Atonement News

Nominated for Best Picture in 2007, Atonement also received rave reviews for the performances of its stars, James McAvoy and Keira Knightley.

What, exactly, did critics have to say about the film, which is being released on DVD on March 18, 2008? Let's take a look...

- Epic and occasionally heartbreaking but never as powerful or cohesive as it ought to be. -- Las Vegas Weekly

- The film is gorgeous to look at, well paced (especially during the first half), and by turns touching and sad. The ending packs an emotional punch, which is what one would expect from any movie developed from a McEwan novel. -- Reel Views

- No sophomore slump for British punk wunderkind director Joe Wright...If anything, Atonement is even better, the tragedy of the story intensifying the romance, the novel's unique structure providing an uncommon literary twist. -- Reeling Reviews

- The movie never goes as deep as the novel (no movie could), but it's a worthy approximation: a Merchant-Ivory movie that turns in on itself with a lucid and painful sigh. -- Boston Globe

Not surprisingly, Atonement led the nominations for this year's British Academy Film Awards. The Keira Knightley/James McAvoy vehicle racked up 14 nominations.

Here's the complete list:

Best film
"American Gangster" -- Brian Grazer/Ridley Scott
"Atonement" -- Tim Bevan/Eric Fellner/Paul Webster
"The Lives of Others" -- Quirin Berg/Max Wiedemann
"No Country for Old Men" -- Scott Rudin/Joel Coen/Ethan Coen
"There Will Be Blood" -- JoAnne Sellar/Paul Thomas Anderson/Daniel Lupi

Best director
"Atonement" -- Joe Wright
"The Bourne Ultimatum" -- Paul Greengrass
"The Lives of Others" -- Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
"No Country for Old Men -- Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
"There Will Be Blood" -- Paul Thomas Anderson

Original screenplay
"American Gangster" -- Steven Zaillian
"Juno" -- Diablo Cody
"The Lives of Others" -- Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
"Michael Clayton" -- Tony Gilroy
"This Is England" -- Shane Meadows

Adapted screenplay
"Atonement" -- Christopher Hampton
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" -- Ronald Harwood
"The Kite Runner" -- David Benioff
"No Country for Old Men" -- Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
"There Will Be Blood" -- Paul Thomas Anderson

Animated film
"Ratatouille" -- Brad Bird
"Shrek the Third" -- Chris Miller
"The Simpsons Movie" -- Matt Groening, James L. Brooks

Leading actor
George Clooney -- "Michael Clayton
Daniel Day-Lewis -- "There Will Be Blood"
James McAvoy -- "Atonement"
Viggo Mortensen -- "Eastern Promises"
Ulrich Muehe -- "The Lives of Others"

Leading actress
Cate Blanchett -- "Elizabeth: The Golden Age"
Julie Christie -- "Away From Her"
Marion Cotillard -- "La Vie en Rose"
Keira Knightley -- "Atonement"
Ellen Page -- "Juno"

The awarding of the Golden Globes may have been anticlimactic this year - the ongoing writers' strike caused the ceremony to be canceled, resulting in an awkward, boring press conference that announced the winners - but it's still worth noting the films and actors that were honored.

Leading the way and building their resumes for an Oscar? Atonement and Sweeney Todd. Here's the list of honorees:

Best Motion Picture â€" Drama
Atonement
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture â€" Drama
Julie Christie â€" Away From Her
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture â€" Drama
Daniel Day-Lewis â€" There Will Be Blood
Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Marion Cotillard â€" La Vie En Rose
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Johnny Depp â€" Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Cate Blanchett â€" I'm Not There
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Javier Bardem â€" No Country For Old Men
Best Director - Motion Picture
Julian Schnabel â€" The Diving Bell And The Butterfly
Best Animated Feature Film
Ratatouille

James McAvoy and Keira Knightley grace the current covers of both Entertainment Weekly and W Magazine.

Here are snippets of the interview the Atonement stars gave the former publication:

Entertainment Weekly: Since so much of Atonement rides on the chemistry between the two of you, how nervous were you to shoot your big love scene?
Keira Knightley: You have to believe that they will wait for each other for five years based on that one moment. So it had to be erotic, and it had to be passionate enough. We talked about it a lot. Most directors just go, ''Oh, you know what to do. Just get on with it.'' Well, actually, I don't know what to do. This is a relative stranger, and I'm in front of a group of strangers and I don't know what to do.

Joe was incredibly precise. He had storyboarded the whole thing: My foot coming out of my shoe, biting my lip at the end, the way my head turns â€" that was all completely him. And during it, because it was so close and it was on a Steadicam, we didn't know what part of the body the shot was on. So Joe literally shouted [directions] out as we were doing it.

EW: Both of you say your favorite scene together is when you reunite over tea during the war.
James McAvoy: That was the scene that made me think, I can do this part. At one point it was dramatically altered.
Knightley: Oh, that was awful! Remember? We nearly died!

Read the full interview with the stars now.

James McAvoy recently spoke with Comingsoon.net about his work in Atonement:

CS: I wanted to start by asking you about working with Saoirse Ronan. I've seen her in another movie and she's a bit of a scene-stealer, isn't she?
McAvoy: Yeah, she's great, she's really really good. She's a nice girl as well, and she's a proper actress. She's not just like a little girl who's very natural in front of a camera, because that doesn't necessarily mean that they'll be able to do what the script says.

CS: Romola Garai mentioned that when she worked with Saoirse, she would tell her why she did things in a certain way, and I understand her father's an actor as well.
McAvoy: Yeah, he's good too, but yeah, she's a proper actress.

CS: Is it hard to work with someone that young in terms of expectations of having to carry them before finding out they're that good already?
McAvoy: No, not at all. You don't really have expectations like that I don't think, and also because you do three weeks of rehearsals and you just go, "Yeah, she's really good. She can do her thing." Nah, she's wonderful. It's a pleasure working with her and why wouldn't you enjoy working with a good actress, whatever age she is? 'Cause it only makes you better I think.

Click here to read the full interview.