Reader [Blu-ray] [2008] [US Import]

The film:

"The Reader" deserved its Oscar for best actress, but it also deserved the Oscar for best film (it lost to the inferior "Slumdog Millionaire.") It tells the tale of a young man growing up in post-war Germany who has an affair with a mysterious older woman. Without spoiling too much, the story ends up touching on the holocaust, how much we can blame participants, and whether or not love transcends these historical pains.

Normally, I dislike holocaust films. I find that Hollywood too often beats us over the head with the "it's BAD" message (This Just In! Hollywood Geniuses Discover Holocaust Was Bad!) as opposed to mining the much more interesting tales of personal struggle, loss, redemption, and ignorance. "The Reader" offers an intelligent, probing, and insightful look at the human costs on those who were not direct victims, and on the society of post-war Germany at large. It also tells a heck of a love story, to boot.

I felt so respected by the makers of this film. There is no heavy-handed moralizing, in fact, the message of the film seems to be that, while of course there are great moral wrongs that have been perpetrated, there are lesser consequences which do not make it into history books, but do have an impact on real people and deal them real pains that ought to be respected.

As mentioned in other reviews, this is not a movie for the kids, at least not kids who still titter when they see nudity on screen. The first half of the film is consumed by a lusty affair between a 32 year old and a 15 year old. It's not for immature audiences.

The Blu-Ray:

On the opening scene, I thought this film must be shot on digital. The source was just too clean, with little to no film grain in evidence. Upon further research, however, I have discovered that it was indeed shot on Kodak Vision2 and Vision3 film - which Kodak advertises as producing less grain in low light and in general. Given this, and the fact that detail is generally so strong in this image, I can only assume that this Blu-Ray has been mastered without excessive Digital Noise Reduction.

It is a lovely 1.85:1 image which suits nice widescreen displays beautifully. Black levels are strong, loads of detail is evident in shadows, and colors are extremely naturalistic. There are many moments that offer the sort of "3-D" realism that the best HD can give. The quality of the image adds immediacy and impact to the already involving film.

Audio is very dialogue driven. This is not a BD that will rock your neighbors.

Extras are very strong. 42 minutes (!) of deleted scenes are presented in 480p widescreen. I watched them all, and I would say only one cut was truly unfortunate - a little bit of backstory for Michael's law professor that would have added depth to the story. Mini-documentaries are also available, touching on the writing and casting process, as well as Kate Winslet's aging with make-up. Overall, it's a very strong slate of extras.

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Any fan of serious dramas and romances would do quite well to pick this up. It's a truly great movie that is very affecting and also thought provoking. It's a monument to respecting the viewer, allowing them to digest complex morality without beating them over the head with a "message." I would compare it to films like "The English Patient" or "I've Loved You So Long" (another 2008 Oscar Nominee).

It is also presented in an exceedingly beautiful HD transfer and a strong package of extras. Certainly, if you're doing a survey of 2008 Oscar nominees, you should pick this up over the trite, pat Hollywood fare of "Slumdog." It's also better than the very good, but somewhat flabby "Benjamin Button," and the excellent, but not as brainy "Milk." I can't recommend it enough.

Kate Winslet had a great year in 2008 with 2 fine films, "Revolutionary Road" which I've just seen in Blu-ray and this film which netted her a deserved Oscar though I think it would've been nice to see her split it with Angelina Jolie who also gave an excellent performance in "Changeling". Though she has little dialogue in this film, she nevertheless conveys her character through gestures and nuances while David Kloss, as the young 15 yr old she seduces, carries the guilt and conscience of the new Germany. One can see why the novel was a hugh hit in its homeland. David Hare's screenplay also deserves mention for the spare dialogue and the final confrontation scene between Ralph Fiennes as the grown up David and Lena Olin as a Holocaust survivor is one of many excellent acted scenes in this fine film. I saw this last Xmas in a theater and I intend to see it one more time on video. Special mention should made also of Bruno Ganz (Hitler in "Downfall") as David's teacher.

I've read the book. I've seen the movie. I liked both. Definitely 4 stars each.

The movie follows the book very closely. The acting is excellent, especially Kate Winslet as Hanna Schmitz. The directing and cinematography are top notch, and the locations are accurately portrayed with sets spanning the last five decades of the 20th century. The story takes place in German after WWII in the long dark shadow of the holocaust. A young man of late high school age, Michael, has a love affair with an older woman, Hanna, who was a prison guard during WWII. The first part of the movie is a coming-of-age story. The second part of the movie centers around Hanna's actions during WWII, her subsequent trial and imprisonment, and Michael's adult life. The story does have a significant twist, Hanna's illiteracy. It makes me wonder what her childhood was like, probably austere or even abusive, but neither the book nor the movie give us any hints in that regard.

My wife and I enjoyed the love story and found the social context and deeper moral conundrums very interesting. (The DVD extras and special features provide additional background material.) What at first seems to be a relatively simple story, contains several personal, emotional, and historical complexities. I think that's what they call "subtle." Here's another element that helps the film: The older Michael Berg played by Ralph Fiennes is a plausible representation of the younger Michael Berg played by David Kross. You can see the younger man in the older man's face. But the weight of his youth has turned his adult life into an abstraction. Hanna has spoiled him for all other women. He has become The Reader.

Near the end of the movie, Lena Olin does a masterful job of playing the last survivor of the church fire which resulted in the deaths of 300 Jewish prisoners. She's perceptive, wise, and self assured. Her performance gives the movie a small, but vital, degree of closure. The victim speaks. She's not a stodgy, old woman trying to remember the events of 50 years ago, but a sharp, insightful maven who knows a thing or two about suffering, human nature, and justice. Imagine the situation as it really was: smell the smoke, see the flames, feel the heat, hear the women and children screaming. Then comes the morning after. Silence. 300 people burned alive... a footnote to the immense history of Nazi Germany.