Open Letters Monthly: Cloud Atlas

It's the film that launched a thousand differing opinions. If there's one thing people can agree on when it comes to Cloud Atlas, it's that it is something different to everyone who watches it. Based on the similarly-polarizing novel by David Mitchell, the movie uses actors in multiple roles thanks to unhealthy amounts of makeup and prosthetics, telling an expansive story throughout time.

In six different eras of human history (and future), mankind is striving to redefine itself. Cloud Atlas takes us from a sailing vessel in the 1850's to a post apocalyptic future where there are staggeringly few of us left. In each time, we are introduced to amazing people - from a young composer to an investigative reporter to a cloned slave - destined to amazing events, connected in unique ways through the timeline. Do they have the strength to overcome their obstacles? Will they be able to influence the coming era?

Cloud Atlas is directed by Tom Tykwer and Lana and Andy Wachowski, and stars and ensemble cast of Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Sturgess, Bae Doona, Hugo Weaving, Jim Broadbent, Hugh Grant, Ben Whishaw, James D'Arcy, Susan Sarandon, Keith David, Zhou Xun and David Gyasi.

Click here to read the complete review at Open Letters Monthly.

If Only

I think my stalwart film sidekick Anne put it best when the final credits began rolling. She turned to me, eyes filled with wonder at being at the side of THE Mr. Anderson, and stated "I don't know what to think about that movie." That pretty much sums up my own thoughts on One Day, the newest romance film by Danish director Lone Scherfig. Scherfig, whose 2009 release An Education was a major success and was nominated for Best Picture at that year's Academy Awards, was but one attraction to the title, which was based on the bestselling novel by David Nicholls and stars talented performers Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess in the leading roles. But I couldn't help but feel that there was much missing in the way of unique or significantly different story elements. In fact, heading into One Day felt like being uncertain whether to expect a genuine Italian buffet or a Las Vegas grease pit. Still, I've had some luck with romantic films this year (Something Borrowed being an obvious exception), and with the talent involved, I was at least looking forward to seeing this for the product that it was, rather than the expectations I could perceive.

Get used to seeing these two; there's hardly anyone else of note anywhere in the film

Beginning the day Emma (Hathaway) and Dexter (Sturgess) meet at their college graduation, One Day follows their lives on the anniversary of that day for twenty years. Starting as an aborted romantic fling, the two become close friends, and the film lets us see their interaction one day a year for the entirety of the story. During this a number of successes and tragedies that fill their lives are followed, as both Emma and Dexter find their own paths towards contentment, love, and finally back to one another.

They studied make-outs at F.U.

Wow, that was a short paragraph. Try as I might, I can't think of anything more in depth to say about the film's plot, because what you see above is really all there is to it. Emma and Dexter are complete opposites, which is supposed to be a clear signal to us the audience that they are meant to be together, even if they themselves take forever to come to that same conclusion. The two are so different that they even take the opposite paths through their careers (Dexter has success early on while Emma struggles and later vice versa) before reaching true contentment, proving to me that perhaps this story was better in concept than execution. I've never read the book by Nicholls, but as he also wrote the screenplay I find myself unperturbed by any inclination to read the novel at all. It was a nice idea, but one that is poorly told by both the screenplay and the director Scherfig.

One Day, the awkward teen years

If there is any consolation, it is the acting of the film's two stars. Anne Hathaway's career seems to have faltered a little after her critical acclaim in 2008's Rachel Getting Married, and while she certainly never slacks off in her work, it's disheartening when she's either in bad movies (Bride Wars) or box office bombs (the underrated Love and Other Drugs) or stuck in bit parts that don't suit her (Alice in Wonderland). One major obstacle I thought I would have to overcome was Hathaway's attempt at a British accent, one that had shocked and distracted me during the trailers. Thankfully, she does a fine job with it, and what could have been a disaster is barely noticeable once you get used to the difference. Sturgess has been an unsung talent thus far, his films not receiving a lot of attention since his breakout in 2007's Across the Universe. Since then, I've seen a couple of films with him (21 and last year's The Way Back) but I don't claim to have the full measure of Sturgess as an actor yet. Still, he proves himself charming and a decent talent, showing a wider range than even Hathaway over the course of the story. If there's one problem with their performances, it's the fact that neither Emma nor Dexter are particularly likable characters. Dexter is shown to be such a douchebag that it's difficult to believe that Emma would remain friends with him for so long, and Emma is cursed with both a stick up her ass AND low self-esteem, which make her early whining hard to bear. Both Hathaway and Sturgess do their best, and are helped by a natural chemistry between them, but it's an uphill battle to make us care about the characters and their story, a fight they almost overcome.

Awww... isn't he a cute asshole?

Of course, these two dominate the screen so much that any supporting characters have to really stand out to be noticeable. The best of them is Patricia Clarkson, who over the past year has continually proven that she's got more versatility than most would credit her. As Dexter's sick mother she proves to be both a charmer and scene-stealer, and the best part of the film's early going. An assortment of perfectly okay performances from Rafe Spall, Ramola Garai and Ken Stott are ever present as additional characters for the leads to interact with, but since 90% of the film focuses exclusively on Emma and Dexter, their work is almost unnoticed unless they have something to do with a major plot change. Even then, it is the main characters that move forward, with these side bits barely registering a blip of interest on our radars.

Bad hair days for everyone!

The film's final act is as predictable as it is sad, and though it may inspire a few tears, it's hardly the stuff of legends. As I feared, there was decidedly little that the film offered as different from any other title in existence. With so many good titles having come out in 2011 and even more available for rent on DVD from decades past, there's no reason to waste good money on One Day unless you really, REALLY want to. The great acting aside, this title overall pales in comparison to Midnight in Paris or Crazy Stupid Love, and even fails to live up to the standards of Larry Crowne, as base a romantic comedy as you can get while still remaining entertaining. Failing to reach even this low threshold is disappointing, but for the most part this was not the biggest surprise. Anne said it right in that there are good and bad things about One Day; unfortunately for the film's stars it might take a few more to get where they truly belong in Hollywood's hierarchy.

The Way Back Machine

World War II movies are a tricky business. There's nobody that will deny the cultural and historical significance of the war on the entire world, so changed was most of human society by the events the war brought. That alone makes films about the war popular and almost guaranteed money-makers. The problem with that is that there's no guarantee of quality when it comes to these films. Pearl Harbor is a perfect example of a WWII film that made gobs of dough solely on the patriotic message the film portrayed, and certainly not on any quality film-making. Since WWII films are so popular and populous, they basically construct a genre all their own, one which seemingly every year add more titles to the roll call. That alone put The Way Back on my radar, and it's trailer was intriguing enough to get me into the theater this past Monday and check it out. With a talented director in Peter Weir and a strong acting cadre, the film seemed like more than those similar titles littering the WWII landscape could aspire to.

Guess which ones won't be making it home to momma?

Beginning at a cold Siberian gulag, The Way Back is based on the book The Long Walk by Swladomir Rawicz, depicting his alleged escape from sed gulag on a 4,000 mile walk to India and freedom. Janusz (Jim Sturgess) is a Polish political prisoner, arrested after the Russian invasion of Poland for conspiring against Mother Russia. When torture doesn't get him to confess, the authorities torture his wife to make her give him up, and before long Janusz is shipped off to Siberia and a labor camp that holds men from several nationalities oppressed by the Communist state. After a few months, a severe snowstorm presents the perfect opportunity for Janusz and some of his friends in the camp to make a break for it, beginning their long walk to freedom.

Quote me on this: "Ed Harris in his ugliest role yet."

While the cruelty of the Germans during World War II is practically legendary - most notably their treatment of Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, Jehovah's Witnesses and other minority groups - and German Prisoner of War camps enjoy popularization in film and television from The Great Escape to Hogan's Heroes, it's often glossed over just how practically evil Josef Stalin's regime was in the east. Any region conquered by the Soviet Union at that point was absorbed into its girth and the people mercilessly manhandled by a nation bent on global domination. And so a variety of nationalities ended up at these camps, many for political crimes such as preaching religion or conspiring against the state, and many Yugoslavs, Latvians, Poles, Americans and Russians are held at these camps far from civilization for simply getting on Stalin's bad side. That aspect made this film unique even among similar films by focusing on an aspect of the war most people don't think of.

Bet they're not expecting the Spanish Inquisition

The pacing of the film feels uneven at times. The scenes in the camp early on feel rushed, as the film attempts to introduce us to our prospective escapees in a timely manner so as to get the main story underway quickly. Unfortunately, that makes for the worst part of the movie, as some of the characters are not very distinguishable early on, and the result is a mishmash of scenes that don't really make sense until much later on. It's not a complete throwaway, but when you compare it to the seemingly endless distant shots of characters walking across forbidding landscapes, you wish a bit more time had been invested in the opening. Over the course of the film the characters thankfully become much more detailed, and any fear of confusing people becomes far less likely.

Bet Russia's beginning to look real good right now...

The cast also manages to be one of the strongest I've seen in any film of late. Sturgess, who I'd enjoyed in the gambling thriller 21, is amazing as Janusz, the impromptu leader of this motley crew of misfits and malcontents. He seems to be a natural when it comes to using the wilds to survive, and while no background is given as to why that would be the case, he still makes for a believable leader and a compelling and charismatic main character. Ed Harris is surly and strong as the American Smith, a man so beaten down my personal tragedy that he has become solely focused on personal survival, and while you are saddened when any of the film's characters dies, Smith is the one you keep actively wishing to go on. That's the power of Harris's performance. Colin Farrell plays Valka, a professional Russian criminal who forces his way onto the crew to avoid a gambling debt in prison. Farrell, long an under-appreciated actor by film goers, has possibly the most fun on this cast as a man who has done evil things and the experience allows him to see the darkness in others. Saoirse Ronan is also amazing as Irena, a young Polish teen the group takes in. I've never seen Ronan in anything before, though she had been nominated for a Golden Globe (for Atonement), and seeing this makes me want to go back and see her earlier work. It also makes me excited for the upcoming Hanna, which I saw a trailer for the same day. Other standouts include Dragos Bucur as an accountant with a strange sense of humor, Skarsgard family member Gustaf as a former priest, and Mark Strong as a former actor who initially plans the escape. It's to the film's credit that every character represented is interesting and unique, making those people who would be cannon fodder in lesser films into real humans, especially when you know not all of them will be making it home.

Remember when Colin Farrell was a big deal? Me either.

While the lack of success in the box office was a little suspicious in my eyes, The Way Back thankfully turned out to be almost as good as I'd hoped. There are the aforementioned pacing issues, but for the most part it works itself out over the film's two-plus hours. The settings are extraordinarily beautiful, even with the promises of probable death brought with it. That can be attributed to National Geographic's involvement in the film's production. With amazing acting and a powerful story of human strength, The Way Back would probably be #1 on my list of films for 2011, had it qualified. Unfortunately, the film was released briefly in late 2010 to qualify for award nominations, and while it did garner an Oscar nom, it was only for Best Makeup. As good a movie as it is, however, I'll still pop it in as #9 on my list of 2010's Best Movies. Definitely worth seeing, if you can work it in.