Holiday Movie Guide 2008 0 Chimes

Single View
View All

Photo 13 of 28

The Reader

Cast: Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes
Release date: In select theaters December 10
Why you should see it: Based on a 1995 German novel, this movie tells the story of Michael, who as a teen falls into an affair with an older woman. When they meet again in the future, he's an attorney (Fiennes), and she's a woman accused of horrible war crimes (Winslet)—but that's not her biggest secret or her biggest shame.
Box office bottom line: Winslet and Fiennes in a book adaptation spells must-see and award-worthy, but the dramatic story that unfolds on the screen has nothing on the behind-the-scenes drama that has made industry headlines for months. Notoriously prickly producers Harvey Weinstein and Scott Rudin butted heads over the release date, and the squabble spilled over into a very public forum that included the leaking of an email that charged Weinstein with bugging recently deceased producer Sydney Pollack on his deathbed. Bottom line, Weinstein pushed for the late 2008-release because he wanted the movie to be in contention during awards season, and Winslet, especially, is likely to get a nomination or two.