Movie Review: Atonement (2007, Joe Wright)

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Cast: James McAvoy, Keira Knightly, Saoirse Ronan, Romola Garai, Vanessa Redgrave, Brenda Blethyn, Juno Temple, Alfie Allen, Patrick Kennedy, Benedict Cumberbatch
Screenplay: Christopher Hampton (Based on the novel “Atonement” by Ian McEwan)
130 minutes / Color

Joe Wright, as a director, with only a few films, has already become one of my all time favorites. This and his 2005 work “Pride and Prejudice” (both with Keira Knightly) are so fantastic and “Pride” is such a master work. When it comes to the movie “Atonement’, Joe Wright, once again puts his mark as a filmmaker and stuns audiences with not only his direction, but his casting choices (Keira, McAvoy and the ensemble of brilliant actors).

Starting out in 1935 England, in the home of the mega rich Tallis family, we are introduced to the youngest daughter Briony (Saoirse Ronan), a devoted 13-year-old playwright in a boring summer day in their gigantic mansion. On that day she makes shocking discoveries about the House Keeper’s son Robbie (James McAvoy), that he is really in love with Briony’s Sister Cecilia (Keira Knightly).

Robbie, on an eager attempt to clear a dark cloud between him and Cecilia, writes a very passionate (and very “sexy and steamy”) love note to Cecilia saying that he wants to lick her “wet cunt” and that he loves her. Robbie (in a very wrong move) tells the young Briony to deliver it to her older sister but she reads it also, which leads to a conclusion that Robbie is a “sex maniac”.

She delivers it anyways and Cecilia sees that letter and feels the same way toward the young man. Expressing her feelings, she and Robbie have a passionate love-making session in the house’s library and Briony walks in and gets instantly traumatized. Not saying anything, Briony and the couple continue on to dinner which is a celebration to their brother Leon (Patrick Kennedy) and his friend Paul Marshall’s (Benedict Cumberbatch) visit to the estate.

When the entire dinner guests realize that two young boys are missing, they all spread out to look for them in the estate. Young Briony goes alone and wonders into the bushes where she sees her cousin Lola (Juno Temple) getting raped by a mysterious figure. As she shines the flashlight to them, he runs away and she implies it’s the sex maniac Robbie, who she saw “attacking her older sister Cecilia in the library” (not knowing it is actually guest Paul Marshall). Robbie soon gets convicted for a crime he didn’t do and leaves Cecilia alone…

5 years later, World War II begins and the government asks Robbie if he would either stay in jail or fight for the army. Eagerly wanting to see Cecilia, he accepts the Army Job and gets out of prison. He meets up with Cecilia and promises each other that when the war is over, they’d meet in a beautiful beach house by the sea.

Now 18, Briony works in the city as a nurse, while being ignored by her sister and Robbie. She is an adult now and realizes the wrong accusations she did that one summer. She does all she can to make it up to Cecilia and her lover, but they do not accept any of Briony and her asking for forgiveness.

In a tragic end, Robbie ends up dying in France from a sickness, on the last day of his stay there. Cecilia, back in England, supposedly safe in a bomb shelter drowns when the bomb shelter is blown up and the water breaks inside. Briony, feeling forever guilty for taking the couple’s life away from them becomes a writer again, as she was 5 years ago and writes a novel called “Atonement” and bases everything by fact and not changes one name for she wants to tell the truth of what really happened that night.

Briony only drops one actual event, she doesn’t make Robbie and Cecelia die like they really did and she makes them meet in the beach house, the thing they always wanted to do, to show people they they’ll always be together forever…now in heaven.

As a result, “Atonement” is not only a vibrant mix of beautiful costumes, sets and colors, but is also filled with rich performances and magnificent shots from director Joe Wright. The ensemble is amazing. Even the 5 minute performance of veteran Vanessa Redgrave as an aged-version of Briony is first-rate and absolutely perfect.

James McAvoy, who last year made an astonishing performance in “The Last King of Scotland” (2006), does it again and is surely one of the brightest stars in the Hollywood scene today (along side his beautiful co-start Keira Knightly off course). He makes a chummy character and puts a lot of interesting thoughts in it. Throughout the movie, you have the “need” to know what Robbie is thinking. Throughout the movie we are very unsure of what Robbie is thinking and this is all done by the face acting of McAvoy. He is completely capable as an actor to make the audiences very interested in a character that could be normal as ever and make his too mysterious to be true. No one could have pulled “Robbie” off as he did.

Keira Knightly, doesn’t pull a Best Actress performance like she did in 2005’s “Pride and Prejudice” as Elizabeth Bennett, but she was no other then impressive. Though I got kinda ticked off when she said “Come back to me. Come back”, it wasn’t a problem for her character had a lot of sex appeal and she brought a lot of glory into McEwan’s character. Oh yeah, did I mention how BEAUTIFUL she was? Damn that green dress!

The Briony’s however, were the people fighting to be on screen. They were all tooooooo fantastic to be true. Ronan’s start was exciting and she is a fantastic young actress (way better then the overrated likes of Abigail Breslin and Dakota Fanning). Redgrave as I said was perfect, she was emotional and it came very natural. Garai however was the standout. She was fantastic and her acting skills are so pure and so great that she stole the movie from Keira Knightly. Underrated performance is given by Romola Garai and she should be praised…a lot!

The technicals of the film were also very awesome, not only was the movie beautiful but it was also really great to look at (exclude the beautiful actors okay?). How can I even begin with the beauty of the sets and costumes? Everything the characters and every place they were in, complimented each other, not to mention the perfect cinematography and lighting. The summer day felt hot and humid like summer, the death scenes were dark and sad, and the ocean was gray and windy. Fantastic colors and great components that compliment each other are one thing people appreciate, and “Atonement” is highly appreciated.

I love Joe Wright’s direction. From the first shot of “Pride and Prejudice” to the last shot of “Atonement”, everything Wright has done is absolutely perfect in every single directional aspect. He is really gifted and I am looking really, really, really, really forward to his next movie. He can’t do any wrong. ALL IS SAID.

Now I understand all the love for “Atonement”, I can’t say it’s the Best of the Year, but that its one of the best. Artistically it probably is though. A screenshot of the film, the beautiful of that split second, will give you a summary of how wonderful and beautiful the entire picture is. McAvoy, Knightly and Garai give remarkable performances and Wright’s direction is flawless.