The Reader (2008)

Director:

Stephen Daldry

Writers (WGA):

David Hare (screenplay)
Bernhard Schlink (book)

Release Date:

9 January 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

How far would you go to protect a secret?

Plot:

Post-WWII Germany: Nearly a decade after his affair with an older woman came to a mysterious end, law student Michael Berg re-encounters his former lover as she defends herself in a war-crime trial.

Plot Keywords:

Student | Law Student | Trial | Germany | Nazi

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 13 wins & 28 nominations

Cast

Ralph Fiennes	...	Michael Berg
Jeanette Hain	...	Brigitte
David Kross	...	Young Michael Berg
Kate Winslet	...	Hanna Schmitz
Susanne Lothar	...	Carla Berg
Alissa Wilms	...	Emily Berg
Florian Bartholomäi	...	Thomas Berg
Friederike Becht	...	Angela Berg
Matthias Habich	...	Peter Berg
Frieder Venus	...	Doctor
Marie-Anne Fliegel	...	Hanna's Neighbor
Hendrik Arnst	...	Woodyard Worker
Rainer Sellien	...	Teacher
Torsten Michaelis	...	Sports Master
Moritz Grove	...	Holger

Also Known As:

Der Vorleser (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for some scenes of sexuality and nudity.

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English | German | Greek | Latin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #44922) | UK:15 | Ireland:16 | Singapore:R21 | Australia:MA | Finland:K-15 | South Korea:18 | Brazil:16 | Portugal:M/16 (Qualidade) | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:R16 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Philippines:R-18 (MTRCB) | Spain:13 | Germany:12 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Mexico:B15 | Japan:PG-12 | Sweden:Btl | Hong Kong:III | Denmark:11 | Austria:12 | Argentina:16 | Iceland:14 | Iceland:12 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Berlin, Germany

Company:

Mirage Enterprises

Trivia:

The film's original cinematographer was Roger Deakins. From September to October 2007, he shot scenes that didn't feature the character Hanna. After filming was shut down (to give Nicole Kidman, who had been cast as Hanna, time to finish filming Australia (2008) before joining the production), Deakins left to shoot Doubt (2008/I) and begin pre-production on A Serious Man (2009). Once Kidman withdrew from the film and was replaced by Kate Winslet, filming resumed in March 2008; the new cinematographer, Chris Menges, shot all of Winslet's scenes.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Michael visits Hanna in prison, when they're sitting at the table talking, Hanna's eye color is a milky blue for a while, and then it shows Michael, then it goes back to a Hanna with brown eyes.

Quotes:

Michael: I can't live without you. The thought of leaving you kills me. Do you love me?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "De wereld draait door: (#4.86)" (2009)

Soundtrack:

Making time

looking at life from both sides

As a child of parents who witnessed the devastation (both moral and material) from both sides of the issue, mother a concentration camp survivor, father a pilot in the German Luftwaffe. I grew up with deep gut wrenching aftereffects of this period. Until this day, I keep asking myself the question what I would have done. Would I have had the civil courage to speak out against the crimes committed in my name by my government? For me no other movie has even come close to touching on the emotional and moral context of the subject. No surprise coming from a collaboration that includes the late Anthony Minghella whose extraordinary understanding of the human condition was something I deeply admired. His exquisite sensibilities, visualized, were a true gift to us all.

The performances are so deeply moving and finely crafted, with such great inside into our human frailties and shortcomings to use words to describe them are only for those who have not had to suffer through extraordinary times.

Remember the Chinese curse – 'May you live in interesting times' My thanks to all that collaborated on this project to give voice to a most painful subject.