4/4  Hey There, Kid
As far as I'm concerned, this film was incredible. Complex, intriguing, quite possibly the most heart-wrenching performance by Kate Winslet since "Revolutionary Road," "The Reader" is one truly brilliant film. Stephen Daldry took a book ... (read full)

3.5/4  Truly A great story
I watched the reader the other night and I have to say it started out somewhat weird to me just A strange movie but it still felt fresh to me(given it has been summer and there has been some less than spectacular films out) fresh Dig from ... (read full)

2/4  This is one of the year's best?
If there was any more evidence that the Weinstein's buy their Oscar nominations, look no further than The Reader. I'll give that the first half is pretty good, even if you know the twist. But the last half of this movie DRAGS. I was nev... (read full)

2/4  ......Huh?
A film that I rarely, if ever, got caught up in. It felt like the kind of movie that is based on a much better novel. A 15 year old boy (David Kross, played by Ralph Fiennes as an adult) meets up with a strange older woman (Kate Winslet) a... (read full)

4/4  Complex, Intriguing Character Studies
If Kate Winslet doesn’t get nominated and win two Oscars for her performances in “Revolutionary Road” and “The Reader,” I would be very disappointed with the Academy. Having seen pretty much all of the films that generated the most buzz in... (read full)

2/4  Barely anything happens.
I film that was good looking acted welll enough but there was not really anything to the story. It is one of those movies where you know everything from reading the synopsis. There just was not enough to it. You did not really find out tha... (read full)

2.5/4  The Reader Quick Review
Winslet and fines were good, but the movie dragged on a little too much.

3/4  The Reader Quick Review
Winslet was good, but she's all the film has to offer

2/4  The Reader Quick Review
An interesting story delves deep into sympathy for right or wrong reasons. This movie was about 15 minutes too long. The acting was great, the scenery was good enough, and the music wasn't bad. I agree with Nathalie, something was missing.

1/5 Irony and Falsehood
  by Lev Raphael (Okemos, MI United States)
I've read the book and seen the movie and while the movie is less tendentious and historically false than the book, it has serious moral problems as one reviewer notes. By sexualizing Kate Winslett and making her vulnerable through her nudity, it pushes us to both sympathize and eroticize her character, judging her despicable behavior much more difficult. But make no mistake: she was not powerless despite the movie's shameful attempt to make us believe she was. Nor is her "secret" remotely believable in the context of the times. I've reviewed the movie elsewhere, and am very sorry that so many viewers and reviewers think this is a profound treatment of the Holocaust or the human condition or anything at all:

[...]

The greatest irony of all is that Kate Winslett, playing a foul-mouthed actress on "Extras," said that the only way to get an Oscar was to play a "cripple" or be in a Holocaust movie. The writers of "Extras" certainly got that one right.

3/5 Mixed Morality
  by B. Merritt (WWW.FILMREVIEWSTEW.COM, Pacific Grove, California United States)
***CONTAINS SPOILERS***

Maybe it's just me, but I'm sort of surprised that the Jewish community hasn't gotten a tad up-in-arms over this film. I mean, it really sets a seriously sympathetic tone for a death-camp guard with unfortunate circumstances. I realize she wasn't well educated and had to make tough decisions in order to survive, but so did many people who came out of the holocaust ...Germans among them. But usually NOT death-camp personnel who were the overseers of those who went into gas chambers.

Still, this film is well-acted thanks to the amazing performance of Kate Winslet (The Holiday) as Hannah Schmitz, the guard in question. Although I won't take anything away from the other actors in this film, particularly young David Kross as Michael Berg, the boy turning into a man with the help of Hannah's sexual appeal, I will say that, without Winslet, this film likely would've fallen flat, theatrically.

Set across generations of Germans and Germany, the story is loaded with historical interest surrounding the holocaust courts that were set up after WWII. Hannah, not surprisingly, is a keystone for the courts as they uncover what they think is her sole involvement in the ordering of the deaths of Jewish women in one of the camps. Circling back to her time at the camps as a guard, it is quickly surmised (by the movie watcher and Michael, but not the courts) that Hannah has never learned to read, so has those she's about to condemn read to her.

The condemnation is set up in a way that allows Hannah to remember those she's let loose into the gas chambers; a sort of penance for what she is "forced" to do. In a similar manner, she condemns young Michael to a life of lovelessness in that he can never forget her, his first true love. And when Michael goes to school to become a lawyer, he and his classmates are soon brought into the case involving Hannah, but only as spectators. But for Michael, much more is apparent. He has the chance to save Hannah from the courts but is forced into a moral conundrum: Is she worth saving? Is she deserving?

The story continues as we watch Hannah's prison years pass by. With her age comes knowledge and words. Michael sends her packages containing books on tape that he recorded for her, emboldening Hannah to learn to read on her own. Which she does. But is it too late for personal forgiveness and redemption?

The ending hits pretty hard at these core issues. Personal responsibility. Moral condemnation. Rule of law. Historical atrocity. All of these are intertwined to form a patina of the past that blurs the future.

The film is watchable mainly for the purposes of Kate Winslet. Her performance is absolutely stellar. But the pacing and mixed moral message were tough to swallow for me. I'm not Jewish, but I believe that the holocaust happened. And I believe those associated with it, in any way, do not deserve our sympathies. Even those supposedly "forced" into these kinds of situations. Where's the morality in that?

5/5 spellbinding
  by Bob Katt (Lancaster, Pa USA)
wow! I wanted to hate this movie because of the content, however, you can't help but peek. I'm glad I got through the first half because it was worth it. Winslet deserved the oscar!

5/5 Beyond the cover
  by Cpt Roland Jarvis (U.A.E.)
You can read the reviews about the plot, adult content and the courage in making such a movie, but allow me to bring forward the emotions and depth of an average viewer. As a thinking adult, you will be highly entertained, stimulated and challenged by this film. Bluntly, you will have one of the worthiest experiences of your life. Buy this movie, as it is a rare piece of quality entertainment.

5/5 One of the rare one's.
  by T. Boards (Im out here somewhere ;))
I took me awhile to watch this feature, I finally did once I saw it avalible on iTunes, so I downloaded it to my iPod touch and my goodness! This movie blew me away! It's been a long time since i've seen a movie that's directly aimed at adults, genius written, beautifully shot. There wasnt one complaint coming from me.