Atonement is a vast and epic love story and is without a doubt an achievement in filmmaking. The performances are great and the cinematography are beautiful, however amidst all these wonderful things the score is the one thing that sticks out. Atonement is not perfect, but definitely gets things right that other movies this year did not.
You’ll hear Atonement mentioned countless times on the internet, not for Box Office or critical talk, but for the movies amazing 5 minute no cut shot that follows Robbie (James McAvoy) around a beach of soldiers. It’s the films crowning achievement and goes up with the great track shots in such films as Children of Men and Goodfellas.
Keira Knightly is surprisingly good in the film and a scene near the end in which Briony apologizes for what she’s done truly shows the potential she has as an actress (JUST DONT DO ANY MORE PIRATES OF THE CARRIBEAN).
James McAvoy is also great as well after being overlooked at awards season last year for his movie The Last King of Scotland. Both of these fine young actors will hopefully get Oscar nods this year.
Where the movie fails is in the last 10 minutes. A critical moment in the story is expressed in a flash forward of about 70 years. I think that while it is still haunting and melancholy keeping it within the same time frame of the lead characters would have been the right way to have done it.
Regardless the movie is still wonderfully done. The love expressed between Robbie and Cecilia is tragic and beautiful at the same time. This is simply one of the years best films. Grade—A
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