Cloud Atlas - a visual epos

Tom Tykwer, Lana & Andy Wachowski: three directors, who approach the mainstream in a poetic and philosophical way and who don't fear greatness. The novel "Cloud Atlas" by David Mitchell is long. It spans 1000 years and follows six destinies. So, the three filmmakers try to tell a story about people who at some point between 1849 and 2346 were challenged by fate, it's more or less a journey from slavery to a phantasy anarchy.

Each of them fights against power, enviousness and order. It is a movie about revolutionaries, nonconformists, martyrs who want to overcome conventions and limits. The purpose? A new world.

Source: rottentomatoes.com

What makes this movie a great cinematic experiment is the fact that the actors (Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Sturgess, Ben Whishaw and other famous actors) embody up to six characters, roam together through various times and continents, love and fight sometimes with and sometimes against each other.

The annoying part of the movie could be the that at times one may find themselves thrown out of the genre and into a comedy or a soap opera. Plus the linkage of the protagonists may not be always comprehensible. In fact, that's why the movie is so challenging. Watch it twice.

Oh, and my favourite quote:

         "A half-finished book is, after all, a half finished love affair."                                                                                       (Robert Frobisher, interpreted by the wonderful Ben Whishaw)