Cloud Atlas

IMDB
First time viewed: No
Current Release: Yes
Watched With: Mum

Here's my non-write up. The first time I saw it had had just stepped off a plane from Perth to New York and gone straight to Time Square to watch movies and this was a priority. As delirious as I was I still loved it and rated it pretty highly on my 2012 list. Now it's finally hit our shores and I have the chance to watch it again and do a proper write up while I'm less sleep deprived and overstimulated.

This is all the movies. It's a cinematic playground. I think even if you don't like all of the film there's something enjoyable in here for everyone. It's certainly ambitious and I love the big risks they took. While some definitely work better than others, overall the film totally works for me. It feels like a symphony that plays out in sections that rise and fall with action, drama, suspense and humor across all the stories. The structure is intricate but on a large scale ends up feeling pretty natural and while you're aware that the film is long it never drags or looses its drive.

The pairing of directors and material makes for some great visuals and the score is just beautiful and vital to the stories being told. The tone varies greatly from story to story but they all feel of a piece. I loved watching this again and picking up certain extra connections that I missed the first time through. I particularly loved Tom Tykwer's segments with the ever engaging Ben Whishaw as a composer and another with Halle Berry in a 70's conspiracy thriller. And being the sucker for sci-fi that I am, the Wachowski's Neo-Seoul segment was a lot of fun too.

It's a very divisive film and the cause for much discussion, much more than I have time to write about at present but do seek it out and see what you make of it.