Quote:
Originally Posted by Qwertyy
(Post 1705139)
So are you going to do that Nice Guys review or are you going to make me start complaining first?
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I'm slipping, I know.
Cloud Atlas
I watched Cloud Atlas when it was first released, and at that point, (2012) I had already scribed my own personal top ten favorite films list, I had just added The Master to it, and Pulp Fiction was my favorite film. Yet, I couldn't understand Cloud Atlas. Either I wasn't interested, or I didn't understand what the film was trying to convey in terms of a philosophical standpoint. Therefore I scoffed at it's self-indulgent, grandeur ideas. Up until last night. Funnily enough, it's ironic I would've never watched it again if not for me being reminded of it from the Key & Peele film
Keanu. Jordan Peele has a poster of it in his house.
Cloud Atlas tells six different stories that seem correlated in one way or another, eating up nearly three hours to wind their way through these linked lives, finding the participants bound together with a special comet birthmark used as a visual stamp to ease the audience into a boomerang story. It's challenging stuff, even now that I've watched it again nearly five years later. These lofty ideas that at once seemed too indulgent come off ambitious, showcasing an astonishingly beautiful story. Cloud Atlas is assembled seamlessly, an impressive balancing act considering the depth of emotion required for a few of the subplots, while action and intrigue heats up the rest.
Staying true to their (Wachowki's and Tywker) gifts, the movie is stunning to behold, with extravagant costumes and disturbing environments to examine, while the showy make-up work alone is worth the price of admission. With a core set of actors portraying all types of races and genders, “Cloud Atlas” shows startling freedom with the ensemble, allowing them to embody the oddest characters, yet they commit in full to the fantasy. For those who’ve spent a lifetime waiting to see Keith David made over as an Asian warrior, this is your Christmas morning. The technical achievements are exceptional, always keeping the picture gripping when the material sometimes decides to chase its own tail.
All In All, Cloud Atlas is all I'm thinking about right now. And no doubt years to come. The story, acting, makeup, costumes, the dystopian future, the Victorian-era, the hippie 70's. This film is a stark beauty to behold.
A
