The Book Thief (2013)

Director: Brian Percival

Starring: Sophie Nélisse, Geoffrey Rush, Emily Watson

While subjected to the horrors of World War II Germany, young Liesel finds solace by stealing books and sharing them with others. In the basement of her home, a Jewish refugee is being protected by her adoptive parents.

I was so looking forward to this highly acclaimed film, just to be disappointed…

Is it a good movie? That depends on what you want from a movie, and what is considered entertainment for you, the individual viewer. Did I find it good? Well, I found it well made and well acted. I did find it slow moving with a lot of talk, and not all that interesting. In fact, I found it boring.

The film’s heroin is Liesel (Sophie Nelisse), the film’s titular character. As someone who don’t really read books, I found a film about someone stealing books, boring. Don’t be fooled into believing this to be a war movie. It’s not. Well, ok, essentially it is – it is set during the war, but there are no bombings, no soldiers fighting, no action sequences (except for one very short-lived scene towards the end).

The film’s main intrigue is Max (Ben Schnetzer), a Jew who hides in the home of Hans and Rosa – Liesel’s new parents, and there’s the constant fear of him being discovered. Even so, this premise wasn’t captivating. Because I knew so little about Max, I didn’t really root for him. Neither did I root for Liesel. Liesel is a strong character, fair enough, but my issue here is the premise. It just didn’t excite me. The film also tried so hard to set up a ‘love interest’ in the form of Liesel and Max, but it just didn’t work for me.

And then there’s the Narrator, Death. What gives? This was an odd choice of presenting the movie…. I won’t forget ‘The Book Thief’; I just won’t watch it again. There are far more interesting war-themed drama movies out there.

‘The Book Thief’ received 26 award nominations, winning 9, including Best Actress for Sophie Nelisse).

Would I watch it again? No.