In 1935 England, a 13-year-old girl named Briony Tallis, is in her room, working on a play. She shows it to her mother, who is proud of her.

Briony is writing it for her brother as he comes home from something important. She has her cousins rehearse for it. They include Lola, who is a bit older than Briony, and young twin boys, who want to play. Lola acts like an authority figure to her brothers.

Meanwhile, Cecilia, Briony’s older sister, meets this boy, Robbie, and falls in love with him. They spend a lot of romantic moments together.

However, Briony can’t help but feel like something is fishy about Robbie. She even reads a note that Robbie wrote for Cecilia.

Sometime later, when Cecilia and Robbie are making love with each other, Briony comes into that room. And she thinks she saw something harmful.

At dinner, Lola comes under a lot of stress. She says that the twins hurt her and then ran away. Regardless of that, though, Briony’s mom forces her to find the twins and bring them to dinner.

Later, while out, Briony spots a guy assaulting Lola, who is on the ground crying. Briony suspects that it’s Robbie and believes that he really is a danger to everyone—especially Cecilia.

Because of Briony’s accusation, everyone thinks that Robbie is a threat. Although Briony’s mom demands that she goes to bed, she and the others watch Robbie get arrested.

Four years later, after WWII began, Robbie is in prison for his apparent actions. Then he is drafted into the war.

He remembers that six months ago, he met Cecilia, who has become a nurse. Unfortunately, he experiences the horrors of war as well as the aftermath. The soldiers do get to enjoy drinking and singing at a bar. But that makes no difference for Robbie.

Briony has become a nurse, just like her sister. She treats different wounded soldiers, including one who speaks only French.

She also attends a wedding between Lola and Paul Marshall, a friend of her and Cecelia’s older brother, Leon. In addition, she finds out that he was the one who hurt Lola—not Robbie.

Regardless of how many years have passed since Robbie’s arrest, Cecilia is unable to forgive Briony for accusing him. When Briony visits Cecilia, Robbie explodes at her, making her guilty of putting him through the disturbances of prison and war.

The good news is that Robbie’s conviction can be overturned. But will that be a success?

This movie was a little bit peculiar in that the first half was lighthearted, and the second half was dark. I know that’s important. But I prefer that stories maintain a consistent tone throughout their duration. Of course, there should be calmer moments in tales focused on war or any other extreme subject.

Another issue I had with this film was that it was sometimes hard to follow. There was a lot going on, particularly during the second half. So, I got confused at times.

On the bright side, this movie did have strengths. One was Briony as a character. She was talented, but flawed. The depiction of her mother reminded audiences how strict parents were back in the 1930s. They wouldn’t give leeway like some might today.

I also admire the casting choice for Briony when she got older. Both actresses playing her are not even related.

I do wish there was more about Briony’s play shown. But I understand why it stopped after a certain point.

Even though Robbie went to war, I still appreciate the romance between him and Cecilia. I felt sorry for what Robbie went through after getting arrested.

I found it interesting that some of the soldiers sang in an informal chorus after their time fighting. That’s actually historically accurate.

Overall, I thought Atonement was decent. The strengths were just a little greater than the weaknesses.

Another important thing to note is that this movie is rated R for language, sexual content, smoking, and war violence.

Anyway, I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars.