Reader, The

Aroview: Kate Winslet won an Oscar for her performance here as a German house-frau in this drama of post-war trauma, with Ralph Fiennes recalling his affair with her as he later witnesses her standing trial for war crimes.

Thus unfolds a tale of two halves, one of the love affair involving a young stand-in for Fiennes' character, played by David Kross, and one set in several intervals after their relationship dissolves. Preference will vary according to taste, but the first half plays like a familiar and straight forward 'forbidden' love story, with lashings of obligatory nudity and Oscar-baiting earnestness. The latter half is where the real intrigue lies, though one can't help but feel this would have been more potent and poignant in the creative hands of the Germans.

more matches…