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Time to take another look at Atonement, the film that won best drama at the 2008 Golden Globe awards.

While some may be astounded at the considerably unanticipated conclusion, or question what direction the film will take due to the constant shifting back and forth through time, Atonement unquestionably provides a story few have seen before. With piercing typewriter sounds blended into a strikingly catchy score and superlative acting all around, this is a sweeping, epic love story that is sure to receive Oscar attention in the coming months. Tragedies as rich and fulfilling as this are seldom indeed.

Young Briony Tallis (Saoirse Ronan) feels matured beyond her age of 13, and thinks only of adult tasks such as writing and conducting her play, The Trials of Arabella. When she sees her older sister Cecelia (Keira Knightley) being approached by Robbie (James McAvoy), the housekeeper's son, whom she has a childish crush on, she becomes jealous. That evening, visitor Lola Quincy is attacked and raped by a friend of the family during a search for her runaway brothers, and Briony names Robbie as the culprit. Wrongfully accused, but with no witnesses to clear him, he is sentenced to prison. Given the option to serve in the army rather than to rot in prison, he is quickly swept up into the atrocities of World War II. Meanwhile, Cecelia waits for him faithfully, serving as a nurse, and as Briony grows up she realizes the anguish she's put the two lovers through, and desperately seeks a way to right her wrongs.

The most discommodious aspect of Atonement is the manner in which time is lapsed and then backtracked, and mixed up in every method possible. At points the film jumps forward by several years, slides back a few months, repeats events from different character's perspectives, and meets back up with itself at others. There's even a segment that plays in reverse and in slow motion. It is an artistic concept, but seems to serve little purpose in a film that focuses so heavily on character development and an unconventional love story.

The love story is unique in the sense that the intervention by Briony causes a need for narration from only one viewpoint, despite scenes being shown from many character's perspectives. She struggles with the guilt of realizing how her meddling with their lives may prevent her from ever being able to achieve true atonement. The film follows her as she grows up and becomes a well-known author, and is finally able to write an autobiographical

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