Saturday-Sunday: Atonement

There are definitely quite a few films that I should have seen by now, but haven't, and that's probably the recurring theme of today. Atonement was a British drama that came out in 2007, and quite often I find that people point to it automatically as the definitive British drama. Films like Never Let Me Go and its ilk have tried to capture the same deep emotional spark, often unsuccessfully. The film is about an misunderstanding by a young girl named Briony, which eventually leads to her sister Cecilia's lover Robbie being arrested for a rape that he never committed.

The film is told through three acts, the first telling of how it all began and how Briony came to accuse Robbie of such a foul deed. The second act details the consequences of such, where Robbie, Cecelia, and Briony ended up in the four years since, and how Briony has come to regret what she did. The final act is difficult to describe without spoiling anything of crucial importance. There's a love story, as is the case with many of the best films, but it rests on much more than that. There's a great deal about how horrible things can be done by people out of the most pure innocence of their hearts.

The performances are nicely done, with the biggest stand out for me being Vanessa Redgrave, who doesn't appear until the film's final minutes. Saoirse Ronan does a nice job in the first act portraying such a biased young girl, who is almost cold in a way. There's a specific shot of her eye just at the end of the first act that gives me chills. Kiera Knightly does a rather beautiful performance visually and vocally, but it's quite hard not to like her in any case. James McAvoy continues to operate on the fringe of stardom, as he could easily become the latest Hollywood sweetheart. Wisely, he has chosen to keep at a distance from that particular path.

The cinematography is rather polished and clean, moving smoothly through most of the sets with grace. The musical score is just as elegant, with a recurring theme that simply never gets tired or cliched. Director Joe Wright has done fantastically for himself when portraying a British drama such as this. As the years go by, Atonement may not grow sharper, but it still has a sharp mind to it.