Kenneth Branagh and Reed Van Dyk on the War Drama ‘Atonement’: ‘It Requires Patience of the Heart’

Reed Van Dyk‘s first feature film “Atonement” explores the aftermath of an Iraq War tragedy. The film is inspired by the 2012 New Yorker article by Dexter Filkins.

Speaking ahead of the film’s Toronto Film Festival premiere, Van Dyk recalls coming across the article many years ago. He says, “I wouldn’t have been able to maybe name then what it was that drew me to it. But in making it, I can say that, to me, there was something profoundly moving about all of these different sides of a war sitting down together and almost in spite of themselves. It feels like they’re reaching for each other, which to me was a very human and awkward and beautiful thing to happen.”

His is a war drama that examines themes of trauma, PTSD, family tragedy and, ultimately, forgiveness. Reflecting on his initial reaction to the article, Van Dyk says that he was particularly interested in exploring the journey people take after war.

“Atonement” stars Boyd Holbrook, “Succession’s” Hiam Abbass and Kenneth Branagh. It follows the Khachaturian family, who are displaced from their home by U.S. military action during the early days of the Iraq War. They find refuge with relatives, gathering three generations together under one roof. However, when another bombing erupts nearby, they decide to return to their home across the city. As they navigate the war-torn streets of Baghdad, the family is caught in a firefight between U.S. Marines and insurgents. A Marine’s split-second decision devastates the family: Mariam (Abbass) waves her white handkerchief out the window to signal that they’re civilians who have come in peace, but it’s too late. Her husband and two adult sons step out of the car, and in an instant, they are lying dead in the street.

Years later, Lou D’Alessandro (Holbrook), suffering from PTSD, reaches out to Michael Reid (Branagh), a fictionalized version of Filkins to help coordinate a meeting between him and the surviving family members, in the hopes of easing his pain.

“There was this trio of characters who I was fascinated by, and so it was an opportunity to explore them, their lives and how they were processing this very crazy incident in particular, but a war at large,” Van Dyk explains.

That meeting scene is where he really sends a message of reflection and forgiveness.

Van Dyk shot the film in order which he says was helpful when it came to shooting that key scene. “Everyone had these lived experiences of that initial tragedy,” he explains. “On the day we filmed the sit-down scene, the emotion was just spilling out of everyone. I suppose that’s a question that lingers in your mind — will everyone be ready to meet the moment of this very challenging scene that I’ve lived with for so long?”

“The emotions were spilling out of everyone,“ he recalls. “We stopped our rehearsal and started shooting it. I’ll say that the crew and I became an audience. I was deeply moved over and over again by the emotional commitment that everyone had in that scene.”

For his part, Branagh says he reached out to Filkins, who he describes as “a pragmatic, practical man” who is “highly intelligent.” That communication helped him understand both Filkins and the character he was playing. Branagh says, “When I spoke to him about his impression of what happened in that small room when those two people met after a decade to discuss this unimaginable loss and inner confusion and suffering that they both felt in their very separate ways, I said, ‘What was it like?’ He said, ‘I think it was the most intense experience I’ve ever witnessed.’”

Van Dyk adds, “That scene looms large as you’re preparing the movie, but it had a kind of effortlessness in the playing of it and it was really beautiful to experience.”

Looking back, Branagh says aside from speaking with Filkins, the film gave him a deeper appreciation of the courage required to listen and to hear and to stay in the room. He says, “To be in the middle of an undeniably difficult conversation or experience that benefits from consideration — not instant reaction.” He went on to say, “We live in a world where we aren’t tuned for that. We’re tuned for instant reaction to sensory overload. This required the consideration of a slowly drawn — out and profound experience. It requires patience of the heart.”