An important movie theme that needs to be told - Kate can carry it

Rating: Null/10 (16 January 2009)

It is about time that we had movies about the Holocaust that give the perspective taken from the ordinary German person's dilemma. This adaptation is sensitive and needed a very mature cast to carry it off and it has succeeded. Kate Winslet is magnificent and she is so real and human in this film - she becomes German - she is totally believable. A relationship with a 15 year old is not an easy thing to convey - both actors are mesmerising. Their relationship was beautifully portrayed, every detail of the lifestyle, the atmosphere of the time they lived in , the age difference, the sexuality, the family relationship, the peer group and also the pain of the older woman and her history plus the innocence of the younger man - PERFECT! The reason I cannot give this beautiful film 10 is because they did not age Michael enough when he has already moved on and become a law student. He looks the same as when he was 15 and it does not quite convince - the fact that he chain smokes is not enough to convey age. There was a major miscast with his girlfriend at college because she looked like Kate Moss and it was distracting - she was too contemporary looking. Whoever was responsible for the casting in this film made some crucial mistakes. Ralph Fiennes was wrong for the wrong of the older Michael. He was convincing in his style because he could convey the uptight Germanic type but in fact this interpretation perhaps was not correct - Michael showed signs of passion in youth and originality - surely that would have continued into middle age? I do not feel Fiennes captured the essence of Michael and that was a shame - he was too 'wooden'. It needed to be more open and feeling; in that sense he seemed more British in his emotions and stiff upper lip characteristics. I think Fiennes is a great actor so he cannot really fail, but more was needed.
The ending of the film was very moving and Winslet was amazing to the end. I think this is a very very good film.