Practically Perfect Book Adaptation

Rating: 8/10 (18 February 2014)

I read the novel "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak because this was required reading for one of my kids in her English class, and I would like to be able to help in case she needed it. For very young readers, it may not be the easiest book to start reading as the beginning chapters were rather mysteriously written, and the experience of any war may not be familiar. Despite a difficult beginning, the book eventually absorbed me in its tale of life in Germany during World War II.
The story was innovatively narrated by Death himself. The language used by the author was poetic, rather than straightforward. The author's use of descriptive metaphors was very original and evocative. This made the book an exercise in imagination as you picture the movie in your mind as the less than pleasant story unfolded with the beautiful prose. When the movie came out, we went to watch it to see if our movie in our heads matched the one envisioned by the filmmakers.
It is 1939 in Nazi Germany. Liesel Meminger loses her mother and brother, and was brought to foster parents Hans and Rosa Hubermann on Himmel Street. From her beloved foster father Hans, Liesel develops a life-long love affair with the written word. This beautiful obsession happened as she struggled through the difficulties of war, the air raids, and the deaths; even if she had to steal the books she reads.
For me, the actors cast did not really exactly match with the way I imagined Liesel, the Hubermanns and the other characters in my head, but they did very well in their assigned roles.
Sophie Nelisse, the pretty child actress who played Liesel, did creditably well in her difficult role. She had won an acting award already in her native Canada with her very first film role at age 10. Now 12 years old, with her riveting lead performance here, it looks like she has a promising international career ahead of her as well.
Award-winning actors like Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson definitely brought on the acting gravitas required for a serious piece like this. Both of them were so effective in being able to convey their emotions with only their facial expressions, even without a word being said.
Special mention has to be given to young Nico Liersch who played Liesel's best friend, Rudy Steiner. He plays his rascal role so naturally and charismatically. Fortunately, Liersch also had excellent chemistry with Nelisse, so we will also cherish the relationship between Rudy and Liesel.
On the other hand, Ben Schnetzer, the actor who played Max Vandenburg, I felt was a bit lacking in his performance. Max is a heavier and more dramatically-loaded role than Rudy, yet he failed to connect with me the way Schnetzer portrayed him.
The script is actually almost a perfect adaptation of the book by Michael Petroni, which is a good thing for the book's fans. The script shares the same love for words as the book does. The film touches on all the important parts of the book.
As directed by Brian Percival, the film unfolds more literally than the book. However, we will care about what happens to Liesel's foster parents, her best friend Rudy, her secret Jew friend in the basement Max, her book benefactress Ilsa Herrmann, and of course, Liesel herself. The horrors of war were still there, but these were shown very sensitively in full consideration of the young audience it targets.
Although as in most adaptations, due to the constraints of a reasonable running time, the film skips through many details. In particular, the ending felt rushed as it was shown as a montage of only wordless scenes and dramatic music (by John Williams), with the story told via a voice- over narration. The words used were very eloquent, and can still evoke deep emotion. But those who read the book know that the missing details could have made a more dramatic impact that what was shown.