Atonement

I finally got around to seeing this movie -- it's been in my Netflix queue for a while. It was an interesting, if somewhat confusing, examination of a lie, its consequences, and the lifetime of the liar to make amends.

Thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis sees her older sister, Cecilia, and the housekeeper's son, Robbie, through the window, and misinterprets their actions. Robbie's been educated at Oxford as a result of the benificence of the girl's father, and plans on attending medical school. He's walking the border between two social classes, and gradually letting his attraction to Cecilia overcome his better judgment. Briony sees him and Cecilia playfully tugging on a vase of flowers. That interaction, and an intercepted letter from Robbie to Cecilia, form the basis of Briony's later lie that ruins both Robbie and Cecilia's life.

The story is told primarily through Briony's eyes, although there is some jumping back and forth to tell the story from another's viewpoint. This is where it is difficult sometimes to track where in the story you are.

It was an interesting movie, and I'm glad I finally saw it.