THE POPCORN REEL FILM REVIEW/"The Reader"
Recollecting His First Love Amidst Secrets And History In Germany
Kate Winslet, excellent here as Hanna Schmitz
and David Kross, also very good as young Michael Berg in late 1950's Germany, in
"The Reader", directed by Stephen Daldry. (Photo: The Weinstein Company)
By
Omar P.L. Moore/December
12, 2008
As moving and complex as any dramatic love story put on film in many years, "The
Reader" is a staggering achievement. Set in post-war Germany, Stephen
Daldry's film starts in 1958 with an ailing 15-year-old boy named Michael Berg
(played by Germany's David Kross, who is excellent here in his first English
language film) soon becoming entangled in an intense summer affair with
36-year-old Hanna Schmitz (Kate Winslet), a woman who takes him in when she sees
his plight. Their relationship builds very quickly. They have sex.
He reads to her at her request. It is a harmonious, mostly joyous
interaction, filled with the sensual pleasures every adolescent boy with raging
hormones dreams of. Hanna is Michael's first love, and he has fallen head
over heels for her in every way, finding her physicality irresistible and her
personality warm and adventurous.
"The Reader" follows what happens when the music begins to slow down in the
relationship between the two. Secrets are harbored and they will emerge.
It seems that throughout Hanna is trying to come to terms with her past,
struggling to grow up and bypass the past. She is childlike, aloof and
oblivious to life, while Michael, 21 years her junior, is the adult, trying to
confront the elements of life that trouble him. He has never seemed to
fully grasp the effects of Hanna and her past, but even more than that perhaps
has never come to terms with the first intimate relationship with a woman in his
life. He is seeking closure and a sense of understanding through the
weight of the intense events of history, and this is ultimately what the "The
Reader" is about. The written word is a profound variable in "The Reader",
as it represents the breadth and distance of all the unspoken words of a
generation gap between these two lovers. The film moves back and forth in
an even, discreet pace between an older, contemporary Michael (Ralph Fiennes),
who is recollecting the events of his younger life, and the younger Michael of
yesteryear. The film's editing by Claire Simpson is masterful, as is
the wonderful music score by Nico Muhly.
Mr. Daldry, who has crafted films like the Oscar-winning "The Hours", directs
"The Reader" with a steady, assured hand. He moves the story from Exhibit
A to Exhibit B to Exhibit C and so on, while ever so gently introducing Michael
to predicaments that will test both his confidence and belief in innocence and
the sudden realization of the complexity of humanity. Mr. Daldry's camera
is both an observer and a discoverer, like a delicate paintbrush that flows and
then stands back to occasionally observe what it has done, realizing that the
brushing strokes committed to the canvas need to have more power and urgency.
There are some powerful images in what is an otherwise genteel, poignant film,
including an image late in the second half of "The Reader" of an article of
footwear that renders such emotion, especially when we've seen a shot from
earlier on that so shakes and disturbs us. David Hare's screenplay is
balanced and reveals a matter-of-fact sense of storytelling.
Filled with elegance, tapestry and great scope, "The Reader", which is based on
the German-language bestselling novel of the same name by Bernhard Schlink,
breaks into four small pieces: the late 1950's and late 1960's, the mid 1970's,
the late 1980's and late 1990's, and around 2005, all centered in Germany, with
one or two exceptions. The film, released by The Weinstein Company, works
as a terrific mystery as well as a romance. How much do you love someone?
How far would you go to justify that love? To defend it? To abandon
it in the name of love?
There are many questions that "The Reader" invites, but there is no question
that aside from those in "Doubt" and the forthcoming "Revolutionary Road" (which
also stars Ms. Winslet), the best performances of the year are here. Kate
Winslet secretes herself, playing an intense and introverted individual despite
her role as a teacher of love with a wretched past. She has to convey a
sense of escaping herself and seeking out young Michael may be a way out for
her, to reconnect to something childlike, to ground herself in innocence as a
defense mechanism to shield her from herself. Ms. Winslet not only
understands this premise in her character but acts the hell out of it. The
greatest, most laudatory part of her work here is in her silences, in the
flickers of a buried past. She so desperately wants to be alive again.
She desperately wants to atone and enjoy life. Her chemistry with Mr.
Kross is astounding. Ms. Winslet will undoubtedly be recognized for her
work here, certainly with a nomination, and even though there's probably more
nuance in her role as a 1950's American housewife in "Revolutionary Road" for
which she will win the best actress Oscar, there is a question as to whether
this is a lead role (I say yes) as opposed to the supporting role status that
yesterday's Golden Globe nominations had given it. We shall see what the
Academy says next month.
Ralph Fiennes has his best performance since his Oscar nomination 14 years ago
for playing a Nazi commanding officer in "Schindler's List". As the older
Michael Berg, Mr. Fiennes is the film's conflicted conscience. His acting
is at times heartbreaking and deeply moving, as he seeks to be a reconciling
force, both within himself and within the larger scale of life's events, and to
watch his acting at times in "The Reader" is a great joy. It is as if Mr.
Fiennes still wrestles with the precocious younger Michael within. The
emotion and genuine way in which he inhabits Michael is poetic and without
vanity. His character has his own indiscretions and fears and Mr. Fiennes
never showcases or justifies them. The Welsh actor deserves consideration
for what is a triumph in acting. This year he played rogues or violent
characters in films like relatively small-budget films like "The Duchess" and
"In Bruges", but in another independent film like "The Reader" he conveys an
honesty, openness and sensitivity that authenticates his character. It's
an unguarded and emotionally naked performance, something that we haven't seen a
lot of from Mr. Fiennes in his film career with the exception of "The Constant
Gardener". He does so very well here in "The Reader".
"The Reader" doesn't justify Hanna's character, and another character in the
film underlines this with a remark that is made late on. "The Reader" is
one of the year's very best, and while it may not win many or any Oscars, in a
decade or three it will be remembered in much the way non-Oscar films like "Do
The Right Thing" has been, almost 20 years after its release.
With: The legendary Bruno Ganz, Lena Olin and Alexandra Maria Lara.
"The Reader" is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America for some
scenes of sexuality and nudity. The film's running time is two hours and
three minutes. The film opened on December 10 in New York City, and opens
today in San Francisco and Los Angeles before expanding to other U.S. cities on
Christmas Day and everywhere across the U.S. and Canada on January 9.
Among the producers of "The Reader" are the late Anthony Minghella and Sydney
Pollack, both of whom passed away within the last twelve months.
Related: The Popcorn Reel
Video Review Of "The Reader" (97 seconds)
Related: "The Reader" on The Popcorn Reel Ten Best Films of
2008 list
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