Thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis (Saoirse Ronan) is an aspiring writer who has completed her very first play. Eager to act it out to everyone, she is disappointed that her cousins seem not so enthusiastic about it and there are other things going on in her household that take the attention away from her unique accomplishment. She has a crush on Robbie Turner (James McAvoy), the housekeeper's son, and she is not too thrilled when she sees something from her window. It appears there is something going on between her older sister Cecilia (Keira Knightley) and Robbie, and this is further confirmed when she reads a letter from Robbie to Cecilia, a rather explicit letter that he hadn't meant to send out in the first place. What transpires is a story of betrayal, misunderstanding and deception, one in which two young lovers are torn apart and live tragic lives. Actions have consequences, and Briony, now eighteen (played by Ramola Garai) is living it. Will she be able to make things right for Cecelia and Robbie? Will she be forgiven and, in turn, find peace?



The film is absolutely beautiful. Joe Wright, whose work I'd seen previously in Pride & Prejudice, has an eye for beautiful landscapes and overall flawless cinematography. The setting (mid to late 1930s, amid the dawn of WWII), the costumes and scenery are gorgeous. The script is fairly faithful to the book, much more faithful than the director and screenwriter had been with P&P, where they took far too much artistic license. The acting is wonderful as well. I am officially a big fan of James McAvoy. Not only is the Scottish actor extremely attractive, but he is also a wonderful actor. I had seen him in Becoming Jane and The Last King of Scotland, and this further proves that he is talented man with a promising Hollywood career. As for Keira Knightley... It's not that I don't like her, or that I think she's a bad actress, but I simply cannot understand her. Literally, I cannot understand half the words that come out of her pouty little mouth. She talks too fast, and kind of mumbles, and I have to turn on the DVD's subtitles in order to grasp her words. I don't usually have a difficult time understanding the various British accents, so I think it is more a matter of a diction problem from her. Other than that, I think she did a fine job as well. The film moved me, and I was saddened by its poignant ending. The one thing I complain about is that Cecelia and Robbie were not together long enough to make me believe in this star-crossed romance and intense love for each other. I simply didn't see enough of it on the screen. I know the purpose is that they did not get to spend enough time together, and that they had been torn apart before the romance could begin, but still.



The DVD is good. It surprised me that the film has an analog 1.85 widescreen format instead of the smaller 2.35 aspect ratio, which I would have preferred (image is clearer and sharper). I enjoyed the deleted scenes and commentary. All in all, Atonement is a wonderful film. It deserved all of the award nominations it has received and this is one DVD I'll be watching over and over again.