Ponderous, missed opportunity by the Wachowski's

Rating: 6/10 (2 July 2013)

Nearly Thirty years ago, Sergio Leone virtually wrote the book on flashback/forward movies with "Once Upon a Time in America". Only some unfortunate casting (Elizabeth Perkins) and under-exposition in the second half prevented it from becoming a bonafide masterpiece. Over ten years ago, David Lynch demonstrated its full potential in the near perfect "Mulholland Drive". Only an overly extended "magician's act" and graphic "love scenes" in the final act diminished its impact. Nearly fifteen years ago, Paul Thomas Anderson demonstrated how such a monumental task could be accomplished with a huge ensemble cast with "Magnolia". Only a silly (though historically plausible) deus ex machina marred this fine effort. On the other hand, Cameron Crowe and Steven Soderbergh cautioned us by example of the horrid results of the consequences of how difficult and unsatisfying a flashback/forward movie can be in the wrong hands. Yet, none of these films are nearly as ambitious as "Cloud Atlas" and the only film that comes close is Josef Rusnak's largely ignored and nearly forgotten "The Thirteenth Floor".
"Cloud Atlas" spans at least five hundred years between distant past and possible near future, with multiple story lines,styles alternating between farce, melodrama and turgid drama. Worse, "Cloud Atlas" buries competent, if sometimes uninspiring stars under tons of makeup. Worse, the narrative is so choppy, one hardly has time to know WHERE and WHEN he is, before jumping off to the next time and locale. This makes empathy for the characters nearly impossible. Fortunately, Halle Berry, Ben Whishaw, Jim Sturges,Hugo Weaving and Doona Bae manage to pull it off. Unfortunately, Tom Hanks did not, and herein lies the crux of the problem. Hanks can be a fine actor, but his range is limited; Robert Downey Jr., Russell Crowe or Guy Pearce probably could, though even they would have struggled with that horrible "pigeon" dialect in the "after the fall" segment. Hanks alternates between either hammy or unintelligible, effective only when relying on his expressions to tell the story. On the other hand,Halle Berry makes it look easy; of course, Berry is so darned gorgeous that even watching her on screen is a feast for the senses. Bae, on the other hand, is an acquired taste, with her "porcelain doll" features, though her picture-perfect body is quite a treat. Bae hits all the right notes as Somni-351; unfortunately, this means automatonic mannerisms which undercut hers,and, by extension, the film's message. Fortunately, her chemistry in scenes with both Jim Sturges and Ben Whishaw is tantalizing and this young lady has quite a future in Western cinema if she chooses it.
As for the narrative, I could have completely done without the silly "Timothy Cavendish" segment. A great deal of time is spent on his misadventures, only to be wasted by its overly abrupt insertion into the "Somni-351" segment. Likewise, I was so distracted by Hank's, Weaving's and Berry's "pigeon," in the "after the fall" segment, I barely understood, let alone cared, about the key points being made.
Since reincarnation and spiritual development are so foreign to Western audiences, I am somewhat surprised "Cloud Atlas" was even made. I can only imagine what brilliant Chinese director Yimou Zhang ("Hero," "House of Flying Daggers," "Curse of the Golden Flower,")could have done with it.
Unfortunately,as it stands, "Cloud Atlas" is little more than a curiosity and a missed opportunity.
I give "Cloud Atlas" a "6".