Cloud Atlas - B

Rated R, 164 minutes

Heady but entertaining "Cloud Atlas" is a wild ride

Tom Hanks and Halle Berry

“Cloud Atlas” is a heady, pretentious and overlong head trip that somehow still manages to entertain, thanks to an A-list cast and a set of directors who keep the action moving. From Andy and Lana (formerly Larry) Wachowski, who helmed “The Matrix” series of films and Tom Tykwer, who directed the art-house classic “Run Lola Run,” the epic, ambitious film is based on an equally heady 2004 fantasy science-fiction novel of the same name by David Mitchell that spans continents, centuries and even planets. “Cloud Atlas” explores how the actions and consequences of individual lives impact one another throughout the past, the present and the future. There are six stories interweaved together, from the remote South Pacific in the 19^th Century, to a post-apocalyptic future. It includes Adam Ewing (Jim Sturgess), a notary stuck on a ship in 1850 and poisoned by a doctor (Tom Hanks); a young musician in Belgium (Ben Whishaw), writing letters to a friend and is the apprentice to a famous composer (Jim Broadbent); Luisa Rey (Halle Berry), an brave investigative journalist uncovering corruption at a nuclear power plant; Timothy Cavendish (also Broadbent), an elderly publisher fleeing gangsters and is confined in a nursing home; in the future in Neo Seoul, a clone (Zhou Xun) who becomes embroiled in a rebellion; and post-apocalyptic Hawaii, when two people from very different societies (Hanks and Berry) some strangely connected. “Cloud Atlas” a very ambitious film that’s both intriguing and entertaining, and bloated and baffling, all at the same time, not to mention much more violent than you might think. The problematic, overstuffed narrative is a bit all over the place, trying to tackle too many issues (everything from racism to religion to economy), a weakness inherent in the Wachowski’s from their “Matrix” days. The film is best when it entertains, and it does so frequently, though it could’ve been trimmed considerably. The able cast plays multiple roles, some of which you have to watch closer for than others; Hanks and Berry ground the film well but unsurprisingly it’s the lesser known actors or the bad guys who make the biggest impression. Chinese actress Xun is the biggest revelation here as the young clone, while as the bad guys, Hugh Grant and Hugo Weaving (giving it a "Matrix-y" feel to it) are deliciously funny (yes that's Weaving in full drag in one sequence). Some sequences work better than others too (the Cavendish and the letters stories, while affecting, could’ve been trimmed while the futuristic section is most entertaining). “Cloud Atlas” is an enjoyable, entertaining film on many levels and quite pretentious on many others; the music, sets, special effects and makeup are all first-rate and make for a memorable movie-going experience. “Cloud Atlas” tries too hard to say too much, but it’s best to see beyond its heavy messages and just be entertained. One of the year’s more interesting films for sure.

Wes's Grade: B