Cathardincu Surprisingly incoherent and boring

Spidersecu Don't Believe the Hype

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Phillida Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

gordonroad-62850 I went into this film having not read the book it was based upon, so I'm not sure exactly how faithful it was to the source material, but overall it seemed quite intriguing. The story being set in a small German village was an interesting vehicle for how major events in history are interpreted.The main strengths of this film stem from the excellent performances of its main cast, with the formidable Geoffrey Rush as the kind-hearted Hans, Emily Watson as the secretly loving but strict Rosa and Sophie Nélisse as the determined and fiesty Liesel. The score from John Williams is also beautiful, which is what you would expect from a man of his talents.The theme of using literature as an escape from life in Nazi Germany was well well explored, whilst the film being narrated by the embodiment of Death allowed for some intriguing philosophical ideas to be introduced.However, I felt the film was not as emotionally impactful as it could have been and there was a lack of tension in moments where there should have been, so that detached me from the narrative somewhat. Also I felt aspects of life in Nazi Germany were skimmed over with not enough focus in some areas.

john_saint I think the film stands, hence my rating.I'm more of a film watcher than a novel reader, but in my experience, for book adaptations, it is exceptional to find a film that matches the original novel, and this isn't one of those exceptions.If you haven't read the book or seen the film, then my advice would be to see the film first, then read the book, but do read the book. That way you have every chance of enjoying both.

zachgrant This book is my favorite that has been written. The characters are lovable and sweet, and the story really makes you feel for them. But this movie falls short for a number of reasons. For one thing, most of the people in this movie have very stale acting. I think the only 2 that were very good was Max and Death, as they actually came off very well. However, while the book uses Death as the narrator to give a feeling of sadness and burden to the plot, here he's probably here for like, a minute. This really should have been two movies, simply to be able to flesh out the plot of the story enough. Just do yourself a favor and read the book. It may be long, but it's a lot better than this.

gwmbkm A friend told me "The Book Thief" was her favorite book. So naturally, respecting her opinion (she is a college English professor, after all) I had to find out what makes this so wonderful.First of all, the film is a beautiful experience. You may find it difficult to imagine that you could relate to, and sympathize with, a group of average patriotic German citizens during the Nazi years. The events in Germany between 1938 and 1945 as seen through the eyes of a young girl (the book thief of the title) remind the reader/viewer, however, that these are just ordinary people going about their ordinary lives with the horror of the Holocaust and the other excesses of Nazi Germany as a background. The people seem to be too busy surviving, for the most part, to object to the political and social evils surrounding them. They were also terrified that drawing attention to themselves - any attention - would result in their "disappearing" as a number of the characters in the story "disappear." A young girl learns to read with the inspiration and help of her adoptive father, her best friend, the Burgomeister's wife, and a Jewish fugitive hiding in the basement.The acting is superb! Sophie Nelisse is breathtaking as the central character, Liesl. Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson are wonderful as Liesl's adoptive parents. Also notable are Nico Liersch as Rudy, Ben Schnetzer as Max, and Barbara Auer as Frau Hermann.Read the book, watch the film - or better yet, do both!