Critic Watch: The Reader

Jenni Miller seems immune to finding flaws in a film such as The Reader. Her rave rests upon the shoulders (which were barely covered the entire movie) of Kate Winslet delivering an excellent performance. Miller describes how she feels that The Reader successfully separated itself from the overload of World War II films, as she explains that The Reader delves into the psychological aspects of the war that exist long after the final bomb is dropped.

While reviewing The Reader, William Arnold displays his approval of the film for having a terrific plot and excellent scenes. Arnold feels that the director and camera crew worked together to create brilliant scenes every step of the way. Despite giving credit for the individual scenes, Arnold explains a deeper issue into why the film earns a rave review. He acknowledges how the film took on another issue revolving around the Holocaust, the German aspect of it. In previous years as Arnold explains, the only issue that was portrayed in films was the negatives that the Jews experience. In The Reader, the plot explains how there is a side where Germans were also a victim of the Holocaust. William Arnold praises the film for taking that direction.

For Connie Ogle, The Reader swings and misses out on an important aspect of the film. Overall Ogle seems to praise The Reader as being a film with excellent visuals and a decent plot, but she has her issues with one part of the plot that is under developed. Ogle has trouble getting over the fact that the film failed to explore into the betrayal that Michal (in his adulthood) experiences as he finds out about Hanna. This issue leads Ogle to feel that the film fell apart before the end.

Dana Stevens quite frankly, hates The Reader. She believes that it is almost impossible to make a film about Nazis boring, but The Reader manages to change her mind as she describes The Reader as a slow movie with a plot that is hardly believable. One of the major issues that Dana has with the film is how she believes that Michael should be resolved of all his guilt, because he never knew about Hanna’s past. This issue, along with others such as some of the scenes simply not looking good, Dana Stevens does not feel it is a film worth seeing.

Todd McCarthy tackles an issue with the movie that almost all the other critics either overlook or simply don’t agree with. McCarthy feels that the casting was well selected, but an important piece of the characters was left under developed. Hanna’s identity, according to McCarthy, is covered up by a shell and the viewer is never able to see her thoughts and feelings because she the entire film is based on other’s perception of her.

http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117939125.html?categoryid=31&cs=1 – Todd McCarthy
http://www.premiere.com/Review/Movies/The-Reader - Jenni Miller
http://www.slate.com/id/2206513/ - Dana Stevens
http://www.miamiherald.com/entertainment/movies/reviews/story/824509.html - Connie Ogle
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/movies/393397_reader25q.html - William Arnold