Date: December 15
Location: Regal South Beach
One thing is made abundantly clear by this lush adaptation of Ian McEwan's celebrated novel — director Joe Wright is one of the brightest new talents working in film today. His
Pride & Prejudice was my top film of 2005 and here he ups the ante — hitting the same grace notes, moving his camera in even grander fashion. Ultimately, though,
Atonement falls a bit short of his masterful debut.
This is an extremely difficult novel to adapt, and screenwriter Christopher Hampton is up to the task — he fully deserves his likely Oscar nomination. The opening hour, set in the Tallis family estate, is flawlessly executed — with shifts in time and perspective that ratchet up the drama and suspense while driving home the film's underlying theme. The film's second half branches to follow the three main characters' lives in wartime. The focus is mainly on the young man's experiences in Dunkirk, and it is here that Wright stages a scene that's been mentioned in every review of the film — a 6-minute Steadicam shot capturing the madness of war. It's a shot for the ages, and a highlight of the film.
My one complaint is that the film feels a bit too short. I wanted more of the Tallis sisters' experiences during the second half — what's there is extraordinary, but a little more would have made the movie's strong ending even more powerful. That criticism aside, though, this is a wonderful achievement and one of the year's best films.
