Cloud Atlas is cinematic journey of epic proportions

Rating: 10/10 (25 October 2012)

Every so often a movie comes along that is so ambitious that it pushes the boundaries on almost every level to bring it to life. No stranger to tackle this sort of task the Wachowski's most notably for their Matrix films alongside Tom Tykwer director of Run Lola Run clearly set out to do just that with Cloud Atlas. The trailers sport what appears to be a complex interesting story and an awesome cast featuring Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Jim Sturgess, Susan Sarandon, Hugh Grant, Keith David, and Xun Zhou. Could this ambitious film work as well as it seems or will it end up being to convoluted and confusing?
Cloud Atlas follows six intertwining stories featuring stories of an ocean voyage across the Pacific; letters from a composer to his friend; a thriller about a power plant murder; a nursing home escape; futuristic Korea; and the tale of a tribe living in post-apocalyptic Hawaii. To say this movie is ambitious is an understatement. It has so many layers to the story, yet somehow works perfectly. This film plays like six separate films merged together with various common elements. The performances are all brilliant across the board, with Tom Hanks and Hugo Weaving really standing out. Hanks was the most unexpected, but not his acting as he has proved himself as an actor, but more the various roles he took on. Most of these are not ones you ever imagine Hanks to play and he killed every one of them better than the next. Weaving on the other hand is known for playing some out there characters and delivers like never before with every one of his characters he brings to life. Jim Broadbent delivers the most humorous of all the performances as well as the most memorable. The rest of the cast delivered so much to the overall execution of this film especially with the unexpected characters they portray. At times there are some of the actors that you will not even realize they were in the scene or the character you are watching. This movie is amazing to watch and is way more of an experience than just a film. Rarely does a film deliver almost every genre into one piece without becoming so full of itself and confusing, but here it brilliantly tells these stories effectively keeping everything needed in tact to deliver the message it is trying to convey.
There are few movies that come along that truly feel epic, but Cloud Atlas is defiantly one of them. There are some moments where the make-up effects don't work near as well, mostly just coming off a bit strange, but if you let it go and buy into the film as a whole it will not deter you from the glorious nature of it all. This is an experience the few films are able to deliver on such a grand scale. It will be interesting to see what everyone takes away from the story itself and its' message as it seems to be touching on everything from love, oppression, reincarnation and more. Everyone should open their mind and let the experience of this film flow into your brain, you will not be disappointed.