Atonement Review

Atonement (2007)

Directed by: Joe Wright
Starring: James McAvoy, Keira Knightly

Joe Wright's newest film begins with the simple and recognizable sound of a typewriter's carriage sliding into position, ready to start the story. For this film, that sound, followed by the sound of the letters A-T-O-N-E-M-E-N-T being punched, is synonymous with an orchestra tuning up. It was at this point that the movie grabbed and held my attention for the entire 130 minute duration, thanks largely to the extraordinary sound and music. Every effect is deliberate, every piece of music is meticulously placed. Even the distinction between "sound" and "score" is repeatedly destroyed as one deftly transforms into the other. As good as it is, however, the sound design never upstages the fantastic story, direction, acting, cinematography, or set design. Every scene and every movement within it is important and calculated. The acting, with one distracting exception, is absolutely spot-on. Knightly's performance seems forced and over-acted at times. She is made to look like an amateur in the presence of such strong performances from every other single person in the cast. My only other quibble is that we aren't allowed to spend nearly enough time with the supporting characters. Unlike writers like Kevin Smith or Judd Apatow, who fall in love with their characters then overexpose them throughout the film, Wright went too far the other way and left me wanting to know more about everyone. I guess that's what the book is for, right?


Despite an encouragingly strong field of competition in 2007, Atonement easily claims a place for itself in my Top 5.