A sweeping romantic tragedy steeped in devastating regret, where a single lie shatters two lovers' lives. Lush summer hothouses dissolve into the bleak shores of war, while the rhythmic clack of a typewriter strikes out an impossible penance.

Atonement

"Torn apart by betrayal. Separated by war. Bound by love."

27 February 2007 France 123 min ⭐ 7.6 (4,611)

Director: Joe Wright

Cast: James McAvoy, Keira Knightley, Saoirse Ronan, Romola Garai, Vanessa Redgrave

Drama Romance

Guilt and Penance The Power and Danger of Fiction Class Prejudice Lost Innocence

Budget: $30,000,000

Box Office: $131,016,624

Atonement - Easter Eggs & Hidden Details

Easter Eggs

Stained-glass window of Saint Matilda

When young Briony watches Robbie being arrested, she looks through a stained-glass window depicting Saint Matilda. Saint Matilda is the patron saint of the falsely accused, serving as a subtle visual nod to Robbie's innocence.

Anthony Minghella's cameo

The late Oscar-winning director Anthony Minghella (The English Patient) makes a brief cameo appearance as the television interviewer speaking to the elderly Briony in the film's final scene.

Le Quai des brumes screening

During the continuous Dunkirk sequence, a cinema screen on the beach is showing the 1938 French film Le Quai des brumes (Port of Shadows), which mirrors the fatalistic and doomed romance of Robbie and Cecilia.

The opening and closing dollhouses

The film opens with a shot of Briony's childhood dollhouse and ends with her fictional creation of a seaside cottage for the lovers. This frames the entire story as Briony continuously playing god with people's lives in her miniature, controllable worlds.

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