Cloud Atlas

Psychedelic

David Mitchell's novel Cloud Atlas is being made into a film. Looking at IMDB it's in post production now with a release date of October 2012.

Massive budget of $100m, direction & screenplay by the Wachowskis, and acors like Tom Hanks, Hugh Grant, Halle Berry and Susan Sarandon all playing multiple characters. I don't know if they can adapt such a complex novel of six unique but interlocking stories into a 90-120 minute film, but I can't wait to see it.

Some links:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1371111/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_Atlas_(novel)
http://www.heroesandhellions.com/daily-debriefing/sarandon-on-cloud-atlas/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTjzaVCPoWU (Hugh Grant talking about his parts in the film on the Graham Norton Show a few weeks ago)

johnny_ultimate

Reading Cloud Atlas certainly isn't an experience that inspires great confidence in an adaptation. The phrase 'unfilmable' has been proven inaccurate on quite a number of occasions, but admittedly there are various uniquely literary structural and storytelling eccentricities with the book that makes an adaptation far from an enviable mission.

It's a very unusual choice of directors, though, even if having Twyker and the Wachoskis in charge of separate segments is both a good and bad idea :pac: It's such a grand task and potentially catastrophic ask of an adaptation though I am morbidly curious to see how it plays out.

jefreywithonef

Loved the novel but as mentioned above it'll be a tough task transferring it to screen. I'll go see it though, only with low expectations.

MagicMarker

Isn't it strange that it's apparently in post production but IMdB don't have a complete list of actors/characters?

Otacon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DhJsPW862k

Directed by the Wachowskis and Tom Tykwer [Run Lola Run], based on the novel of the same name.

Colour me intrigued.

johnny_ultimate

Merged with the previous thread on the subject.

Didn't watch the whole trailer (five minutes?!) but looks interesting enough. Some of the dialogue comes a bit as pompous, and the Papa Song's segment looks slicker and far less gritty than I imagined from the book.

I still think this has the potential to be an absolute disaster, but I look forward to finding out

nervous_twitch

This link contains the trailer; it seems to have been taken down from many other sites.

Cloud Atlas is one of my all time favourite novels, and considering the recent, dubious efforts of the Wachowskis, I was worried when I heard they'd be at the helm. The trailer is impressive, if a bit long. It gives a taste of the narrative span, from the past to the future, and there's a lot of breathtaking imagery to imbibe. I think there's a possible miscast in Berry as Luisa Rey, but it might work out. Like johnny, I hope they avoid hammy, faux-inspirational dialogue, as I think it's rather the various stories that convey the overall themes and concepts of the book.

MagicMarker

Berry as Luisa Rey does not do it for me at all tbh.

After watching the trailer I am not enthused, I just can't see how it's all going to gel together to make a movie that isn't one big cluster fúck.

I'd prefer if they used different actors for the different time periods, Berry and Hanks seem to get most of the screen time.

Josey Wales

I've never read the book so I have no idea what it is about. The trailer looks crazy but whether that is crazy good or crazy bad remains to be seen. It looks like it will be interesting either way.

I like the music in the trailer too.

nervous_twitch

I thought the same about the music - some classical alongside m83, a fitting reflection of the genre-bending.

johnny_ultimate

I'm particularly curious how they're going to structure it. For those who haven't read it, the book has six interconnected / thematically linked stories, each split into two sections, so the book basically reads:

Section 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

It's disorientating in book form, so I'm wondering if they'll stick with it, try and interlink them more or perhaps even present each narrative individually.

Galvasean

That was one long trailer and I truly don't have a clue what it's all about.
Someone described it to me as being like The Fountain but with a much bigger budget. Would that be in any way accurate?

johnny_ultimate

Galvasean wrote: »

Someone described it to me as being like The Fountain but with a much bigger budget. Would that be in any way accurate?

Sort of, I guess. Grander in scope, but in terms of the same actors / 'characters' reappearing in different time periods, then yes.

It's well worth reading the book though. Challenging enough to get a grasp on the themes and structural quirks, but it rewards the effort you put into it.

Mickeroo

Don't know what to make of that trailer. Looks like it could be brilliant. might have to give the book a read before October.

tok9

How long will this movie be?

Psychedelic

IMDB says it's 164 min.

It looks good, really looking forward to it based on that trailer.

Links234

thought the trailer looked amazing!

dunno if anyone's seen this yet, but a little bit from the directors:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MrotEnTUt0

Mickeroo

Never knew one of the Wachowski "brothers" is a girl.

Links234

Mickeroo wrote: »

Never knew one of the Wachowski "brothers" is a girl.

really? that's why they started going by "The Wachoski's" afaik

Mr. Loverman

I absolutely love the book, but that trailer looks like they've ruined the story. I can't believe they are using the same actors for each time period. And the choice of actors...

I had hoped they would make a movie which has the emotions and imagery from songs like Electric Counterpoint by Steve Reich.

paddy kerins

Mickeroo wrote: »

Never knew one of the Wachowski "brothers" is a girl.

Sex change

FlashD

This trailer caught my attention on youtube today, as mentioned first thoughts were 'The Fountain', looks like a mad amount of cash was spent.

On IMDb, it's listed as having three directors, could be a sign of the chaos to come. :pac:

Edit.....I just saw that clip Links234 uploaded .....yep, chaos!:D

JP Liz V1

So this film has two directors?

Sad Professor

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

So this film has two directors?

Three.

Kiith

Having never heard of the book, and having just watched the trailer, i'm so bloody confused. Looks slightly insane.

Off to find out what the hell it's all about i guess.

Links234

while we're talking about the wachowskis, does anyone else think that Bound was one of the most underrated gems ever?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzAtuprN3tg

Mr. Loverman

Kiith wrote: »

Having never heard of the book, and having just watched the trailer, i'm so bloody confused. Looks slightly insane.

Off to find out what the hell it's all about i guess.

The book is brilliant. You should check it out. (Note: the first chapter may seem off-putting at first, but it is really worth persevering!)

The author lives in Cork btw.

MyBrokenKnees

I loved the trailer.. The only thing that puts me off is the Wachowski's are involved.. I just don't trust them after Bound and the first Matrix there ego's seemed to grow passed there skill level as movie makers..

nervous_twitch

MyBrokenKnees wrote: »

I loved the trailer.. The only thing that puts me off is the Wachowski's are involved.. I just don't trust them after Bound and the first Matrix there ego's seemed to grow passed there skill level as movie makers..

I'm taking some comfort from the fact that Mitchell loved the script, apparently, and is even on board for a cameo. Also, the Wachowski's seem really passionate about the book, so I'm hoping they've really tried to do it justice. That trailer is addictive, have watched it so many times.

don ramo

FlashD wrote: »

This trailer caught my attention on youtube today, as mentioned first thoughts were 'The Fountain', looks like a mad amount of cash was spent.

On IMDb, it's listed as having three directors, could be a sign of the chaos to come. :pac:

Edit.....I just saw that clip Links234 uploaded .....yep, chaos!:D

according to wiki it has a $100million dollar budget, and apparently its one of those films the studio wouldn't back so its independently financed for the most part, id say there was a good bit of studio involvement but a lot of the money was sourced independently, im really looking forward to seeing how the end product looks, i think it gonna put a few large CGI laden overinflated big budget films to shame,

the 3 directors are the Wachowskis of The Matrix fame and Tom Tykwer who made Run Lola Run and more recently The International

Mr. Loverman wrote: »

The book is brilliant. You should check it out. (Note: the first chapter may seem off-putting at first, but it is really worth persevering!)

The author lives in Cork btw.

started reading it earlier, only got as far as

Tuesday

as im waiting to get my kindle back and was reading it on my PC, seems good so far,

Mr. Loverman

don ramo wrote: »

started reading it earlier, only got as far as

Tuesday

as im waiting to get my kindle back and was reading it on my PC, seems good so far,

And it just gets better! Enjoy.

sticker

That trailer looks wild! I'm very intrigued to see this.

I know the brothers have let themselves down with the backend Matrix flics, but there is definitely a core talent there in putting something special together...

I really hope this comes together well. Could be a real stunner...

Toby Take a Bow

Links234 wrote: »

dunno if anyone's seen this yet, but a little bit from the directors:

Jesus, even that's difficult to watch with all the chopping and changing.

I'm intrigued about this although having watched the trailer I was a bit apprehensive about it. It's one of my favourite books, but I think it's a good sign that Mitchell has given his blessing. He's always struck me as a thoughtful and intelligent guy, so hopefully he's seeing something I'm not.

Tom Hanks, though :mad:

pm1977x

Wasn't planing on seeing this as I love the book so much, but I like Tom Tykwer and the Wachowski's have the visual imagination to attemp to pull it off based on the trailer.

Like others not sure on the casting front, Hanks and Berry don't sit right with me and the normally brilliant Broadbent looks (from admitedly tiny bits of the trailer) as if he's playing it a bit cheesy, like an old man having a second childhood or something...

As for David Mitchell giving it the thumbs up... I've huge respect for him, but he wouldn't be the first author to take the money and run, also if he happens to have any sort of stake in the film he's unlikely to want to run it down, and finally, even if he doesn't benefit financially from talking the film up, he's unlikely to come out and say it's crap having given the go-ahead to these people in the first place, at least until after it's released - but cynicism aside, I'm glad he likes it

Links234

I really, really don't get the dislike of the wachowskis, the 3rd matrix was a big let down but they've made some seriously good movies. V for Vendetta was amazing too, they wrote and produced on that one.

Mr. Loverman

pm1977x wrote: »

As for David Mitchell giving it the thumbs up... I've huge respect for him, but he wouldn't be the first author to take the money and run, also if he happens to have any sort of stake in the film he's unlikely to want to run it down, and finally, even if he doesn't benefit financially from talking the film up, he's unlikely to come out and say it's crap having given the go-ahead to these people in the first place, at least until after it's released - but cynicism aside, I'm glad he likes it

I agree. At this stage he cannot say anything negative.

nervous_twitch

pm1977x wrote: »

As for David Mitchell giving it the thumbs up... I've huge respect for him, but he wouldn't be the first author to take the money and run, also if he happens to have any sort of stake in the film he's unlikely to want to run it down, and finally, even if he doesn't benefit financially from talking the film up, he's unlikely to come out and say it's crap having given the go-ahead to these people in the first place, at least until after it's released - but cynicism aside, I'm glad he like,s it

Eek. You have me worried now I suppose it was a big pay-cheque for him, but having read all of his books, I'd like to think there is some artistic integrity going on.

Maybe not though. Can't wait for October!

Helix

Just out of it. I haven't read the book, which I'm thankful for, because I think it could potentially have devalued the movie a touch. I was blown away tbh. It's absolutely phenomenal

I can see it being divisive, but for my money it's movie of the year so far

nervous_twitch

Bah, I'm so jealous. Read recently that we have to wait until March 2012 to see it. I really don't think I can hold out that long.

Did the reaction in Toronto match your own?

EDIT: Just as an aside, Mitchell was in Dun Laoghaire today giving a talk/reading as part of the Mountains to Sea Festival. Previewed some new material. He also said that he saw the film for the first time a fortnight ago in Berlin and loved it - mentioning he was glad he didnt have to be faux sincere about a 'turkey' of a movie

Helix

the reaction at the end was something ive never actually seen before in my limited movie experience, complete silence and people staying in their seats for about 3 minutes

Mickeroo

This is already being screened at festivals and we have to wait until March to see it? Well that sucks.

Mickeroo

Mickeroo wrote: »

This is already being screened at festivals and we have to wait until March to see it? Well that sucks.

If they don't change the European release date then this is going to be one of those titles that I'll have on Blu-Ray before it screens in cinemas here. Much as I'm looking forward to seeing this on the big screen I imagine that I'll instead be grabbing the American Blu-Ray which should be released around February/March of next year.

Helix

to be honest i think its more of a big screen theatrical event than a home view. itd lose a bit of the epicness on a tv. hopefully gonna go see it again on tuesday anyway as there's another press screening and im greedy

for anyone interested my review of it is here

5 stars obviously

don ramo

its ridiculous the US and our release date are so far apart, this film was hard enough to fund as it was, im kinda surprised they didnt release world wide to maximize the private investors profits,

it seems to be getting good reviews, im halfway through the book and now it looks like i have another 6 months to read the second half:o

Links234

I'm really annoyed we might not get to see this until March next year! :eek:

New trailer though!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQFAPeaJOf8

Corholio

A few reviews saying it was a mistake to use the same actors for the different 'times' in the film. Something I was a little worried about too, especially the way the characters are imagined in the book. Will be interesting nonetheless.

oxygen

There are so many little things wrong with this movie as far as I can see.

The same actors playing the same characters across the entire movie doesn’t really reflect the reincarnation aspect of the book, and it will confuse people. It lends itself more to time travel. If different actors played different characters with the same soul who only shared a birthmark that would make way more sense.

The stories are not nested, they are sequential. It starts with the story set furthest in the past, this completes and it moves onto the next story. The film ends with the story furthest in the future. The warzeski brothers could have made a much better effort of nesting the stories for better effect. In the book all the stories interlinked because of this format, without this you are just telling 5 short stories in one movie.

The casting is all over the place. Tom Hanks would have been excellent as the ship passenger from the first story, but not as the old man from the third story or the young man from the last story in the future. This is where they should have used different actors.

Also getting Halle Berry, Xun Zhou and Donna Bae to portray caucasian women possibly wont work that well, not because they cant technically pull it off, but we will just have watched them as not caucasian for the other 80% of the movie.

indough

thanks for ruining the movie

pm1977x

The more I see of Jim Broadbent the more he looks like he has just wandered in from the set of a live action Wallace & Gromit film

Helix

oxygen_temp wrote: »

It starts with the story set furthest in the past, this completes and it moves onto the next story

eh

no, it doesnt

doubting you've seen it based on the fact you got that wrong

Cardinal Richelieu

oxygen_temp wrote: »

Also getting Halle Berry, Xun Zhou and Donna Bae to portray caucasian women possibly wont work that well, not because they cant technically pull it off, but we will just have watched them as not caucasian for the other 80% of the movie.

Who is Donna Bae? Bae Doo-Na I think you mean.