Kate Winslet's best performance ever.

Rating: 9/10 (27 January 2009)

The Reader is a deep, emotionally wrenching drama. Kate Winslet gives a superb performance, as Hannah Schmitz. Hannah had participated in heinous crimes against Jews, during World War II. Hannah is lonely, and leads an isolated life. She has no family, friends, or companions. After the war ends, Hannah is living alone and working in Berlin, Germany.
One miserably rainy day in 1958 Berlin, 15-year-old Michael Berg becomes sick, while coming home from school. Hannah happens to spot Michael vomiting, outside of her apartment building. She helps Micheal clean-up, and then sends him home. Michael is later diagnosed with Scarlet Fever, and has to stay in bed for weeks, to fully recover.
Michael returns to see Hannah after his convalescence, bringing her flowers to thank her. He spots Hannah putting a stocking on her bare leg, as he's leaving. Hannah sees him ogling her. Hannah is in her 30s. And she's seen as being wise and worldly, by the naive Micheal.
Next time that Micheal returns to Hannah's, she asks him to do some chores. When working, Michael gets filthy, and Hannah insists that he bathe, before he leaves. While Micheal is in the tub, Hannah slips quietly into the bathroom. She strips naked, and slyly seduces Micheal, right then and there. It's the start of a summer affair between them.
During their time together, Hannah insists the Michael read a variety of literature, poems, and prose to her. Hannah cannot read herself. And she comes to rely on Michael's readings, to expand her understanding of the world, as well as for own pleasure. By the end of the summer of '58, the affair between Hannah and Michael ends. Michael then attends law school, to pursue a law career.
As fate would have it, Hannah is caught and tried for her participation in Nazi war crimes. Michael is a part of the trial, as a budding lawyer. He had no idea that Hannah could be capable of such vicious acts. It's all a devastating revelation for Micheal, and he tries to figure out how to handle it.
As the years pass, Michael continues to be entwined in Hannah's life, even after she's sentenced to prison, and he grows up and marries someone else. Micheal just can't abandon Hannah, and this leads to his realization, of how deep his feelings are for her. For Micheal, this leads ultimately to tragic heartbreak.
This film belongs to Kate Winslet, who should win an Oscar. Ralph Fiennes as the adult Micheal Berg, is good, but not great. He seems to be trying too hard, to convey sorrowful angst. David Kross plays the young Micheal Berg, and his performance shows an incredible emotional fluency. He too, should win an Oscar.
The bleak, murky city streets of Berlin, set the emotional tone for the movie. There's always a feeling of heavy gloom, running throughout the course of this film. The racy sex scenes between Hannah and young Michael, manage to temporarily jolt the viewer out of the somber mood that cloaks the film. The full-frontal nude scenes of young Micheal, are alarming though, especially since he's a minor. The producers probably thought that explicit male nudity is hip. It just winds up being tasteless and seedy, in this film.
The main reason to view this film, is Kate Winslet. This has got to be the best performance, of her already stellar career. The movie is depressing overall. But Kate's performance alone, makes seeing this film worthwhile.