Cloud Atlas

Wandered out yesterday, after work, to catch movie with Shyam.  Neither of us had wandered out to see anything in a while, and wanted to catch something.  I reached the point where I wasn't going to accomplish anything meaningful at work somewhere around 3, and texted to see if we could make a 4 o'clock start time.

Both Flight and Cloud Atlas were starting.  I've had a couple people I trust recommending both, and could go with either, despite being a little tentative with anything with the name Wachowski Brothers tagged to it.

Glad Cloud Atlas won.

I'm not going into a big analysis.  Just say that I came out impressed, and a bit overwhelmed.  Maybe I'm just a sucker for a happy ending, and a bit easily taken for a roller coaster ride, but I even found myself a little teary at the end.  I can't remember a movie doing that to me.

Impressive?  So many actors playing so many rolls...consider it testament to the strength of the story thread and the performances--I never once felt lost, and I stopped marveling at the changes in roles maybe 20 minutes in.

Impressed with Tom Hanks, who takes the biggest swings between characters, from the tremendously ghoulish to the absolutely inspiring.

Likewise impressed with Hugh Grant, whom I didn't recognize almost across the board--a trick that has as much to do with the makeup folk as it does the performance.

Just an impressive movie.  Makes me want to read the book.  It's been recommended a few times of the past couple of years, but I've not gotten to it.