Blu-ray Review: The Reader

The Reader
Written by: David Hare
Based on the novel by Bernhard Schlink
Directed by: Stephen Daldry
Starring: Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, and David Kross

Blu-ray Specs:
1080p
English 5.1 True HD, English Dolby 5.1, French Dolby 5.1
Spanish and English SDH subtitles

Special Features:
Deleted Scenes, Adapting A Timeless Masterpiece: Making The Reader, A Conversation with David Kross & Stephen Daldry, Kate Winslet On The Art of Aging Hanna Schmitz, A New Voice: A Look At Composer Nico Muhly, Coming To Grips With The Past: Production Designer Brigitte Broch, Theatrical Trailer

A highly acclaimed drama, yet curiously defined as a thriller, The Reader seems like it's getting a lot more credit than it really deserves. It's not a horrible movie but it's certainly not worthy of the seemingly unending praise it's received. It absolutely did not deserve a Best Picture nomination over The Dark Knight. So the question then remains, why did it get such praise and award recognition? Is it the Holocaust aspect? Is that subject automatically flagged for Awards? Is it the fact that Winslet's character is an illiterate pedophile? That could certainly be the perfect mix of Oscar potential. Truth is, I don't really know why people are clamoring over it so much.

It's not that great of a movie.

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The Reader is about a woman who has a brief yet torrid affair with a teenage boy who reads to her (when they are doing uh...other things). Years later, the boy comes across her again, only now she is the defendant in a notorious case and he is a law student watching the trial. It is during this trial that he realizes the horrible secret his former lover is determined to keep hidden, no matter the cost. We see how the relationship he has with her affects his life as a grown man.

The film as a whole is a bit underwhelming. I love Kate Winslet, but her performance here wasn't as great as people seemed to think it was. It was serviceable, but was it really award worthy? As for the rest of the cast, they all did well. Ralph Fiennes appeared a bit stiff for some reason. David Kross was working with some heavy hitters here and he held his own rather well.

The movie comes across a bit melodramatic and the supposed twist is not a twist at all. It's actually only stating the obvious. There just didn't seem to be much emotion in the film. There was a lot of reaction but I never really believed the relationship between Winslet and Kross. It didn't really ring true.

That said, the film does look rather well on blu-ray. It's picture clarity is perfect and the sound is crisp. The features are interesting but in reality I wasn't terrible excited about any of it. The film didn't lend itself to me wanting to learn more about it.

The Reader is worth watching to see the role that Kate Winslet was finally given Oscar recognition for but overall, it's a bit overblown in terms of hype.

Worth a rental at best.

The Reader is available on Blu-ray today.

RAWR(for more)

DVD Review: The Duchess

The Duchess
Written By: Jeffrey Hatcher, Anders Thomas Jensen, and Saul Dibb
Based upon the book, "Georgina, Duchess of Devonshire" by Amanda Foreman
Directed By: Saul Dibb
Starring: Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Charlotte Rampling, Hayley Atwell, and Dominic Cooper

Keira Knightley stars as Georgiana, The Duchess of Devonshire in this period drama about a woman beloved by all except her husband. Georgiana was called the "Empress of Fashion" in her day and seemed to live a lavish life. In truth, she had a husband who had no use for her except to produce a male heir.

The movie is one note throughout. It never seems to garner any suspense or excitement and ultimately when it ends, you sort of feel cheated. There are conflicts here but they don't really escalate to anything that makes you nervous or even curious. I really didn't have any emotional connection to anyone.

I don't blame the acting. Everyone turned in decent performances. There was nothing to write home about or hail as brilliant but at the same time there was nothing overtly bad either.

I just think the movie is kinda blah. It's slow and doesn't really have a climax. It just ends. The Duchess did not come across as terribly interesting either. In fact, the character described in the book sounds infinitely more interesting than the one we are witness to in the film.

The Duchess looks nice. The cinematography is lovely as are the costumes and the sets. Beyond that, the movie is pretty flat.

The DVD is light on special features including only a costume diary, a making of featurette, and the featuretee "Georgiana In Her Own Words" which is mildly interesting.

Overall, I'd recommend The Duchess for period drama fans only. It won't do anything for anyone who isn't really into this type of film. I can't help but be disappointed in this movie. I expected a lot more.

The Duchess is available on DVD and BluRay now.

RAWR(for more)