowly and pulled towards an alley (with narration talking about people disappearing without explanation); Æon throws a blade and kills a guard. Then she jumps on another and break his neck. Æon then beats up a few more guys; A door opens and a gun goes off, shooting a person off screen. We see a body being carried on a stretcher under a sheer cloth in the next scene; Æon and Sithandra run through a lethal garden that shoot spikes at them. One stabs Sithandra in the side. They then land on razor-sharp grass that impales Sithandra's feet-hands. We see blood on the tops of them and as she rolls her hand-feet off the grass. Æon nearly lands face first on the grass, just short of her face being impaled. Æon jumps and flips a guy with her legs; A batch of metal balls assemble to blow open a wall; Æon punches and kicks and knocks out a couple bad guys; Æon and a man kiss passionately and then she wakes up in bed with him. We see her bare back. She then turns and strangles him. We see his fingers gripping her back briefly as he passes out. We then see a closeup of her putting her leggings on; A bullet grazes Æon's arm and we see a bloody cut. Then we see blood droplets slowly falling; Æon has a rough fight with a woman, throwing each other into things around a room. She slams the woman against some pressure valves which might have impaled her a little (the impact itself isn't shown), then Æon uses her tongue to loop the woman's ear ring in her mouth and rip it out. We see a little blood on the side of the woman's head. The woman grabs her chain gun and fires at Æon as she jumps away; Æon and a woman fight each other; A man has blood on his head and mouth. He's shot and killed off screen; A device crashes through a window and goes off, shattering all the glass and causing Æon's nose to bleed; Æon shoots a guy in his helmeted face and we see the helmet briefly shatter; Soldiers shoot at Æon and a man, hitting the man multiple times. She then stabs one of them in the neck, and then stabs them in the chest. She then stabs a man in the chest right under the helmet; Bombs go off destroying platforms while guns are being shot; A train is shot up with lots of bullets. We see people dead inside and blood all over the walls and on some of their clothing; We see a closeup of a bloody bullet wound. Æon sticks her fingers into it and digs the bullet out. Then she puts a patch on the wound and we see it sizzle. She pulls another bullet out from another wound, but it isn't focused on; Some men threaten them with guns; We see a dead woman lying outside a burning room;
Æon touches a white ball under a flap of skin on the back of her neck. Sithandra does the same thing, next to a bloody mark on her skin. (It's kind of gross); Blood splatters out of a man's back when he's hit with a bullet; Snipers open fire on guards, and a big firefight breaks out. Various guys are shot. Some fall off a wall. A man is shot in back and falls dramatically. Æon fights a guy and breaks his neck. More guards are shot and fall off the wall. A man is shot and we see blood on his neck. Lots of guys are shot and killed. A blast hits a sniper perch, blowing a woman off of it who falls to her death; Æon is shot in the side. Æon shoots at the bad guys again; A man has blood on his face. We see blood on Trevor's hand and cheek; Æon has blood on her hand that's bandaged up; We see a woman in a body bag; Explosions go off on a ship, causing it to crash.
Disclaimer: All reviews are based solely on the opinions of the reviewer. Most reviews are rated on how the reviewer enjoyed the film overall, not exclusively on content. However, if the content really affects the reviewer's opinion and experience of the film, it will definitely affect the reviewer's overall rating.
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