To what extent is the dual narative in Atonement used to give us different versions of the story?

Explore how this is created by analysing technical details.

Briony and Cecilia's both have different experiences of the first scene where Cecilia gets into the pond. The disparity between the points of view is made clear by Briony's point-of-view shot and the physical gap between the two observers. The scene plays into Tsetsam Totorov's theory of equilibrium by disturbing the balance of Briony's life. Admittedly the 'point of conflict' does come very early on in the film but that's because it's the starting trigger which sets the events of the film in motion.
Briony's character is explained very quickly at the beginning of the film. One of the techniques for this is to associate her with a typewriter sound which denotes writing, and sometimes has a hurried pace to it to make the film seem exciting. This sound is used to great effect in a scene at a hospital where only the sound is heard and Briony is not seen but the link is made and the audience knows she will appear. She's also portrayed throughout the film as an observer, and one of the techniques used was to include lots of close-ups. Extreme close-ups of the eyes also denote an observer.


Cecilia isn't associated to anything and so isn't subject to any symbolism through film techniques.
There's some good use of lighting in the library scene where Robby and Cecilia kiss. On the one hand it's warmth and dimness and adds to the romantic atmosphere of the scene. But when Briony arrives the same lighting casts a different meaning onto the scene; the comparative darkness of the room becomes conspiratorial and suspicious.
Roland Barthes's hermeneutic code is used for the plot elements leading up to Robby's arrest. Yes, the plot is used primarily to advance itself but it also leads on the audience in guessing what's to happen next like a good thriller should do. The guessing becomes easier the closer to Robby's arrest and it becomes predictable. This is when the hermeneutic code is taken over by the proairetic code. The scene of Robby's arrest is where both Briony's and Cecilia's narratives merge and more interesting lighting is used to highlight the importance of the scene. There's a close-up shot in which the cold outside lighting and the warm lighting coming from inside are both visible on Cecilia's mother's face.
After Robby's arrest, two new narratives created: Cecilia's life as a nurse and Robby's life as a soldier. They are both fairly stereotypical roles to play and contrasts with their previous roles (Robby was training to be a doctor and Cecilia was an independent noble-woman). Briony's separate narrative does not arrive until later and the other man's abuse of the ginger-haired girl is largely forgotten or ignored until near the end.
There's some juxtaposition in showing the horrors of war from Robby's POV. A tracking shot follows him in a forest and shows his face slowly turn all sad, it then breaks off from him and shows what he's looking at - a lot of dead people. The calm and peacefulness of the wood is blended with the morbidity of the bodies. This causes some shock in the audience. At Dunkirk a beautiful beach and some typical fairground rides is juxtaposed with scenes of destruction. That beach scene is particularly interesting because it features a tracking shot that continues for over 4 minutes.
War is then shown from the 'home front' point of view with Briony at the hospital, she must sit by a man who's skull is broken, leaving his brain exposed. The surprise factor also shocks the audience as the scene leaves them unprepared for seeing it [the brain]. The mise-en-scene of Cecilia's apartment also shows how her circumstances have changed, it's smaller and more utilitarian. Her costume is plain and she wears the clothes of a working woman. This is different from the well-furnished mansion she lived in and the fine clothes she wore at the start of the film. It tells the audience that Cecilia's narrative and point of view of the war has changed.