It would be fitting to start this review with an important piece of trivia. In the year 2008, during the making of the movie ‘The reader’ two of its producers passed away. They were Anthony Minghella (of the English patient fame) and Sydney Pollack (am sure no introduction is needed). This last film of theirs could very well be a signature of their production styles, certainly one of the best – as through this film, these two visionaries of world cinema bring to us an intense and thought provoking tale of love, guilt and many other complex social issues of post war Germany. Based on Bernhard Schlinck’s controversial novel ‘ Der vorleser’ the film deftly deals with 2 delicate and disturbing issues – on a personal level, it’s about a teenager boy growing up in the late 50s and in the big picture, it’s about the struggle of the second generation Germans to come to terms with the Nazi era and the concentration camps.
I have been planning to watch this one for a while now. After seeing ‘The hours’ (also by the same director) I was sure Daldry knows how to tell a story through its characters - each (in)complete with their faults and foibles. Whereas The hours was about 3 women and their interwoven complicated lives, the reader can safely be termed as a story of the collective German guilt over the holocaust. The movie in a way is also about the transformative power literature. And as Michael’s professor points out in the movie - ‘literature is centrally about the control of information—the protecting, the withholding, the selective disclosing of information’.
The Story
To sum up the story Mikael is a 15 yr old boy growing up in post war Germany. In one chance encounter, he comes across 36 yr old Hanna and they end up having a glorious affair, and their lovemaking is often accompanied with the ritual of Michael reading aloud some stories to her. (I am sure, there has been many movies talking about the often-told-rarely-understood theme of a relationship between a young man and an older woman. Watch this one for the sheer sincerity with which it’s made. It does not try to preach anything, no good or bad messages through it. Without the use of too many words, it won’t take long to figure out the reason/need each of them is in the relationship for. And please do not be fooled by the semi-erotic content of the movie especially in the beginning. It’s so not about sex.)This romance lasts for a summer and suddenly Hannah disappears. Michael, though heartbroken goes on to become a lawyer. Many years later in one of the court room trials he sees Hanna, now an accused concentration camp guard at Auschwitz, one of the six who committed a particular mass murder. Now Mikael is in knowledge of one secret which can save Hanna’s life but he quickly figures out that Hanna herself do not want that. So he keeps her secret (as he must also come to terms with his own feelings of self-reproach at being violated, at his twisted capacity for forming relationships) and Hanna gets life time imprisonment. After many years Mikael again gets in touch with Hannah in a way that gives her the reason to correct her one long kept secret. Hanna makes complete use of it but ends her story in her own way.
About the ending of this movie, however, there is a certain cerebral quality that’s kind of draining. The way Ilana accepts the tea box from Michael – Isn’t it too forgiving? why did Michael waited so long to get in touch with Hanna again? Sometimes an offender, at others a victim, the main characters are so multi layered. And even if the portrayal is done with amazing depth, there are questions that remain unanswered. You cannot fight the feeling that there is an attempt to glorify (at least invoke some kind of empathy) the whole concentration camp part of history in the guise of the story of human emotions. Having said all that, one also has to keep in mind the book adaptation.
Cast and crew
Very few people will question Kate Winslet’s acting prowess, but David Cross is the biggest surprise in this one. His passion, the innocence and naiveté of a 15 year old when he falls in love for the first time; and later the moral dilemma he has to go through during Hanna’s trial, could not have been handled in a better way. To both these acting powerhouses belong the bold, intense performances of the film. Lena Olin as a tough camp survivor and Bruno Ganz as a mind-over-matter law professor have given short but memorable performances. Fiennes as the elder Michael has done a good job, but the character remains listless somehow. A very tough story of the movie gets a fine professional polish through superior production work in Germany by two of the world’s finest cinematographers Chris Menges and Roger Deakins. The direction of Daldry is simply brilliant.
"The Reader" in spite of the loose ends, should certainly be treated as an important work. It should be recognized as the final offering from Minghella and Pollack, two people who certainly knew how powerful, effective and intelligent a film can be.