Arts & Entertainment

Cloud Atlas

Based on the bestseller by David Mitchell,  “Cloud Atlas” follows the stories of six people’s “souls” across time.  The six interrelated and interwoven stories take the viewer from the South Pacific in the 19th century to a distant, post-apocalyptic future.  The ambitious film is directed by the triumvirate of Lana and Andy Wachowski and Tom Tykwer. It stars Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Susan Sarandon, Hugh Grant and others, playing multiple characters from the past, present and future. Each actor’s characters, however, are all inhabited by the same soul. “Cloud Atlas” has divided critics, some of whom believe it to be a pretentious and manipulative exercise not worth its 103-million-dollar budget, while others have lauded the directors for their sincerity, sensitivity and ground-breaking creativity.  In years to come, “Cloud Atlas” may be talked about in the same breath as “Blade Runner” or “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Running time: 172 minutes. Rated: R.