History Literature / CloudAtlas

* SmugSnake: All of Hugh Grant's roles through the film are this, with the exception of the ''Sloosha's Crossing'' segments, in which he portays a CompleteMonster.

* TimeyWimeyBall: The narrative structure of the novel weaves together themes, ideas, and people forward and backward in time.

* YouWouldntShootMe: Guess again.

* VideoCredits: A good use of this trope in the film, showing all of the roles that each actor plays.

Describe ''Cloud Atlas'' (2004) here.

* ''Letters from Zedelghem'' - Frobisher is an English musician, penniless and unable to find work in his chosen field, in 1930's London. Frobisher is hired as an assistant to a composer, settling with his employer in Zedelgem, Belgium. Frobisher records his experiences in a series of letters, which he sends to his friend and lover Rufus Sixsmith. Much later in life, Sixsmith appears in...

The film version is written and directed by Tom Tykwer, the director of ''Film/RunLolaRun,'' and the Wachowksi siblings The AllStarCast includes TomHanks, HalleBerry, KeithDavid, HugoWeaving, Susan Sarandon, Hugh Grant, and many others.

** TruthInTelevision: California voted to split separate free and slave states, just before the outbreak of the Civil War.

* KnuckleTattoos: Tom Hanks's character in the 2012 story.

* CatapultNightmare: Hanks's character in the last story.

* ShootTheDog: Literally..

* TheMourningAfter: It's implied Sixsmith lived forty-five more years, but never loved again after Frobisher. Ouch.

* ShootTheDog: Literally.

* VideoCredits

The film version is written and directed by Tom Tykwer, the director of ''Film/RunLolaRun,'' and the Wachowksi siblings The cast includes Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Keith David, Hugo Weaving, Susan Sarandon, and many others.

** [[spoiler::Katy Forbes from Ghostwritten, who has a one night stand with someone who works for Cavendish, also has this birthmark.]]

The third novel by David Mitchell ([[NamesTheSame no]], not ''[[ThatMitchellAndWebbLook that]]'' David Mitchell), ''Cloud Atlas'' consists of six nested stories, each set in a different time and place, moving forwards in time from the 19th century all the way to an AfterTheEnd future. The protagonists of each story are linked by a comet-shaped birthmark, and often recognize names, places, and experiences from other stories.
* Adam Ewing. An American notary, returning by ship from the Chatham Islands, New Zealand, c. 1850. Ewing keeps a journal of his journey through the Pacific Ocean, which is read by...
* Robert Frobisher. An English musician, penniless and unable to find work in his chosen field. Frobisher is hired as an assistant to a composer, settling with his employer in Zedelgem, Belgium, c. 1931. Frobisher records his experiences in a series of letters, which he sends to his friend and lover Rufus Sixsmith. These letters are later read by...
* Luisa Rey. An American journalist. She investigates reports of ongoing corruption and a murder mystery connected to a Californian nuclear power plant, c. 1975. Her story is presented as a mystery novel manuscript read by...
* Timothy Cavendish. A British vanity press publisher. He gets in trouble with a client and ends up confined against his will in a nursing home in the early 21st century. His experience forms the basis of a film, which is watched by...
* Sonmi-451. A genetically-engineered clone, employed at Papa Song's diner. She lives in Nea So Copros (formerly Korea) in a dystopian near future. Clones have been created as slaves to a capitalist, totalitarian society. She faces execution for trying to rebel. Her story is told in a final interview, shortly before her execution. The recording of this interview, called an orison, is viewed by...
* Zachry. An elderly tribesman, living in a post-apocalyptic Hawaii, who meets Meronym, a member of Earth's last advanced civilization. His story is set in a distant future, where most of humanity has died out. He narrates his experiences around a camp-fire.

The third novel by David Mitchell ([[NamesTheSame no]], not ''[[ThatMitchellAndWebbLook that]]'' David Mitchell), ''Cloud Atlas'' consists of six nested stories, each set in a different time and place, moving forwards in time from the 19th century [[spoiler:all the way to an AfterTheEnd future]]. The protagonists of each story are linked by [[spoiler:a comet-shaped birthmark, and often recognize names, places, and experiences from other stories]].

The film version is written and directed by Tom Tykwer, the director of ''Film/RunLolaRun,'' and the Wachowksi siblings The cast includes Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Keith David, Hugo Weaving, Susan Sarandon...just check out the first trailer [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWnAqFyaQ5s here.]]

* AfterTheEnd: Zachary's era

* CrossThrough: You can argue that this is basically ''Cross Through: TheMovie''

* FunetikAksent: Zachary's narration

* HappinessInSlavery: Most fabricants

* HumansAreBastards: Played straight, subverted, invoked, played straight again, and discussed at length. Arguably, the degree of truth to this trope is the main theme of the novel.
* IntrepidReporter: Luisa Rey

** In one story, (''The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish''), the protagonist quotes ''SoylentGreen''. [[spoiler: In the next story this becomes horribly relevant]].
** The name of one story's title character, Luisa Rey, is an apparent [[ShoutOut reference]] to the book ''TheBridgeOfSanLuisRey'' by Thornton Wilder.
*** Sonmi[[RayBradbury 451]]'s number

A film written and directed by Tom Tykwer, the director of ''Film/RunLolaRun,'' and the Wachowksi siblings, is in the works. The cast includes Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Keith David, Hugo Weaving, Zhou Xun...just check out the first trailer [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWnAqFyaQ5s here.]]

The third novel by David Mitchell ([[NamesTheSame no]], not ''[[ThatMitchellAndWebbLook that]]'' David Mitchell), ''Cloud Atlas'' consists of six nested stories, each set in a different time and place, moving forwards in time from the 19th century all the way to an AfterTheEnd future. The protagonists of each story are linked by a comet-shaped birthmark, and often recognize names, places, and experiences from other stories.

* TitleDrop: In the last chapter, the narrating character talks about wishing he had some kind of map to track souls as they move across the ages, like clouds across the sky. He calls it a CloudAtlas.