vivi_1201

It took me a very long time to see this movie. I work in a DVD-rental store after Uni and people kept coming in after renting Cloud Atlas and while some feedback was positive a lot of people told me they found the film confusing. 'Didn't get it' was a comment I heard quite a lot. Today I finally watched the film and I was utterly mesmerized. I understand, I think, the trouble some of our customers had with it. Overthinking. It is confusing. It is also spellbinding, visually stunning and brilliantly acted. I'm quite certain I didn't fully get it either. Gonna have to watch it again. This movie is a philosophical journey. Karma, reincarnation, the immortality of love and the enduring human soul. Strangely, it rarely bothers people to let some inane, redundant action film simply wash over them. But that is precisely what one should do with this film. Allow it to wash over you, through you and into you. Let it slip you away and wonder at what and who we are, were and maybe one day will be.

Four friends, one of whom (James) is terminally ill, go off on a last trip to James's favourite place, Barafundle Bay in Wales. The plot therefore is simplicity itself and the film captures this simple idea and makes it shine. One reviewer described the first half as 'tedium', in my opinion nothing could be further from the truth. While the dialogue may seem trivial at times, it is exactly the kind of exchange one would expect of four friends under these circumstances. Light-hearted banter, foolishness and fun offset the looming tragedy, sorrow and pain. Very rarely have I seen a film that from the first frame just felt real. This one does. No over-elaborate flashbacks to explain a backstory that isn't really needed, the actors manage to establish the friendship just through their interactions, chemistry and dialogue. The performances are excellent, especially Benedict Cumberbatch as James is truly remarkable. Four male friends on a last adventure. Fun, revelations, regrets, redemption, grief and the subtle realism of it all. Definitely worth watching!