Interesting that this movie’s subtitle is “Everything is connected.”
Part of the fun of the film (starring Tom Hanks and Halle Berry) is watching these tales unravel in unexpected ways. The stories in the movie are: a 19th century racial drama set on the high seas, a 1930’s piece about a composer’s gifted apprentice, a 1970’s conspiracy story being uncovered by an investigative journalist (Halle Berry), a 2012 farce, a sleek sci-fi escape drama set in the 22nd century, and a dystopian journey set in the far future. Every story is compelling.
To keep it simple — if that’s even possible — Cloud Atlas is about the reincarnation of the soul. The film emphasizes the idea that we live different lives in different time periods, but we connect to the same souls over and over again. And with these same souls, we keep repeating history — something journalist Luisa Rey (Halle Berry) mentions at one point — which in Cloud Atlas typically revolves around oppression.
Some souls seem fated to oppress others, or at least to maintain the status quo of oppression, while a few will always be revolutionaries seeking to uncover and broadcast the truth. More importantly, the soul can take its own journey over the course of several lifetimes. For instance, the soul of Hanks’s characters evolve from a murdering thief in one lifetime to a reluctant hero who overcomes obstacles, fear, and prejudice to save someone else.
Each of the six intertwined stories takes place in a different era and assumes the tropes of completely different genres. Actors play multiple roles across the film, switching ages, races, and even genders from tale to tale. So if you find it confusing, here is a link to a site that provides a guide to the characters and their journeys through the story.
Join us for a discussion of this movie on October 25th at 8pm ET/6 pm MT facilitated by Rev. Kelly Barber.
You can find this movie on Netflix, Vudu, YouTube, Amazon Prime.
(Thanks to Roboheartbeat.com and Vulture.com for movie reviews used for this post).
