The Book Thief

Plot synopsis:
In April 1938, a voice representing Death (Roger Allam), tells about how the young Liesel Meminger (Sophie Nélisse) has piqued his interest. Liesel is traveling on a train with her mother (Heike Makatsch) and younger brother when her brother dies. At his burial she picks up a book that has been dropped by his graveside (a gravedigger's manual). Liesel is then delivered to foster parents Hans (Geoffrey Rush) and Rosa (Emily Watson) Hubermann, because her mother, a Communist, is in danger. When she arrives, Liesel makes an impression on a neighbor boy, Rudy Steiner (Nico Liersch).Rudy accompanies her on her first day of school. When the teacher asks Liesel to write her name on the chalkboard, she is only able to write three 'X's, showing that she doesn't know how to read. Later that day, she is taunted by her schoolmates who chant "dummkopf", "stupid" in German. One of the boys, Franz Deutscher, challenges her to read just one word to which Liesel responds by beating him up. She impresses Rudy and they become fast friends. When Hans, her stepfather, realizes that Liesel cannot read, he begins to teach her, using the book that she took from the graveside. Liesel becomes obsessed with reading anything she can get her hands on.Liesel and Rudy become members of the Hitler Youth movement. While at a Nazi book burning ceremony, Liesel and Rudy are bullied into throwing books onto the bonfire by Franz, but Liesel is upset to see the books being burned. When the bonfire ends and everyone but she has left, she grabs a book that has not been burned. She is seen by Ilsa Hermann (Barbara Auer), the mayor's (Rainer Bock) wife. Hans discovers that she has taken the book and tells her she must keep it a secret from everyone. One day, Rosa asks Liesel to take the laundry to the mayor's house. Liesel realizes that the woman who saw her taking the book is the mayor's wife and she is scared she will be found out. Instead, Ilsa takes her into their library and tells Liesel she can come by anytime and read as much as she'd like. Liesel also finds out about Johann here, who was the son of Ilsa and is now missing. She realizes Ilsa feels deeply about the loss of her son and thus, had made a library to commemorate him. One day Liesel is found reading by the mayor who not only puts a stop to her visits but dismisses Rosa as their laundress. Liesel continues to "borrow" books from the mayor's library by climbing through a window.There is a night of violence against the Jews (known historically as Kristallnacht). Max Vandenburg (Ben Schnetzer) and his mother, who are Jewish, are told by a friend that one of them (but only one) can escape and Max's mother forces him to go. Max goes to the Hubermann's house where Rosa and Hans give him shelter. Max is the son of the man who saved Hans' life in World War I. Max is initially allowed to stay in Liesel's room while recovering from his trip and they begin to become friends over their mutual hatred of Hitler, as Liesel blames Hitler for taking her mother away. World War II begins, initially making most of the children in Liesel's neighborhood very happy. Max is later moved to the basement so he can move around more, but it is colder in the basement and Max becomes dangerously ill. Liesel helps Max recover by reading to him every spare moment.One day while borrowing a book from the mayor's home, Liesel is followed by Rudy. He discovers the secret of the books, and also the secret of Max, whose name he reads on a journal Max gave to Liesel for Christmas. Rudy guesses that her family is hiding someone and he swears to never tell anyone. Franz overhears them, but only Rudy's last words of keeping it a secret. Franz violently pushes Rudy to reveal the secret but Rudy throws the journal into the river to keep it away from Franz. However, after Franz has gone, Rudy plunges into the icy river to rescue the journal and Liesel realises that she can truly trust him. Soon a local party member comes by to check the Hubermann's basement and they have to hide Max. However, they are told that their basement was being checked as a potential bomb shelter and realize they weren't suspected of harboring a fugitive.While working one day, Hans sees a neighbor and friend being taken away by the police because he is a Jew. Hans tries to tell the police that the man is a good German, and the man says his son is in the war fighting for Germany, but he is dragged off nonetheless and Hans' name is taken by the soldiers. Hans realizes what a mistake he has made, as this has made them visible. He tells the family and Max realizes he must leave in order to protect them. Hans then receives a telegram that he has been conscripted into the army and must leave immediately.On the way home from school one day, Liesel believes she has seen Max in a line of Jews marching through town on their way to a death camp, and she begins screaming his name, running through the line. She is thrown off the street twice by a German soldier and finally relents when Rosa picks her up and takes her home. Within a few days, Hans returns from the front because he was injured by a bomb that hit his unit's truck. The family is reunited only for a short time, as one night the city is bombed and the air raid sirens fail to go off. Hans, Rosa and Rudy's family (except for his father who has also been conscripted into the Army) are killed in the blast. Liesel was spared from the bombing because she fell asleep in the basement while writing in the journal given to her by Max. Rudy is brought out of his house by neighbors and he is barely alive. He begins to tell Liesel that he loves her but he dies before he can finish the sentence. Liesel begs him to not die, telling him that she will give him that kiss he has been asking for and actually kisses him, but he has already died. During this scene, Death is heard speaking again about how he received the souls of the dead. After this, Liesel sadly passes out while one of the soldiers carries her and puts her to safety on a stretcher. When she wakes up, she sees a book amongst the rubble and picks it up. She then sees the Major and Ilsa drive up. With Ilsa being the only friend left, Liesel runs up to her and hugs her.Two years later, Liesel is seen working in a tailor shop of Rudy's father, and then Max appears. She looks up to see him. Overjoyed by his survival and return, she runs to hug him. The final scene is the Angel of Death speaking again about Liesel's life and her death at the age of 90, mentioning her husband, children and grandchildren, as we look over her modern day Manhattan Upper East Side apartment with pictures of her past and a portrait of her, upon which the camera lingers. The narrator does not state whom she married, but does imply that she became a writer. Death says that he has seen many good and bad things over the years, but Liesel is one of the few that ever made him wonder how it would be to live life. But in the end, there were no words, only peace. Lastly, Death says that the only truth it knows is true is that he "is haunted by humans."

Tags: sentimental

Review:
The scenery was breathtaking and captivating, and I felt transported, insulated from the realities of a terrible war in a terrible time by the endearingly human performances of the actors and the depth they lent to their characters.The only complaints I have would be slight spoilers for both the movie and the book and since I highly recommend both, I'll save them.A powerfully emotional treat you won't regret.
Unlike most movies for young people, which usually encourage selfishness, lust, and who knows what else, this is a film that promotes such qualities as self-sacrifice, courage in the face of unspeakable difficulties, and using your life to make a difference for others.Based on Markus Zusak's novel, The Book Thief expertly tells the story of a young German girl named Liesel, who is thrust into the horrors of World War II Germany and its many complications.
The scope of the story is seen through the eyes of Liesel, making it quite an intimate tale that is less about war and more about the importance of remaining human in inhuman surroundings, and affecting those around you in a positive and profound way.The film is hauntingly beautiful, and moves at an effortless pace- not too fast, not too slow- allowing the viewers to become immersed in the realities of Liesel's situation.
Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson, of course, are their usual extraordinary selves as Liesel's adoptive parents.This is truly a movie that is not just for young people.
"The Diary of Anne Frank" is the classic example, but more recently, "No Place on Earth" (2013) covered some of the same ground as did "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" (2008) and especially "Lore" (2012)."The Book Thief" has wonderful photography by Florian Ballhaus, an excellent musical score by Golden Globe and Oscar winning John Williams ("Schindler's List", "ET", "Star Wars"), and best of all, marvelous acting from Sophie Nelisse as the young girl, Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson as her adoptive parents, and Ben Schnetzer as the Jewish boy they hide.
"The Book Thief" takes place during the Holocaust, a subject seen in many other renowned films, but the beauty of this story comes from the perspective viewers get - that of a child's.There is an excellent blend of different pieces that move the film along well - the violence and the intensity of the time period, the touching relationships between friends and family, and the humor they all share.
Even with all the dramatic events surrounding them, it is easy to get caught in the relationship between Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson as the familiar nagging parents of Liesel.The various sets of the film - backed up with some clean, beautiful cinematography (yet nothing too astounding) - show several different parts of the town, but you are still left wanting to see more of this world.
John Williams' multi-layered music score brings to mind the style of strong scores that helped breath life into great classics from the past.Films of this quality have become rare in these days of often foolish, Hollywood comic book action blockbusters, but it's hoped this, along with 'The Railway Man' might see us treated to more intelligent modern cinema.
Then she is befriended by her neighbor, a little boy.Added to the mix is that her foster parents hide a Jew. The little girl is drawn to him, especially after she learns her own mother, a Communist, most likely became a victim of the Nazis.The Jewish young man furthers her education with reading and writing lessons.
When he falls ill, she reads to him as a lifeline to keep him connected to living.The historic context of this story is well documented with the Night of the Broken Glass and book burning.This movie is a must- see for anyone like me who is compelled to learn about the human and historic drama of the Nazi era..
But in times of war there are many threats and the lives of Liesel, her family and friends will never be the same."The Book Thief" is an American-German production with a beautiful, sensitive and heartbreaking story of love, friendship and obsession for reading books in one of the darkest period of mankind history.
Tradition is not a bad thing, not on its own, yet with a film like The Book Thief, it goes over much repeated material in a form which is so well known as to induce narcolepsy.While the film is comprised of a number of much adored clichés, especially as it deals with this historical period, it assembles them as pure kitsch.The world is viewed through the eyes of a child, her parents are forbidding, her father kindly, almost like fairy tale father; the historical and social fabric is rendered in simplistic reductive episodes and the script delivers such gems as, "A human doesn't have a heart like mine.
It's the sort of drivel book clubs consume, with its hallmark card insight and ladles of sentiment.The film proceeds at a solemn pace, suggestive of its deeply human feeling, which means we have to endure two non German actors use something like an anemic Germanic accent with added inflections as though they might come from the shtetl.
I remained stunned, consumed by my thoughts, absorbed in Liesel's world and bereft as both the final chapter and an episode of my life ended.Departing Brian Percival's film adaptation I just felt hollow.The Book Thief is a remarkable story of Liesel Meminger (Sophie Nélisse), a young girl in pre-war Germany, whose communist mother sends her and her brother to live with foster parents.
Unfortunately, this memorable opening scene doesn't translate into the rest of the film.The Book Thief tells the story of Liesel: a young girl in late 30's Nazi Germany, abandoned by her communist mother into the safer hands of an older childless couple - Hans and Rosa - played by Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson.
The film centres around her relationship not only with her new adoptive parents, but with her best school friend Rudy Steiner (Nico Liersch) and with Max (Ben Schnetzer) - the Jewish friend of the family who brings both a brotherly companionship and great danger into Liesel's world.The German village life is nicely portrayed and the everyday activity counterpointed against the bizarre and terrifying goings on of historical events around them.
But the film and its titular book thief nevertheless possess a bittersweet charm, buoyed by a host of unforgettable supporting characters.As the clouds of war and death gather over Germany, Liesel Meminger (Sophie Nélisse) meets her new foster parents: kindly Hans (Geoffrey Rush) and the remarkably abrasive Rosa (Emily Watson).
But, just as she's starting to grow accustomed to her surroundings, Liesel's life will soon change all the more, when Max (Ben Schnetzer), a young, hunted Jew, comes to stay.As a film, The Book Thief works quite well.
Nélisse - still so young and raw - wanders effectively through war-torn Germany: she is the focal point of both book and film; the child-like eyes through which we witness great love and also enormous hatred.
The decision to sprinkle some German dialogue into the film feels jarring as well, although that's how Zusak's novel (originally written in English) unfolds.As for its merits as an adaptation - by necessity, The Book Thief leaves out details galore and metes out tiny injustices to several supporting characters, many of whom arguably represent some of Zusak's greatest insights and ideas.
Sophie Nélisse gives an outstanding performance as Liesel Meminger, an initially illiterate but incredibly imaginative and independent girl who's full of unique metaphors and similes --e.g., "The sun looks like a silver oyster"--and, with the help of various diverse people, discovers the power of books and the written word while living with foster parents in Hitler's Germany.
Virtually every other player in this film gives a fine performance, and the very special narrator, Roger Allam as the somber yet strangely unforbidding voice of Death, adds a distinct touch, coming in at just the right crucial moments.I have never seen anything remotely like THE BOOK THIEF and can only say that I wish there were more like it.
It would be ironic if she receives her first Oscar for supporting because she is actually the unforgettable centerpiece of every piece she appears in and defines the word "star." This film is worth seeing if only to witness another incredibly beautiful performance by Emily Watson and to watch the most truly gifted actor of our time add another triumph to her majestic career.5/24/14: Having just watched this wonderful film with family at home, I am driven to return again to my keyboard and restate my initial reaction to the absolutely wondrous performance of Emily Watson as Rosa.
I decided this is going to be the last Nazi Germany film for me, but mainly because it was so conventional.The German accent by the main characters is awful, they say words that don't exist, the film is slow and full of stereotypes, dialogues are cheesy and have lots of pauses, the girl is oversweet, the mother overgrumpy (up to an incredible point) and the father overgentle, just to mention some of the things I didn't like.To make a long story short: a feeling that I was not seeing anything new accompanied me throughout this fairytale with this hackneyed subject, which is one of the reasons why I found it so boring..
Yes, the poor Germans who pushed whole villages into barns and then set them alight.In the book thief we have two aryan children who look like they are right out of a Nazi film of the 1930's.
It's one of those films I would never watch again.I understand the movie and how it is showing the struggles the people went through, and how the innocent girl wants to learn and read and has to sneak around to a womens house and read her books as that privilege was taken away from them, but there just aren't enough shocking moments, or ground breaking scenes to make this anything near a classic.
For starters, setting the film during The Academy Awards' favourite time in history, World War II is a must; having a young lead performance is another; previous academy award winners and nominees within the cast (in this case the illustrious Geoffrey Rush and the always impressive Emily Watson) always helps; and finally, the icing on the cake is the heavy-handed and manipulating (to the point of distracting) forced drama (in this case, a completely unnecessary voice-over).
With just over a two hour run time, The Book Thief uses morbid images of death, sometimes involving children, to get its dramatized point across and elicit notions of pure sentiment.The film follows Liesel Meminger (French-Canadian Sophie Nélisse from Monsieur Lazhar), a newly orphaned child who is in the midst of pre-war Germany in 1938.
With cultural tension and war on the rise, Liesel and her family must turn a blind eye to patriotism in favour of humanity, finding a new way to survive without ever compromising their own integrity.Some of the finer points of The Book Thief comes from its impeccable acting talent.
You may be more surprised to learn that it's narrated by The Grim Reaper (British actor Roger Allam), and includes a Nazi rally, book-burning, bomb shelters, a look at the anti-Jew and anti-Communist movements, the German conscription/military draft and the dangers associated with hiding a Jew in one's basement.There is no denying the melodramatic nature of the story, but this one avoids schmaltz thanks to the remarkable performances of the great Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson, and especially Sophie Nelisse as the incredibly perceptive Liesel who provides the innocence and powers of observation that prove to us (and Death) that good people will do extraordinary things no matter the atrocious conditions.As Liesel's foster parents, Rush plays a warm-hearted WWI veteran and Watson plays a cantankerous, grounded woman hiding the emotion she carries for her husband and new daughter.
The Book Thief tells the story of a young girl called Liesel (played by the beautiful and very talented Sophie Nellisse) who is abandoned by her mother in Germany just a couple of years before World War II.
With these actors all doing a fine job it's still hard to completely buy into these people completely with the films meandering pace and stale direction constantly reminding us that proceedings should be a lot more thrilling than they are, even sure-fire composer John Williams score can't escape the feeling of being good yet not far from average.The Book Thief should of made a much bigger mark than it did and while not being an in any way terrible movie is also a movie that fails to justify its existence as a two hour motion picture thanks to some underdeveloped characters, tame direction and a failure to maximise what could have been some very emotionally heavy yet rewarding experiences.2 and a half dangerous melting snowmen out of 5 For more movie reviews and opinions check out - www.jordanandeddie.wordpress.com.
THE BOOK THIEF is a movie full of great incidents and characters, top production values and fine acting -- Geoffrey Rush is one of those actors I believe cannot give a less than brilliant performance and Emma Watson creeps into your heart slowly and steadily throughout.
Children who are forced to grow up quickly although they cannot totally abandon their nature.This 1940's German family has no interest in the Nazi propaganda but like the people in the countries attacked they are in a struggle for survival and despite the hardship they will not risk everything to help those in need.Moving and emotional it does a good job in putting humanity at the core of the story despite the surrounding overall lack of it..
'THE BOOK THIEF': Four Stars (Out of Five) World War II drama film about a young girl living with foster parents (during the war in Germany) who also develops relationships with a Jewish refugee (hiding in their home) and a boy (her age) from the neighborhood.
I think the movie looks great (and is well made) but it's not quite involving enough to be really interesting or entertaining.Nélisse plays Liesel Meminger, a young girl who is 12 when the movie starts (in 1938 Germany) and 14 by the time it's over.
Even as the world around her seems to become more dangerous and make less sense by the day, Liesel's love of learning , her growing creativity and the support of those around her carry her through.After so many movies about Nazi Germany, I give this film credit for its realism and unusual focus.
The acting is wonderful and the story is priceless.On a side note, I read a review by a critic that gave The Book Thief a poor rating, indicating that if you want to see a war movie done like Disney would do it, this one would be perfect for you.
It's a fine way to introduce the era and what happened in it to children, as director Brian Percival gets a lot out of Nelisse and co- star Nico Liersch, letting these two kids play people their own age (and a bit younger) accurately and believably.The tension that runs throughout the film is like watching children play with loaded guns for 131 minutes, truly and fairly representing what these people must have lived for six years.
The Book Thief is the kind of film you could show your children as a way to first begin a discussion of World War II and the Holocaust, but it never takes shortcuts from darker subject matter to reach this role.
While the responsibility for the narrative lies with the author, 'The Book Thief' is refreshing in the course of the events it depicts; many movies on the subject of World War Two and Nazi Germany are all too keen to explore beyond the gates of the death camps, but director Brian Percival's film honours the source material by celebrating its story about the importance of the written word with a proud approach, allowing it to sit at the film's core despite every possible distraction.
The story being set in a small German village was an interesting vehicle for how major events in history are interpreted.The main strengths of this film stem from the excellent performances of its main cast, with the formidable Geoffrey Rush as the kind-hearted Hans, Emily Watson as the secretly loving but strict Rosa and Sophie Nélisse as the determined and fiesty Liesel.
Before the second world war, after meeting her adoptive family and learning how to read and write, a girl falls in love with books which happen to become banned by the Nazi.
I love the acting in this film.Sophie starts as a young girl .And Geoffrey plays the role of Hans"the father her" .
The Book Thief is narrated by the Grim Reaper himself but it needs more than this gimmick to stand apart from other films that tread a similar path about people growing up in Nazi Germany during the war.Liesel (Sophie Nélisse) is fostered by a childless older couple, Hans (Geoffrey Rush) and Rosa (Emily Watson) as her communist mother cannot look after her.
Virtually all of the negative reviews are from people who have read the book and were disappointed with the movie adaptation - I personally think the film should be judged in its own right.As someone who watched the film without knowing anything about the story, I thought it was excellent.
At one point the Hubermanns take in and hide in the basement Max Vandenburg, a young Jew, the son of a man who saved the life of the Hubermann patriarch, Hans (Geoffrey Rush), in World War I.The linchpin of the story is Sophie's inability to read upon her arrival into the family.
The lead characters are the young girl, Liesel Meminger played by up-  and-coming actress Sophie Nelisse and her foster father and mother  played by Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson.