"Cloud Atlas" features many things — narratives, characters, special effects…but it also has a lot of makeup. A lot. With the extended principal cast — Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Sturgess, Ben Whishaw, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Hugh Grant, and Bae Doona — playing multiple roles in a tale that spans centuries, the trick was making them look similar, yet also distinct in each case. And for the most part it works, and you don't really notice it. But time to time, it is distracting. (We're looking at you, Thug Hanks).
Anyway, with the movie now a couple of weeks away from landing in theaters, Warner Bros. has dropped a virtual atlas load (we're so clever) of new images that take you into every nook and cranny of the movie without any regard for spoilers or saving some surprises for the cinema. We do see their point, though. It's probably hard to sell a movie that's nearly three hours long whose central conceit is We're All Connected, so they're likely hoping that at least one of these images will resonate with someone. Period drama? That looks cool. Futuristic sci-fi? No way! Thug Hanks? Can we get a spin-off?
"Cloud Atlas" spins on normal screens and in IMAX on October 26th. Take a deep breath, and then click below.