"Atonement" (2007) - Movie Review

Thing we do as a child has an untold license to do the unthinkable but escape with the angelic face of innocence. When we grow up carrying it within us and we have the nerve to confess, we use the age as a shield or an excuse as we grew up telling that to ourselves. It is of course an age of ignorance and innocence. True as it sounds the consequences of the thirteen year old Briony Tallis (Saoirse Ronan) mistakes rips apart the lovers Robbie (James McAvoy) and Cecilia (Keira Knightley). The film is the adaptation of the novel of the same name written by Ian McEwan.

The tale starts in 1935 London amongst the high class family of Tallis. Here we see a girl who is a shrewd creative writer but a girl who has been nurtured by the luxuriousness of her family, Briony runs out to show her written play to her mother. She sees her house keeper’s son Robbie and her sister Cecilia at the fountain from her window. Confusion starts and we do not know why but keep in mind it is a thirteen year old girl peeking out to see what is it in between the tension of a man and woman. But there is more than that for her confusion and distress. It is revealed later in the film but the technique of story telling is what wins “Atonement” over many other films on the same genre.

The writing style of the novel and the manner of story telling is what made it literarily and entertainingly popular as Wiki says. It appears that director Joe Wright has been faithful to the novel and took its style of its narration. The first part wherein all the characters are in place and what can it be noted is when there are more than two of them are standing, they are placed as though for the elegance of image to be presented upon. It looks choreographed and even appears to mock the 1930’s style of films. Yet it boosts up the gravity of that scene. In this part, we get two views on couple of scenes, one of course being the vision of Briony, which is blurry and unclear and the other the real events with close watch. The latter version still is ambiguous in terms of the relation between Cecilia and Robbie but it forms of to give clear picture as the movie goes on.

After the first part, the film concentrates on Robbie in one section and later with Briony who now is eighteen years old (played by Romola Garai) working as a nurse. There is an intense moment when she comforts a dying French soldier. We believe he knows her and she acts so too, but we know that it could not have been possible. It is the air of compassion which plays in that scene. James McAvoy as Robbie carries the composure it requires but destructing inside thinking of the undeserving torture he goes through. He has the charm and has the appearance of a person who is clear in perception. There is no need for any one to tell his “lewd” letter is not meant to be and how it needs to be taken. Cecilia takes it as he would have intended.

I would not name Keira Knightley giving an extraordinary performance but as Robbie’s lover, she shares the screen with him in a chemistry required for the pair. Romola Garai’s performance is the striking one and I was not surprised as the character is the wandering soul of guilt and typing to quench her thirst for redemption. For cinematic understanding Joe Wright opts for Briony’s hair style to be unchanged as she grows up. And I would not go about crucifying that but how we get to see these three characters form up once and live alone torn up in their thoughts. Still they are connected by the past suffering each moment through Robbie in war, Cecilia in loneliness and desperation while Briony living every single moment with guilt.

An impeccable camera work which is proven by a necessary continuous one shot when Robbie along with two other soldiers walks through the beach situated for evacuation. The music by Dario Marianelli is adaptively creative that he uses the objects of importance from the screen to his music. He takes the tapping of typewriter with the sounds of bouncing balls over the wall and mingles it with an emotional orchestration to represent the curiosity of Briony. Back ground score never has been applied so apt to the theme and it does not interrupt the content for its showing off but settles up in our thoughts.

As the trailer promotes, it poses as a usual love story torn by time and war. It is indeed that but as “Before the Devil Knows you’re Dead”, it is the technique of presentation which makes “Atonement” stand out. And the end is something which brings euphoria of an emotional outburst which simultaneously gives the sense of helplessness and satisfaction in tandem.