The Reader

If I had to pick one word to describe Stephen Daldry's film, "The Reader" it would be the word, "interesting." It stars the beautifully talented, Kate Winslet, as an older woman named Hanna, who takes a liking to a young 15 year old school boy named Michael, played by David Kross.
 The film starts out with a young, ill Michael in the pouring rain almost collapsing outside near Hanna's door step. Hanna comes home from work and sees this ill boy and runs to his side to take care of him. A few months later, after Michael recovers from his illness, he returns to Hanna to thank him for her hospitality. They wind up having an affair only for it to end mysteriously and abruptly. Years later Michael sees Hanna again for the first time since he was 15 and finds out she is hiding a secret that will have quite a big impact on both of their lives.

Kross brings a lot to the table as an innocent, naive young boy to Winslet's harsh, demanding character Hanna. The storyline between the two is fascinating but at times hard to watch, knowing the boy is so young and foolish. Both characters have a lot of passion and intensity throughout the film, that made me glued to the screen to see what will happen next. This film is what garnered Winslet an academy award that was well deserved. She is constantly honing her craft that's its so hard to watch her and not be impressed. Kross was great as well, especially as a newcomer.

The film is shot throughout Germany from the 1940s til the 1990s. Older Michael, played by Ralph Fiennes, is constantly reflecting on the past, which in turn brings the audience through flashbacks of what occurred over time. I liked watching Fiennes's Michael all grown up, he played the character very similar to Kross's which worked well since they play the same person.

The only complaint I have about this film, is the fact that Hanna calls Michael, "Kid." It really irks me, I believe the only person in the world that could pull that off is Humphrey Bogart. No one else can say that and say it believable except him.
But other than that, I truly enjoyed this story, it was different than anything I had ever seen and it made me feel things I never thought I could feel. It has a lot of anger and frustration built into it, but passion and heart as well. I would recommend this film to anyone who enjoys drama, and doesn't mind shedding a tear or two.