Despite all the right ingredients, Atonement fails to hit its mark

Keira Knightley is beautiful. James McAvoy is handsome. Seamus McGarvey is an awesome cinematographer. Christopher Hampton is a superb screenwriter. Joe Wright is all the rage in the directing community. And most importantly, Atonement (by Ian McEwan) is an awesome book. And yet, with all of this pedigree, the movie version doesn't quite live up to all of the hype.

The themes of McEwan's book cover such topics as the redemptive power of fiction, the inequities between different peoples' perspectives, and the powerlessness that we all inevitably face when we try to atone for our sins. Although this movie version attempts to touch upon these topics, it falls flat and doesn't fully elaborate upon them until the very last scene. All of the beautifully-acted, beautifully-filmed, beautifully-directed scenes do what they're meant to: they inspire us, sadden us, and shock us. But when it's all over, we don't feel anything deeper, overarching.

The movie is brilliantly shot, of course. In one particular scene, which has been repeatedly hailed and almost worshipped by move critics everywhere, the camera follows James McAvoy's character, Robbie, along a brilliant 5+ minute tracking shot along the beach of Dunkirk. The sweeping scene captures all of the isolation and destruction of war, and yet it unfortunately doesn't seem to tie in with the movie as a whole. It is amazing, yes, but nothing beyond aesthetic.

Viewers will still find an intriguing and captivating story. The movie begins in 1930s Britain, where the upper-class Tallis family lives. It is the hottest day of the summer, in the middle of a heat wave. The main character, a young aspiring writer named Briony Tallis, witnesses a casual flirtation between her older sister, Cecilia, and the housemaid's son, Robbie. The two went to college together and have never admitted their love for each other until today. Briony, with a mixture of childlike abandon and wild imagination, turns their flirtation into something much more dangerous. Eventually, she makes a large error by accusing Robbie of a horrific crime, which changes everyone's lives forever. The rest of the movie follows Briony as she tries to make up for the errors she made along the way, and the results are truly shocking.

Saoirse Ronan, who plays Briony, does an excellent job conveying the underlying ferocity that drives most of Briony's actions. In every scene, her cold blue eyes subtly flash and reveal something much more frightening than just a silly little thirteen year old girl. Surely she must know that what she is doing is wrong, yes? We may never know.

The two actresses that play Briony in later eras are also wonderful. Romola Garai, as 18-year-old Briony, has an especially difficult task of conveying silent repentance overlapping with self-autonomy. Vanessa Redgrave, as an old Briony, marvelously brings the movie to a close as she conveys the movie's final emotional punch in just a few quietly phrased sentences.

James McAvoy, as Robbie, is also a standout. He is good at suggesting a manly, working-class self-reliance. And Keira Knightley gives a solid performance as the frustrated, listless, decadent Cecilia.
Ultimately, this movie fails to reach its potential form. Yes, director Joe Wright shot grand scenes and recruited A-list talent, but his undoing was thematic. His biggest mistake was to not capture the themes so central to the depth of the novel's impact. Indeed, watching this movie is like eating a tub of ice cream when upset; it's sweet, enjoyable and emotional, but when it's over it's just another five pounds on your butt.