Alternative to What: "Atonement" (2007)

Left to right: Kiera Knightley and James McAvoy

Welcome to Alternative to What: a weekly column that tries to find a great alternative to driving to the multiplexes. Based on releases of that week, the selections will either be thematically related or feature recurring cast and crew. The goal is to help you better understand the diversity of cinema and hopefully find you some favorites while saving a few bucks. At worse, this column will save you money. Expect each installment to come out on Fridays, unless specified. 

THIS WEEK:

Atonement (2007)

- Alternative To -

The Imitation Game (2014)

For the most part, The Imitation Game is just the latest in a long string of films featuring contemporary greats of British acting. Leading the pack is the old reliable Benedict Cumberbatch, whose career has been one of note in recent years. Despite an occasional flop here or there, he is one of Britain's most acclaimed actors who has yet to receive any recognition by the Oscars. This latest film pins him as a scientist who helps to crack secrets of the enemy during World War II using a very complicated machine that doesn't make any sense outside of the science community. While many are considering it a big breakthrough for him, others are questioning its depiction of the man character's homosexual undertones. 

While the film is something unto itself, it isn't the first time that Cumberbatch and co-star Kiera Knightley have worked together. It isn't even their first time in a war film. Back in 2007, there was Atonement, which not only helped to garner attention for Knightley, but became one of the better book adaptations of the decade. With fairly unknown Joe Wright at the helm, the story of love and war came to life in compelling ways with Saoirse Ronan and James McAvoy rounding out the cast. It is a period piece much like The Imitation Game which chooses to explore something deeper and more complicated in the human tapestry. The only catch? Cumberbatch has a way smaller part.

It is a film packed with intimacy and innocence being destroyed in the case of Ronan's character. She is in charge of relaying the events of the affair in grand detail as a voyeuristic child who sees things from afar. The eroticism is alluring in a sense and the tragedy of the romance she watches gives the story a deeper, more complex understanding. By the end, it is a beautiful tale of romance unlike anything else that was produced that year. Also, it made us believe that Knightley and McAvoy were voices to watch.

For the most part, this remains true. With McAvoy off doing superhero films, Knightley has gotten into a nice niche of doing indie films such as Begin Again and Seeking a Friend for the End of the World. She is charming, quirky and full of radiance. Likewise, Cumberbatch has only become more of a household name in the time since the film came out. While the story itself is captivating and one of the best romance during war films in years, it is also a nice time capsule of young British actors who would only come further into becoming big names that are reliable with their decisions. I am not sure how The Imitation Game will go, but it definitely is a nice place to see how far many of these names have come.