Keira Knightley's nurse outfit and vase prop from Atonement...

On my most recent visit to Universal Studios Hollywood to peruse their latest collection of original costumes and props on display on July 30, 2013, I spied this period nurse outfit and broken vase from the 2007 tragic war romance, Atonement, and realised I had an unopened DVD of the movie sitting in a pile of others waiting to be seen.

Original nurse costume and vase prop from Atonement

After popping the film in and watching it, I had a whole other perspective on this movie exhibit. Based on the 2001 novel of the same name by Ian McEwan, this Joe Wright directed adaptation tells the story of a crime, a lie and the consequences spanning several decades.

In 1935 James McAvoy and Keira Knightley play young lovers, 'Robbie' and 'Cecelia', who are caught in a compromising situation in the library by her younger sister 'Briony', played by Saoirse Ronan. Confused about her emotions she later accuses Robbie of sexually assaulting her cousin in the woods, which sees him sent off to prison and subsequently drafted by the army for the war.

World War II nurse uniform worn by Keira Knightley 

as Cecelia Tallis in Atonement

Three and a half years after Robbie is accused of the crime, before he's shipped off to the French front, he and Cecelia, who is now estranged from her family, meet again and renew their love for each other when she is serving in the nursing corps at St. Thomas Hospital in London.

Broken vase prop from Atonement

This broken vase prop is significant as it features in the fountain scene at the beginning of the movie between Robbie and Cecelia which is misinterpreted by Briony from a distant window. After bringing the ornate (some would say hideous) vase down to the fountain to get some water for the flowers she's put in it, Cecelia breaks the handle and to paraphrase, she says it's probably the most valuable thing her family own and Robbie quips "not anymore".

Sadly things do not end well for the couple, but I don't want to spoil things for those who've not seen the film, although Briony comes to regret her lie and tries to atone for her mistake when she grows up to be a famous author.

Atonement movie poster

Jacqueline Durran is Costume Designer on the movie and she's worked with director Joe Wright and Keira Knightley before on Pride & Prejudice, and most recently on 2012's Anna Karenina for which she won a highly coveted Academy Award. Be sure to check out her Oscar-winning costumes from Anna Karenina on display.