Cloud Atlas Review: A Twisted Masterpiece or A Missed Opportunity?

‘Movie Night’ in the Ryan household is usually one up for debate in terms of its quality and the subject matter that the movie provides for us. My father and I usually opt for the science fiction genre whilst my mother sits quietly trying to decide if the film we have chosen is either a cruel joke or a form of visual torture. In this trend, me and my father nominated the recent DVD release of Cloud Atlas, which I promised my mother almost half-heartedly that she would “love”.

The film, not without its flaws is a beautifully shot, complicated mystery-drama that had me and my father enthralled for the entire running time. My mother didn’t last half an hour before she thought it was a waste of her time, comically walking out of the room in a rage as Tom Hanks rambled something about the “true-true” (Note: that is a legitimate saying in the film, not something I made up, seriously, see for yourself). As hilarious as the whole incident was, I felt bad for the filmmakers as leaving that early was unfair as it had just started to show it’s legs in terms of the storytelling. I felt that me and my father got our reward for sticking with it as the inter-twining storylines came together in a beautiful and complicated way during the explosive final act.

During the film, each respective actor plays at the very least 5 different characters each, with my personal favourite being Hugh Grant with his defiance of his rom-com typecast by appearing in various villainous roles. The best of them being something that I will not ruin for you if you are yet to see it, but it is something I was DEFINITELY not expecting. The combination of old and young actors was a very interesting form of casting, as it featured prominently in terms of how the storytelling played out. There were many actors who were entering their twilight years, such as Susan Sarandon and Jim Broadbent or young up and coming talents including Ben Whishaw who’s acting in this film is nothing short of spectacular.  The film combines many of my favourite elements of the science fiction genre, with it showing references to utopian and dystopian societies that are most commonplace within the likes of films such as The Wachowski brother’s very own Matrix trilogy. However, it also provides a welcome escape from the traditional conventions of the genre with the romantic aspects of the film in particular not feeling as “forced down the throats” of the audience as other films such as the ever-subtle James Cameron “epic” Avatar.

You could tell there was immense preparation in the storytelling aspect of the film, as each respective story started to coincide with the other. During the last half an hour, it felt as if that the film was a large jigsaw puzzle and the combination of the acting, visual effects and the storyline were the pieces that were being brought together to show the “bigger picture”. Altogether the film was visually spectacular with an almost flawless story running underneath it, although it’s not quite the masterpiece the advertising campaign would have you believe it proves that despite two disappointing Matrix sequels The Wachowski brothers can still pack a punch when called upon.

Live long and blog.