Kate Winslet - Hanna Schmitz/The Reader #1: The Oscar winning performance - Page 12

One Love · 09-02-2010, 01:44 PM

Did you guys understand why Hannah did what she did? Do you think they explained it well in the film or could they have done it better?

water lilies · 01-01-2011, 07:29 PM

You mean why she kept her secret? I saw it more as her being ashamed more than anything else. Not being able to read was her personal demon. But I guess that was one the moral dilemmas in the movie , was it really worth it in the end? Same question goes for Michael. You could tell he regrets it, as an adult. I think he should have told, but in a way, Hanna was responsible for ruining him emotionally, so I can understand why he wasn't able to at that moment.

Anyway, Kate was amazing in this role! Her Oscar was well deserved.

Street Spirit · 01-02-2011, 03:16 AM

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Belle. I need to watch this movie again!

One Love · 01-02-2011, 02:32 PM

I guess that shame ran so deep that she wasn't even willing to step up and tell the truth when she in court. It could've exonarated her from some things. Maybe Michael was afraid to have her back in his life. I know he spent the rest of his life looking for a woman who looked like Hannah but maybe he was afraid that if he said anything Hannah would be back in his life and maybe she would ruin him even more. I think he was afraid that he would feel even worse than he already did.

It's been quite some time since I have seen it. But it's worth watching, it's a wonderful film

Willow Fabian · 01-02-2011, 02:34 PM

Can I be added?

One Love · 01-02-2011, 02:36 PM

Hey Willow Fabian, welcome to the Kate Board.

it's nice to have you here. I'll add you right now.

water lilies · 01-02-2011, 04:35 PM

I agree about Michael. I don't think he ever reconciled the fact the woman he loved as a boy could have comitted such acts. He couldn't deal with it and felt guilty and betrayed, and that's why he kept silent and changed his mind about visiting her. Even when she was in prison, he kept his relationship with her very distant, not wanting to be associated with her. It's tragic really, how this has affected his life 30+ years. I think he feared caring about someone who would turn out like Hanna, and that's why all of his relationships have failed.

One Love · 01-10-2011, 09:56 AM

I think he feared only one part of Hanna. The part that did those horrible things, I don't think he could deal properly with that part because he didn't want to be associated with it. And he never told anyone about it until much later in his life. But he loved the other part of Hanna, the part he fell in love with. I think he was mostly looking for that part when he was looking for her in all those women.

One Love · 04-26-2011, 04:44 PM

Quote:

Hanna: Perf... Perfet... perfect.. perfect ele... ele... elegance.... The young woman was tall with a figure of perfect elegance. On a large... on a large... on a large... sc... sc... sca... scale. The young woman was tall with a figure of perfect elegance on a large scale.

This is one of those great scenes that they shouldn't have deleted. It shows how Hanna is learning to read. She's tries to read a sentence all by herself and when she succeeds she looks so incredibly proud o herself.