Cloud Atlas, based on a book by David Mitchell, brilliantly
interweaves six storylines with each character portraying multiple
reincarnations in an intricate plot structure, set in the past, present, and
future. Films of this type often struggle to include adequate character
development or fail to give equal significance to each storyline in the
overarching message. However, I believe that Cloud Atlas succeeds in this
aspect, as each character has depth and strong motives that dictates their
actions, each storyline builds in conflict followed by a satisfying conclusion,
and everything is subtly connected, as stated by the film’s tagline. The film
definitely leaves me pondering long afterwards, trying to trace each plot and individual
as well as their correlation to each other. Although Cloud Atlas lasts three
hours, I find it necessary, as the multi-layered story would have seemed rushed
or incomplete if the film were shortened.
Initially, the ideas may seem scattered, but have patience. As
the film progressed, I soon became deeply invested in each character’s
heartfelt journey, as the film ties together themes of love, identity, and
rebirth, strengthening my anticipation for what’s to come later in the film. The
first sign of cohesion came around thirty minutes into the film, and was deeply
touching, as Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, or Jim Broadbent express a feeling of
familiarity with absolute strangers or certain places through narration: “A
powerful déjà vu ran through my bones, as if I have been here before in another
life.”
I love how the actions scenes are overlapped at certain
moments, switching between two storylines in which Jim Sturgess and Doona Bae are
engaged in a high-speed chase on futuristic motorcycles or Tom Hanks and Halle Berry
are fighting off barbaric tribes deep in the forest. In addition, some of my
favorite scenes involve montages of their daily lives as one person narrates
over the scene in a way that relates to what each individual is experiencing.
During these montages, the nostalgic theme song, Cloud Atlas Sextet, drowns out
the background noises, evoking a sense of déjà vu as if an echo subconsciously
runs through each of them and connects them metaphysically. Ben Winshaw
remarks, “It’s a whole movement I wrote, imagining us meeting again and again
in different times, in different ages.” This concept is also conveyed visually through
shared surreal dreams as well as when everyone reveals mysterious, identical
birthmarks or scars, resembling a shooting star.
Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, and Lana Wachowski excellently
synthesized these various plot elements into one big picture. One thing’s for
certain: Cloud Atlas deserves an Academy Award nomination for the effort put
into make up, depicting different, and sometimes unrecognizable, incarnations
of each character. Cloud Atlas invokes a sense of hope for the future, and
provokes a reflection on the interconnectedness of life. “I believe there is
another world waiting for us.” After watching this poignant film, I will make sure
to read the book in the near future!
