Waiting for Keira and James can be exhausting

Atonement is suffering from a severe case of what I call film fatigue. Actually, it is the public, not the film, that came down with the disease.

Symptoms include cynicism, ennui and a diminished willingness to appreciate Joe Wright’s epic for the finely crafted masterwork that it is.

Conditions which brought it on include the subject matter — Atonement is, admittedly, an epic romantic tragedy.

Plus the grind of the awards season — Atonement launched in North America at the Toronto filmfest, was prominent in a variety of contests and powered its way to seven Oscar nominations, including best picture. Even at this point, however, the fatigue factor might have sabotaged Oscar nomination campaigns for co-stars James McAvoy and Keira Knightley, despite stellar work as star-crossed lovers.

Plus there was the film’s company in the best picture category — four of the five, including Oscar winner No Country for Old Men, were rife with brutal violence and/or melancholy and tragedy.

By Oscar night, fatigue had taken over. Atonement won just a single Academy Award — to Dario Marianelli for his superb score. His uncanny use of a syncopated typewriter tap with piano and strings created a unique blend of ambient sound and musical instruments.

Part of the blame, perhaps, is with the media for channelling its chatter and creating trumped-up expectations. More blame rests in the over-marketing of films as they move from festivals to theatres to awards events and on to DVD.

Even great artistic accomplishments — Atonement has never changed from day one — seem to transform into products for sale, souring the experience. We grow weary of the hype. It is film fatigue.