The Book Thief is a historical drama which premiered in 2013. The story is set in Nazi Germany shortly before and during World War Two.
Here is some basic information about this drama:
** Directed by Brian Percival
** Screenplay written by Michael Petroni
** Based on the international bestseller The Book Thief by the Australian author Markus Zusak (2005)
** Released on DVD in 2014
** Run time: 130 minutes
The cast includes the following:
** Geoffrey Rush as Hans Hubermann (Liesel’s new father)
** Emily Watson as Rosa Hubermann (Liesel’s new mother)
** Marie-Sophie Nélisse as Liesel Meminger
** Ben Schnetzer as Max Vandenburg (a Jew who is in hiding)
** Nien Liersch as Rudy (the neighbour’s son)
** Barbara Auer as Ilsa Hermann (the mayor’s wife)
** Roger Allam as the narrator (Death)
As stated above, this is a historical drama, i.e. a fictional story that is placed in a historical context. In this case, the context is Nazi Germany shortly before and during World War Two.
I do not wish to spoil the viewing for anyone. This is why I am not going to say much about what happens in this drama, but I have to mention a few details in order to explain my rating.
The story begins in 1938. A mother is travelling on a train with two children: a son and a daughter. Later we find out that the authorities have told her to surrender her children to a foster family.
Why?
Because she is a communist, or she is accused of being a communist. The son is not well. He is sick. During the journey he dies. A funeral is arranged next to the train line. But the daughter Liesel is still alive.
After the funeral, Liesel arrives in a small town where she is placed with a foster family who is supposed to be “better” than her own mother.
Her new father is Hans, while her new mother is Rosa. Hans is a warm person who welcomes her to her new home. Rosa, on the other hand, is cold and rude to Liesel, but later we find out that she has a heart of gold.
The neighbour’s son Rudy welcomes her as well. He wants to be her friend. In the morning, they walk to school together. In the afternoon they walk back home together.
This is how the story begins and this is where my presentation ends. If you want to know what happens to Liesel and the people around her, you will have to watch the drama - or read the book - all the way to the end.
What do reviewers say about this drama?
Here are some answers:
** 50 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)
** 73 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)
** 53 per cent = Metacritic
** 75 per cent = IMDb
As you can see, the professional critics are not impressed by this drama, while the general audience seems to like it. The professional critics hover around 50 per cent, while the general audience hovers around 75 per cent.
In my opinion, all these ratings are too high; not only the ratings from the general audience but also the ratings from the professional critics.
Why?
Because this drama has a fatal flaw: the language that is spoken.
The story is set in Germany but the characters speak English with a strong German accent!
More than 90 per cent of the dialogue is in English! There are, however, a few exceptions to the general rule:
# 1. The opening scene – the funeral of Liesels’s brother – is in German.
# 2. When German boys and girls sing a song about life in the “new” Germany, the song is in German.
# 3. When a local Nazi leader gives a speech to the public, before a ceremony of book burning begins, the speech is in German.
# 4. When the students in Liesel’s class find out that she does not know how to read and write, they laugh at her and call her “Dummkopf!” which is German for “stupid!”
# 5. When Liesel talks about the mayor, she calls him “Der Bürgermeister,” which is the German word for a mayor.
# 6. Throughout the drama, short German words pop up in the middle of the English dialogue:
** JA for “yes”
** NEIN for “no”
** UND for “and”
This dramatic device is used in order to remind the audience that the story is set in Germany, even though the characters speak English (with a strong German accent).
This is not a good idea. The result is ridiculous, because nobody speaks like that. When Germans speak to each other, they do not speak English with a strong German accent; they speak German (with different German accents depending on where they live).
Movie-makers often work hard to make a historical
drama realistic, spending a lot of time, a lot of energy and a lot of resources
on this purpose:
(1) They try to find actors who have the right appearance and the right age.
(2) They make sure the actors have the right clothes and the right haircut.
(3) They try to use the proper technology. In this case, we have an old steam
train.
(4) They try to find good locations. This movie is filmed in a small German
town; there are flags with the German swastika everywhere; the signs above the
shops are in German; and the names of the characters are German.
But what about the language that is spoken? This is an important part of the
whole package. But in many cases, this aspect is totally ignored.
Why?
Because movie-makers are afraid to use subtitles! They think a drama will fail, if the viewers have to read subtitles. This line of thinking is most unfortunate, because it means the drama is not realistic. Historical authenticity is violated.
On Amazon, there are more than five thousand reviews of this product. The average rating is more than four stars.
Clearly, this drama is very popular among Amazon customers. But not all customers agree.
More than 40 reviewers offer only one star. Several critical reviewers mention the language as a problem. It is one reason why they offer a low rating.
I am glad to see that some reviewers agree with my point of view regarding the language that is spoken in the drama.
This drama was released on DVD in Germany. The German version is dubbed into German, i.e. all dialogue is in German. However, several German reviewers point out that the dubbing is not well done:
When you look at the faces and listen to the sound, you can see that the actors do not speak German. The movements of the mouth do not match the words which are spoken.
This is a fundamental problem with dubbing: it is difficult and expensive to arrange and it gives the drama an unreal look.
The critical German reviewers mention two additional problems with the German version:
# 1. When Liesel is reading a book, there is a close-up where we can see the text she is reading. The text is in English!
Why?
She is supposed to learn how to read and write her own language (German). She is not supposed to learn a foreign language (English).
# 2. Hans and Liesel are writing a dictionary on the basement wall. But the words are in English!
Why?
Hans is teaching her German, not English. This is not realistic. In fact, it is extremely dangerous. Imagine if the Gestapo were to come to the house and search every room.
What will they say when they see English words written on the basement wall? The language of the enemy! They will think that traitors live in this house and they will arrest them all at once.
The visual aspect of the drama is mostly realistic. But in these two examples, historical realism is violated.
Some people do not care about the language that is spoken. They say the audience must be able to understand what is going on. There is an easy solution to this problem: optional subtitles.
When a movie is released on DVD, the studio can provide optional subtitles in several languages. This means that the movie can be realistic and that it can be understood by audiences in several countries.
Subtitles have several advantages:
(1) They can help people who want to improve their language skills.
(2) They can help people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
(3) They can help people who do not understand the original language.
For me, the language that is spoken in a movie is important. If the story is set in Germany, I think the characters should speak German to each other.
But in this movie, they speak English with a strong German accent. For me, this is painful to watch. This drama is fatally flawed. This is why it deserves a rating of one star (20 percent).
PS # 1. The following item is available online:
John Patterson,
“Who exactly is ‘The Book Thief’ aimed at?”
The Guardian
10 February 2014
PS # 2. The historical drama Alone in Berlin (2016) has a similar problem.
The characters speak English (with a German accent), even though the story is set in Germany.
*****
The Book Thief
By Markus Zusak
(2005)
*****
