City of Ember

Okay, I bow my head in shame here.

For some reason, this movie, which was even partly funded by Belgian TV, went completely under my radar a decade ago when it came out.

Based on the novel by Jeanne DuPrau, Ember is a city created in the belly of the Earth and holds humanities last survivors.  When an unknown catastrophe is about to wipe out humanity, the city was raised and selected people send in there to safeguard our legacy.  A box that would open after 200 years is send with them, containing instructions on how to get back to the surface, but with the passing of time this box has gotten lost and more time expires.
When the young girl Lina, a descendant of the last mayor that held the box, finds it, she and her friend Doon are trying to find out the meaning of the paper inside.  With the generator powering the city failing, this means they are on a clock to get out and free the people from a certain death...

I liked this movie, and to add shame to my shame, it even had big names (Bill Murray, Tim Robbins, even Tom Hanks was involved) to the credits.  The movie is very stylishly made, and the mechanic activation sequence when the children start solving the riddle is for me a truly amazing part of the film.

Good film for sure!