Ryan ChartrandWords can do a lot. They can make a truth or tell a lie. They can finish a story or begin one. Words are the strongest power humans have. Building on this idea, Ian McEwan’s “Atonement” is a story about the power of words and what words can do with time.
The story begins in the English countryside with a wealthy family and its housekeeper’s son, Robbie. The people in the story are intertwined from the first word. The family’s eldest daughter, Cecelia, and Robbie realize they fell in love with each other a long time ago. This newly professed love is interrupted, though, after Cecelia’s younger sister, Briony, sees some events and later accuses Robbie of a horrible crime he did not commit.
The story is also one of perspective. Which point of view is the true one? Many times throughout the book, McEwan writes an event in at least two different ways, from two different views. Time is switched and twisted so much that by the end of the book, the reader doesn’t even realize how much time has been covered. The story follows Briony’s life and how she sees the events that ensue.
McEwan’s writing style clearly and efficiently describes what is happening. The events and characters are believable and inviting. It’s easy to fall in love with Robbie and Cecelia. The thoughts that plague Robbie while he’s on the French war front begin to disturb the reader as well. By the end, it’s even easy to sympathize with Briony, who was the reason for much frustration in the beginning.
As in many cases, the reader encounters a familiar question with this story: Which is better: the book or the movie? And the question only becomes harder depending on which was encountered first.
The hardest thing about seeing a movie after reading the book is watching the characters and the small details like costume and scenery. The main plot tends to be intact, but these aspects sometimes look different through the reader’s eyes. While reading, it is easy to imagine these things, but on the big screen they tend to be different than what the reader imagined and that is the source of dislike. However, if a person sees the movie first, the imagery is there and the plot is easier to focus on because there is already a picture of the characters and landscape to imagine.
The movie version of “Atonement” has beautiful cinematography, great editing and phenomenal acting. The book has amazing imagery, unbelievable writing and captivating events. And thankfully, the movie kept many details of the book.
The biggest difference, though, was the war scenery. In the book, many events surrounding Robbie are compelling and intense, but the movie has less happen to him physically. It focuses on the flashbacks and the thoughts rather than specific events.
This is OK, though. “Atonement” as a book captures its reader and takes them on a journey to a time not that far away and a place people in America don’t understand, and the movie does the same. The goals are met with both. The story as a whole is one that will last through time and keep every person that comes into contact with it intrigued.
Christina Casci is a journalism senior, and Mustang Daily wire editor and book columnist.