The Reader: Reading between the lines

A May-December affair, which spans the length of almost thirty years, takes an unfortunate turn when lovers who expectantly part ways due to their complicated situations are again brought together by the most unconventional circumstances.

The film is about a sixteen year old boy who forms an affair a woman twice his age. The two cross paths when the boy is nursed by the older woman (Winslet) while he vomits at the building where Hannah lives. They form a very unique relationship where Hannah usually instructs the Kid (as she calls him) to read to him (novels such as Odyssey, etc.) before they make love. The summer romance is shortened when Hannah decides to take another job and leaves without any word to her lover.

Fast forward to a few years later, the Kid is a law student and part of his learning is the attendance in an actual court hearing which involves the case of Holocaust guards accused of letting 300 Jews die in a church fire. Hannah is one of the prison guards. During the course of the trial, the Kid realizes that Hannah loves to be read to because she is illiterate. This was revealed during her refusal to prove that indeed she wrote the report by providing a sample handwriting. Hannah is sentenced to life imprisonment.

During the latter part of the film, it is revelaed that the Kid is now a divorcee father of two who still hasn't let go of his attachement to Hannah, as attested by his words, "I haven't opened up to anybody." The Kid intuitively in an effort to remove himself of guilt or to satisfy his pity for Hannah, sends her recorded readings of several books. This prompts Hannah to self-study on reading and writing which she achieves. However, still no contact has been made between the two, much to Hannah's disappointment. Several days before her discharge, Hannah commits suicide to the Kid's surprise. (My God, after three paragraphs I have noticed that i have already written the synopsis which I don't usually do)

The movie is a well crafted story which easily moves from act one (young Kid and middle aged Hannah) to the third act (old Kid to grandma Hannah). It somewhat touches on the peculiar relationship of that May-December relationship and how these types of relationships linger in a person's entire life. In that aspect, it is beautifully and easily shown by Kate Winslet who exhibits a shot to the veins when she receives the tapes. Ralph Fiennes (the Kid) is equally effective in showing his deep pain and anxiety over finding closure with Hannah and himself.

This film tackles the Holocaust and maybe unintentionally, it tries to solicit mercy on the protagonist who is illiterate. It must be clear that the message that even if Hannah was illiterate it does not absolve her of her deaf ear and blind eye on the burning Jews in the Church. This message is summed up by the survivor of that tragedy who stresses that Hannah's illiteracy cannot erase the fact that she has been a part of those henious acts.

Overall, the movie has its merits specifically the performance of Kate Winslett who surprisingly
won for the Best Supporting Actress category in the Globes and SAG when clearly the role was a major one. This movie delivers, my only qulam was that it if ever unintentionally it tries to stress on Hannah's illiteracy as her excuse from her crimes against humanity.

8 out of 10.