Review of Atonement (2007) by Dave M — 11 Feb 2013

Different from what I expected. What started out as a Jane Austen-esque shoot-me-in-the-face English period piece, turned into a very adult and endearing picture. The events take a while to unfold and just when you think you know where the story's going it takes a sharp turn that leaves you jarred but more intrigued.

I'm surprised that no one else has made the comparison to 2001: A Space Odyssey, but the structure of the film really moved in that sense. The two lead performances were good but a little too "I want my fackin Oscar" for my tastes.

The obvious stand out actress was from Saoirse Ronan who creeped me out in that haunting maturity we see in someone like Dakota Fanning (except I don't want to punch her in her face). The direction was deec, I mean maybe I'm too hard on the dude but I guess I just wanted to be slightly more impressed.

Of course, this one does contain the annual longest shot of the year which always impresses but the reasoning behind it remains lost to me. Some, if not most, audiences will think it's a pretentious p.

O.s. but fuck you. I dug it.