Beautiful, gripping, passionate.

Rating: 8/10 (10 February 2008)

There is so much to say about 2007's Atonement; this is a beautiful, absolutely astonishing movie directed by a SO-incredibly talented Joe Wright. He unravels the war/history/romance/drama genre with an enormous depth, he breathes new fire into a worn genre - he speaks to today's teenagers and young lovers, a generation who needs a motion picture's magnificence to describe their longings for their loved ones when separated by war. The vision of the movie is drenched in its totally unique cinematic beauty, the cinematography and production design can't be described in one word; it's utterly breathtaking, so powerfully attached to the movie's center-core that Atonement will find love just as much as audiences loves it.
James McAvoy and Keira Knightley do electrifying performances; McAvoy's Robbie Turner can't find words to describe his feelings for the beautiful Cecilia Tallis. The tension between the two boils, and throughout the movie the cinematography leads on the dance of longing and lost love. It's definitely one of the strongest Oscar-contenders to the 2007 awards; astonishing from the hot-summer opening to the surprising climax.