The Reader movie review

Okay, deep breath.

Let me say that marketing and advertising ruined the movie for me. If I hadn’t heard so much about the plot from trailers and commercials and critics and reviews etc, and I hadn’t heard so much “Award Talk” and blahblahblah, especially “Nominated for Academy Awards including Best Picture!” I wouldn’t have disliked it as much.

I liked it. I appreciated it. I everyone involved did a great job and worked very hard. But I have a pile of gripes, many of which are not related to what I saw on screen.

“Do a Holocaust film and get an Academy Award.” Please. It’s not even a joke any more, it’s a statement of fact. An immutable fact. Kate Winslet herself made the joke on SNL a while back. Ricky Gervais said it at the Globes. Like clockwork, awards galore for this movie.

Is there a specific reason for so much sex? Besides Kate Winslet gunning for an award by showing body parts? (c.f. Halle Berry, Julianne Moore, Holly Hunter, etc.). While I’m on the subject: this movie seems like a Let’s Get Kate an Award valentine from Sidney Pollack and Anthony Minghella. Hot young actress puts on makeup to look old? must be Award season (recently = Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron).

So what about the movie?

Didn’t read the book, can’t speak to source material. Supposedly a faithful rendering of the story; maybe it should have been a bit more original. Actors are supposed to ask What’s my motivation? Well, what was it? I can’t think of a sensible action except the young boy wanting to have sex. Other than that … I suppose you could argue The Holocaust didn’t make sense, so the characters involved would do other things which didn’t make sense. I don’t demand the plot make sense, but the characters’ actions MUST be true. I didn’t get ANY of them.

My GF appreciated the crumbs, the small details and clues, and I agree. I don’t think they summed to anything, however.

Lena Olin single-handedly saved the final act. It teetered on the verge of maudlin, her presence and believability kept it real. She deserves a lot of praise for the performance, and for saving the film. The director obviously thought so as well, because there are a couple camera shots with her looking INTO the camera, breaking the third person narrative camera in most of the rest of the film. It’s too little screen time for an award, but it’s pitch perfect. Acting students, watch and be jealous.

Kate was good in places, but hit some sour notes.

I wish I had seen the film before the publicity machine kicked up a storm; I would have a better opinion since I would have focused on what I liked, not what I didn’t. I’m all for bragging, if you can back it up. This film didn’t deliver the hype, and I won’t forgive. I don’t want to say ‘It Was Crap’, but the more I think about it the more offended I am that it has received so much publicity.

Maybe 7/10 without external judgement (without being a hater).

~ by 4paul on 2009/02/04.