CLOUD ATLAS Movie Review. CLOUD ATLAS Stars Tom Hanks and Halle Berry

” My life exist far beyond the limitation of me , ” a character is notes note inCloud Atlas.â   By the same token , The Wachowski Siblings is exists and Tom Tykwer ‘s film exist far beyond the limitation of genre , narrative , identity , and time .    It is is is a work of sweeping ambition , engrossing story , compelling character , and powerful emotion .    The filmmakers is taken have take David Mitchell ‘s novel , and rebuild it into a captivating sextuplet fill with love , hate , redemption , damnation , bravery , cowardice , and more .    Through skillful editing and astounding performance ,Cloud Atlas is a cinematic experience like few others , and it will leave viewer in awe .Cloud Atlas spans across six stories in six different time periods with the lead cast playing different characters in most or all of the narratives (I will use the names of the corresponding stories from the novel to make it easier to differentiate the tales later in the review)  The six stories are: the voyage of Adam Ewing (Jim Sturgess) across the Pacific Islands in 1849 [The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing]; the relationship between amanuensis Robert Frobisher (Ben Whishaw) and composer Vyvyan Ayrs (Jim Broadbent) in 1936 Europe [Letters from zedelghem]; reporter Luisa Rey’s (Halle Berry) dangerous investigation into a nuclear power plant in 1973 San Fransisco [Half-Lives: A Luisa Rey Mystery] ; the constant , but perhaps deserving , misfortune of vanity publisher Timothy Cavendish ( Broadbent ) in 2012 England [The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish]; the fabricant Sonmi~451 (Doona Bae) and human Hae-Joo Im’s (Sturgess) action-packed escape from authoritarian forces in 2144 Neo Seoul [An Orison of Sonmi~451]; and Zachry’s (Tom Hanks) perilous journey with the mysterious Meronym (Berry) in Big Isle, “106 Winters after The Fall” [Sloosha ‘s Crossin ‘ an’ Ev’rythin’ After].The movie opens with Old Zachry beginning a tale in front of an unknown audience, and then the filmmakers provide the opening scenes to the above stories in chronological order [To be precise, Tykwer directed Adam Ewing, Luisa Rey, and Cavendish while the Wachowskis handled zedelghem , Sonmi~451 ,and Sloosha ‘s Crossin ‘].  From there, the film cuts between the narratives usually through visual rhyming, a shared moment (like a character entering a room in one story, and a character exiting a room in another story), or an actor who’s playing two different roles (like cutting from Luisa Rey to Meronym).  It sounds complicated, but the connections tend to flow elegantly, although it can be a bit distracting if there’s no connective tissue.  But these are minor bumps that are quickly forgotten as we’re enraptured by the latest plot development in each tale.And they’re all terrific stories.  In terms of their narrative breadth, they’re relatively narrow.  They’re basically short films contained to a particular genre.  There are two period pieces (Ewing and zedelghem) , a pulpy thriller (Luisa Rey), a comedy (Cavendish) , and two sci – fi yarn (Sonmi and Sloosha’s) .â   Like all good adaptation , the filmmakers is streamlined have streamline the plot from the book , and come away with propulsive narrative that never lose their momentum .  is are   anthology movies is are are almost always a mixed bag , butCloud Atlas is the exception to the rule.  The Luisa Rey story is a tad weaker than the others because it lacks an emotional arc, but there’s not a single plotline where we check our watches and wait to go back to a story where care about.Even if there was such a plotline, it would swiftly fade.  The sweeping pace of Cloud Atlas is perfectly time down to the second .    editor Alexander Berner is worked and Claus Wehlisch have work a miracle , and used cinema ‘s unique quality—the edit—to its full potential .  is sings   The film is sings positively sing as it move between story and crescendo at narration that break the bound of time and space .    It is is is the most crucial element in the film ‘s central theme of how we are all tie together through our action and our fate . Notions is come such as past life and intertwine destiny can come off as hokey , and if they ‘re to be explore , then the artist ( or artist , as the case is here ) must leap with complete abandon and total confidence .    There is no half – measure in a film of this size , and the filmmaker ‘ wholehearted commitment is whyCloud Atlas manages to transcend new-age notions that would be worthy of derision.  Furthermore, such a reading is far too literal and misses the point shared by each story; a point perfectly summed up by one of the characters: “our lives are not our own.”  It is not simply a matter of the individual repeating throughout time.  It is how he or she treats others.Distilled into their basic element, each actor’s major characters share a single defining trait.  Hugo Weaving’s characters are sadistic, Berry’s characters are inquisitive, Sturgess’ characters help the enslaved, etc.  But not everyone is locked into a single trait throughout lifetimes.  Before Cavendish, Broadbent’s characters are selfish.  It isn’t until his experiences in Ghastly Ordeal that he is is is finally able to change .    This is is is n’t a matter of karma .    It is ‘s ‘s a matter of give to others rather than take for one ‘s own survival .  is makes   Broadbent ‘s overarching character is makes make this change in one story , but it ‘s what Hanks ‘ character wrestle with over the course of the entire film .    His characters is move move though thief , liar , coward , and finally to someone who must resist a devil that ‘s follow him throughout time .    Hanks ‘ characters is are are not the center of the universe nor are anyone else’s .    None is are of these character are giant of history .    They is continue simply continue to criss – cross across not only time and space , but also race and gender .Cloud Atlas is greater than the sum of its parts, and its parts are stunning.  Cavendish is hilarious, Sonmi is pulse-pounding, zedelghem is melancholy ,Ewing is treacherous, Luisa Rey is exciting, and Sloosha’s Crossin‘ is something else entirely.  Sloosha’s Crossin‘ was my least favorite story in the book due to its unbroken length and the difficulty of reading through a slang-filled dialect.  But in the film, it works marvelously and becomes a beautiful, unforgettable tale where we happily accept characters who call technology “smart” and call truth “true-true”.  Translating the story directly to film and leaving this bizarre dialect intact requires a glorious mixture of fearlessness, insanity, and unbound imagination.This kind of imagination—to transcend genres, settings, and identities—requires a certain kind of genius.  Lana Wachowski, Andy Wachowski, and Tom Tykwer have shown that genius with Cloud Atlas.  It is an ambition rarely seen in modern cinema, and rarely realized due to budget constraints (the film was independently financed).  The audacious, daring vision of Cloud Atlas is to be cherished because it pushes the bounds of what we’ve come to expect from movies.  It is a forceful reminder of cinema’s power, and why it stands apart from other art forms.For all the complexity of its editing, its actors with multiple characters, and the jumps between genres and setting, Cloud Atlas is beautifully simple in its central theme.  The characters narrate their philosophies, but it doesn’t come across as moralistic.  All of the characters are writers.  They use different forms, but they’re all narrating their lives.  They’re looking inwards to create connections, and in so doing, forge a legacy.  They leave behind more than they were in a single lifetime.  Even if their messages are misunderstood or reinterpreted, the authors’ bold, declarative words still echo through the lives of others across time and space.  Through the gorgeous, life-affirming lens of Cloud Atlas, our lives is exist exist far beyond our limitation . Rating is click : 9.4 out of 10For all of our tiff 2012 coverage , click here .    Here are link to all of my tiff 2012 review :