Plot Nutshell:
A young girl struggles to find the meaning of home, family and hope amid the tumult of World War II and finds that words on the pages of her favorite books can take her far beyond the walls of her scared village.
Our Thoughts:
This deeply touching movie depicts both the horrors and heroes of war time in Germany, not only on the large scale, but also in the day-to-day life of a young girl struggling to find her place in a frightening world. Liesel (played extremely well by Sophie Nélisse), our main character, comes to a new family at the onset of the movie and loses her brother, all in the same train ride, which understandably gives her cause to withdraw and question the world around her, not to mention the horrifying beginnings of World War II.
Her new family seems to welcome her with only one arm open, that of her new father, Hans (played brilliantly by Geoffrey Rush). Married to an extremely hard-working and at times, equally harsh, woman named Rosa (Emily Watson), Hans is the main source of Liesel’s growth and encouragement throughout the film. We watch him treat his new little girl like a queen when others look down on her, encourage her to learn how to read in a time of book burnings, stand up for Jewish friends in a time of drastic anti-semitism, and cry tears of fear and disappointment for the uncertain times he lives in. By the end of the film, Rosa also becomes not only a new mother, but a friend to Liesel as well, offering encouragement and strength in her own way. Rosa also learns from Liesel the importance of an imagination built by wonder and a quiet calm during times of distress.
Two important supporting friends who challenge her to look at the world in a new way are Max (compellingly played by Ben Schnetzer), a Jewish refugee friend, and Rudy, her schoolmate (played by the adorable Nico Liersch). Rudy becomes her instant companion, confidently proclaiming at their first meeting, that they will be friends, against Liesel’s objections. Max, however, has a much quieter presence in her life, as he comes to the family only a few breaths from death, which he lingers close to for several stretches of the film.
Liesel's journey through the film leads her not only on a literal learning curve, but a journey of right and wrong, trust and friendship, and even wonder and magic. She learns how true friends act and what they will sacrifice for another. After following her to the mayor's house, Rudy discovers that she has been "borrowing" books from their library, but he also finds out something more important, Liesel’s family is keeping a refugee. Being part of the Hitler Youth movement, Rudy could have turned her in, but instead, he protects her secrets and shares her burdens. Another dear friend in the film, Max, encourages her to describe what her eyes truly see. "If your eyes could speak, what would they say?" He brings imagination to the pages of Liesel's books. Because he is restricted to the cold, hard basement, she becomes his eyes to the outside world, reminding him of the life that exists outside the darkness of its walls. Because of the influence and love of those around Liesel, she thrives, learning to trust again and have hope that lives beyond dark days.
Our Cautions:
While we consider this movie incredibly “clean” in the usual sense, the subject matter it deals with involves incredible pain, suffering, injustice, sickness and death, all in the context of the World War Liesl and her friends live through and learn from. This movie doesn’t have any sexual content and very little in the way of profanity. The caution we are alerting you to is in regards to the violence and sheer mental and emotional intensity of a number of scenes.
In one of the more disturbing scenes near the beginning of the movie, we see the reason Max left home in such haste, and arrived at Liesl’s house in such precarious health; Kristallnacht (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristallnacht for more details regarding this horrible event). It was a coordinated effort by the Nazis in both Germany and Austria on November 9 and 10, 1938, specifically aimed at any and every Jewish establishment that left 91 Jews dead and at least 30,000 incarcerated and on their way to concentration camps. The events of those nights are shown, including beatings in the streets, smashing of many windows (hence the name- meaning literally “crystal night”), and many fleeing for their lives.
In various other scenes, we see children fighting with each other, we see Hans receive a beating for his defense of a Jewish friend, we see a truck of soldiers overturn when a bomb hits it (although we don’t see any bodily damage), we see bombs being dropped on cities, and we see a young boy in his mother’s arms with blood trickling out of his nose indicating his death, who is subsequently buried by the railroad tracks. One of the final, more disturbing scenes is of a city that has been bombed during the night. As the town wakes up, it finds many of its occupants have died during the night and are being pulled from the rubble by soldiers. The casualties are laid over the rubble, in the street, and although they are not physically distorted, as real bomb victims would undoubtedly be, the ultimate impact is the same- death.
Intense, but non-violent scenes include a book-burning, in which Liesel and Rudy are chided into producing their own books to sacrifice on the altar of a “pure mind.” We see several air-raids in which bombs are heard very nearby, Liesel is told in no uncertain terms to keep Max’s presence in their house an utmost secret, and when his presence is finally suspected, a thorough search of their home’s basement (where Max is hiding and hanging onto his life by a thread), brings a Nazi soldier so close, it is only by hiding underneath the Nazi flag that Max’s life is saved.
An interesting point of discussion is the choice of narrator for the film. What character could narrate a story with a reach that goes beyond a single war, that isn’t bound to any certain life, or set of hopes and regrets, that would have a viewpoint global enough to understand all sides? Other than God himself, Death would be a good choice. Someone intimately familiar with every war, he adds a very intriguing angle to the entire story and adds his own observations of Liesel to the story.
We hope if you decide to watch this movie you will enjoy it and be inspired by the characters.
Chelsea and Jeanette
Our Cautions:
While we consider this movie incredibly “clean” in the usual sense, the subject matter it deals with involves incredible pain, suffering, injustice, sickness and death, all in the context of the World War Liesl and her friends live through and learn from. This movie doesn’t have any sexual content and very little in the way of profanity. The caution we are alerting you to is in regards to the violence and sheer mental and emotional intensity of a number of scenes.
In one of the more disturbing scenes near the beginning of the movie, we see the reason Max left home in such haste, and arrived at Liesl’s house in such precarious health; Kristallnacht (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristallnacht for more details regarding this horrible event). It was a coordinated effort by the Nazis in both Germany and Austria on November 9 and 10, 1938, specifically aimed at any and every Jewish establishment that left 91 Jews dead and at least 30,000 incarcerated and on their way to concentration camps. The events of those nights are shown, including beatings in the streets, smashing of many windows (hence the name- meaning literally “crystal night”), and many fleeing for their lives.
In various other scenes, we see children fighting with each other, we see Hans receive a beating for his defense of a Jewish friend, we see a truck of soldiers overturn when a bomb hits it (although we don’t see any bodily damage), we see bombs being dropped on cities, and we see a young boy in his mother’s arms with blood trickling out of his nose indicating his death, who is subsequently buried by the railroad tracks. One of the final, more disturbing scenes is of a city that has been bombed during the night. As the town wakes up, it finds many of its occupants have died during the night and are being pulled from the rubble by soldiers. The casualties are laid over the rubble, in the street, and although they are not physically distorted, as real bomb victims would undoubtedly be, the ultimate impact is the same- death.
Intense, but non-violent scenes include a book-burning, in which Liesel and Rudy are chided into producing their own books to sacrifice on the altar of a “pure mind.” We see several air-raids in which bombs are heard very nearby, Liesel is told in no uncertain terms to keep Max’s presence in their house an utmost secret, and when his presence is finally suspected, a thorough search of their home’s basement (where Max is hiding and hanging onto his life by a thread), brings a Nazi soldier so close, it is only by hiding underneath the Nazi flag that Max’s life is saved.
An interesting point of discussion is the choice of narrator for the film. What character could narrate a story with a reach that goes beyond a single war, that isn’t bound to any certain life, or set of hopes and regrets, that would have a viewpoint global enough to understand all sides? Other than God himself, Death would be a good choice. Someone intimately familiar with every war, he adds a very intriguing angle to the entire story and adds his own observations of Liesel to the story.
We hope if you decide to watch this movie you will enjoy it and be inspired by the characters.
Chelsea and Jeanette
