An actor's film

Rating: 8/10 (28 August 2011)

Based on a German novel by Bernhard Schlink, The Reader was turned into an British film, directed by Stephen Daldry of Billy Elliot and The Hours fame, adapted by David Hare (The Hours) and stars Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes.
Michael Berg (David Kross) is a 15-year-old living in 1958 who has Scarlett Fever. A train conductor, Hanna Schmidt (Winslet) helps him out and after he thanks her starts to have an affair with the older woman. Their relationship is cemented by Michael reading anything classic novels to Tintin comics to her. But after their relationship breaks down, Michael becomes a Law student at Heidelberg University, but when studying German War Guilt and see a war crimes trial he see that Hanna use to be a SS guard. What is made even worst is she is being made a scapegoat by the other guards for a massacre during a death march. Michael is left with a choice to relieve Hanna's secret to save her from a long prison sentence.
The Reader was a film that was obviously made with the Award bodies in mind and its main strength is its actors. The Reader does have an excellent cast, Winslet got to win her first Oscar, Fiennes is pretty much great in anything he does and the young Kross shows great promise, giving a believable performance as a young man ending up in a relationship with a older woman and how he would act and the decision he has to face. The main three actors are very natural in their roles even though it is a little weird that some actors speaking with German accents and others with English ones. There are also very well supported by other actors in the movie, from the likes of Bruno Ganz and Karoline Herfurth.
There are mentions of ideas of German war guilt and personal guilt with the SS guards trying to avoid their own collective guilt placing it all on one person. But the main story is about Michael and Hanna and their relationship, from the early, almost stalker like start to its evolution to a sexual relationship and its aftermath. Michael is continually drawn to her in some form, but also wants to keep his distances. It is a complex relationship and you could easily argue that Michael should have told her secret. But in the past Hanna was quiet a cold and manipulative, she is not that nice of a person so it is no wonder that their relationship breaks down. They are complex characters.
The direction by Stephen Daldry is standard, nothing stylist but the period details are well captured and he knows how to move the film along. It is a tender sort of film, look at human emotion and a social drama. It is certainly a well made film and Daldry just wanted everything to grow slowly, trying to be as real as possible, though some things are a bit of a stretch.