Sad and slow. This was missing something to make it as powerful and emotional as it was going for. For me at least.

Rating: 5/10 (5 February 2014)

"I'm always finding humans at their best and their worst. I see their ugliness and their beauty and I wonder how the same thing can be both." At the beginning of World War 2 a young girl named Liesel (Nélisse) is sent to live with a foster family. The mother is upset that she only got one child while the father (Rush) falls instantly in love with Liesel. When he finds out she in unable to read he begins to teach her. This simple act of kindness changes the lives of everyone. This is a very hard movie to review. The subject matter is powerful and anything set in Germany during WWII comes with a certain aura itself. This movie however was just so slow moving and at times so boring I found it hard to stay focused on. The innocence of the little girl set against the backdrop of Nazi Germany is a great contrast and a good idea but the execution was lacking. I wasn't expecting an action movie or anything but it was just so slow that I really couldn't get into it. Also this is one of the most depressing things I have ever seen so the fact that it was very slow and depressing makes it hard for me to recommend. Overall, sad and slow. This was missing something to make it as powerful and emotional as it was going for. For me at least. I give it a C+