Note: I cannot take full credit for this review because I was processing it with Helene.
At times sheer poetry, Atonement has the air of tragedy from start to finish, without being tragic itself. Six things I want to point out which might help you decide whether to see it or not:
1) The score. Joe Wright knows how important the music is. Novel way of incorporating the sound of typewriter keys!
2) James McAvoy. He is perfect as Robbie. His last outburst, shot in profile, is a gem. I'm told I have to see The Last King of Scotland and his Macbeth in Shakespeare Retold.
3) Saoirse Ronan. Like what a reviewer has said, Romola Garai's 18-year-old Briony is lackluster in comparison with Ronan's Briony aged 13. And in the few minutes of screentime she has, Vanessa Redgrave has the haunting presence of a truly penitent sinner.
4) Clichés. But I guess it was still better with them than without.
5) Keira who? No, I don't think she shone here. She was effective, but this isn't the star vehicle for her.
6) Clair de Lune. Debussy's haunting melody finds a new use. Though it has been heard Nicole Kidman's Chanel No.5 commercial and Ocean's 11 (and many others, no doubt), Helene claims that the opening sequence of Seven Years in Tibet is still the best.
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