Atonement

I was quite pleasantly surprised by the movie Atonement. It is not a religious movie but the undertone of the movie is definitely religious. The movie is about how an innocent girl can cause so much pain and suffering upon others, and the price she needs to pay, or tries to pay, for the damages she has done. The story line is simple but the way the story is told is extraordinary.

There are lots of symbols in the movie, like the washing of Robbie's feet before he died, and the wine and the bread he took with his comrade, also just before his death. Both point to the end of his life journey, and the restoration of communion between him and God, him and fellow men. Earlier on in his life as a soldier, Robbie stumbled on a field where a number of young girls were killed. This triggered a memory of Briony who dived into a river to see if he would jump in to rescue her. I think he finally appreciated the innocence of Briony and wished he had picked up on that. Perhaps he realized how deep a love Briony had for him, and how he has also disappointed her gravely. Robbie also needs to atone even for his carelessness. Then Cecillia dives under water at the beginning of the movie that signals the beginning of her love to Robbie. At the end, she was drowned by a flood that concludes her love.

Briony can represent any of us, that through our many innocent acts or deliberate acts, all of us have inflicted much pain upon others. Some we are aware of, and many we aren't. Perhaps we are all like Briony. We all need to atone for our sins. It is interesting that Briony is dressed mostly in white throughout the entire movie, except at the end. We can look and act so innocently, and yet, our motives can be so evil. Perhaps at the end, she finally realizes that after all, she is not as pure and as innocent as she thought of herself, and she finally dresses the way that reflects who she really is .. just like any other ordinary person.