The Book Thief
Rent & Buy
While subjected to the horrors of WWII Germany, young Liesel finds solace by stealing books and sharing them with others. Under the stairs in her home, a Jewish refugee is being sheltered by her adoptive parents.
What critics thought
DivisiveCritics landed squarely in the middle on this adaptation of Markus Zusak's novel, with the central fault line being whether its careful, respectful approach to Nazi Germany is a virtue or a dodge. Those who warmed to it pointed to Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson's performances and the polished craft of Florian Ballhaus's cinematography and John Williams's score; those who didn't felt the film uses its historical horrors as decorative backdrop rather than confronting them honestly.
“just another tasteful, staid Hollywoodization of terribleness, in which a catastrophic time acts as a convenient backdrop for a wishful narrative rather than the springboard for an honest one”
Robert Abele·Los Angeles Times
“Rush generously provides the movie's primary warmth and humor; Watson is pitch-perfect as a seemingly humorless scold with a well-buried soft side.”
Dennis Harvey·Variety
Accolades
Genres
Drama, War
Cast & Crew
Brian PercivalDirector
Geoffrey RushHans Hubermann
Sophie NélisseLiesel Meminger
Emily WatsonRosa Hubermann
Nico LierschRudy Steiner
Ben SchnetzerMax Vandenburg
Heike MakatschLiesel's mother
Barbara AuerIlsa Hermann
Roger AllamNarrator / Death (voice)
Rainer BockMayor Hermann
Gotthard LangeGrave Digger
Rainer ReinersPriest
Kirsten BlockMrs. Heinrich
John WilliamsComposer
Markus ZusakWriter
Michael PetroniWriter
Florian BallhausCinematographyThe Book Thief
While subjected to the horrors of WWII Germany, young Liesel finds solace by stealing books and sharing them with others. Under the stairs in her home, a Jewish refugee is being sheltered by her adoptive parents.
What critics thought
DivisiveCritics landed squarely in the middle on this adaptation of Markus Zusak's novel, with the central fault line being whether its careful, respectful approach to Nazi Germany is a virtue or a dodge. Those who warmed to it pointed to Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson's performances and the polished craft of Florian Ballhaus's cinematography and John Williams's score; those who didn't felt the film uses its historical horrors as decorative backdrop rather than confronting them honestly.
“just another tasteful, staid Hollywoodization of terribleness, in which a catastrophic time acts as a convenient backdrop for a wishful narrative rather than the springboard for an honest one”
Robert Abele·Los Angeles Times
“Rush generously provides the movie's primary warmth and humor; Watson is pitch-perfect as a seemingly humorless scold with a well-buried soft side.”
Dennis Harvey·Variety
Accolades
Genres
Drama, War
Cast & Crew
Brian PercivalDirectorGeoffrey RushHans HubermannSophie NélisseLiesel MemingerEmily WatsonRosa HubermannNico LierschRudy SteinerBen SchnetzerMax VandenburgHeike MakatschLiesel's motherBarbara AuerIlsa HermannRoger AllamNarrator / Death (voice)Rainer BockMayor HermannGotthard LangeGrave DiggerRainer ReinersPriestKirsten BlockMrs. HeinrichJohn WilliamsComposerMarkus ZusakWriterMichael PetroniWriterFlorian BallhausCinematographyRent & Buy