With Gangster Squad having been pushed back to 2013 due to reshoots it means I have a space in my top 10 films to look out for this year.
Say hello to Cloud Atlas. Where everything is connected.
I had never heard of this until the other day. The Wachowski’s are back and what looks like an absolute masterpiece. The film looks visibly stunning and the trailer, standing at a whopping 5:42, comes together with the fantastic Outro by M83 playing over the top.
I won’t lie, even though it looks great I did feel a little lost watching the trailer but I’m hoping that once the film comes together we will have something fantastic.
Cloud Atlas is out October 2012
thefriedgold 
This looks INSANE. Getting some Fountain vibe with a splash of Matrix going on here. This book has been on my reading list for a long time, just never got around to it, will probably hold off until I’ve seen the film now.
Looks visually stunning, but could be a big horrible mess (let us not forget the Matrix Reloaded/Revolutions) – will await initial reviews before deciding whether to splash cash on it.
I really don’t like Berry for some reason, but Keith David more than makes up for that; I’m hoping he has a random 15 minute wrestling match with Rowdy Roddy Piper half way through.
I feel the opposite to DeeDubya – I want to read the book first before seeing this as I don’t trust the Wachowski’s with making a good film (last good film being the matrix IMO). And I don’t want their interpretation clouding (see what I did there?!) my reading of the book. So I really want to see this trailer and I really want this to be a good film but I won’t do either until I have read the book.
I know I know this is a film site, I am a heretic, I am sorry. But until they do a good film I stand by my choice!
It is a tough question that has plagued mankind since cinema began – read the book or watch the film first?
I once thought it was always better to read the text before seeing the film – but I’ve come to the realisation that this sets the film viewing at a disadvantage, as from having read the book you intimately know the story and have a much deeper appreciation of the characters than a film can possibly hope to achieve in 2-3 hours, so the film is always going to struggle to meet your interpretation.
I enjoy watching the film, judging it on it’s own merits with everything that happens being a surprise, and then reading the book to delve deeper into the story.
Plus, nobody likes a wise-ass who sits there through the movie saying “well, that’s NOT how it happened in the book!” …But then again, you like being a wise-ass 🙂
Your point about the film interpretation clouding your reading experience may be valid, however I think that visually this looks pretty stunning, so I’m not afraid to have the worlds I build in my imagination while reading the book coloured by what I have already seen on the screen. Any problems with narrative, screenplay or characterisations are void as the book gives you it’s own, vastly more involving and complete version of the story.
I saw ‘I am Legend’ before reading the book, and while the film is pretty much toilet water (with those horrific CG creations and painful Hollywood-ised ending), I still appreciated and loved the book, to the point where it is one of my favourite reads ever. I cannot say that the film interpretation has in any way contaminated my reading experience.
So there.