The Reader fingerprintBig heart, strong craft, a touch of humor.
Tense
Builds slowly, so the intensity comes in waves.
Deeply moving and melancholic
Much of it is about growing up.
A little humor
Not a comedy at heart.
History, the mind, and society
Lived-in and easy to get lost in.
Standout performances, characters, and direction
Standout cinematography and score
Tense
Builds slowly, so the intensity comes in waves.
The Reader is tense. The story builds slowly, so the intensity comes in waves.
Deeply moving and melancholic
Much of it is about growing up.
Emotionally, it's deeply moving, melancholic, and romantic. Much of it is about growing up.
A little humor
Not a comedy at heart.
Expect a little humor.
History, the mind, and society
Lived-in and easy to get lost in.
Its world is built around history, the mind, and society. The setting feels lived-in and easy to get lost in.
Standout performances, characters, and direction
The performances, characters, and direction stand out.
Standout cinematography and score
Look and sound: the cinematography and score stand out.
Based on the GoodWatch fingerprint: our scores for 70+ attributes of every movie. Select a row to see all of them.
Behind the mystery lies a truth that will make you question everything you know.
Overall: Similar vibe.
Quick answers from GoodWatch data.
The Reader is included with a subscription to Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Prime Video with Ads in the United States. You can watch it free with ads on The CW, Kanopy, and Hoopla. You can also rent or buy it from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, and YouTube. All links in Where to Watch go to these licensed services.
Mostly. It's well received, with a GoodWatch score of 68/100 (IMDb 7.6, Rotten Tomatoes 63%, and Metacritic 58). The GoodWatch score combines critic and audience ratings.
It's rated R in the United States. Content advisories: sexual content and disturbing imagery.
2 h 4 min
The Reader runs 2 h 4 min.
No. It's adapted from a novel.
Not quite. Audiences rate The Reader higher (76) than critics (61). It's more of a crowd-pleaser than a critics' pick.
Yes. It cost about $32 million to make and earned $109 million worldwide, 3.4 times its budget.
It was made in English, with some German, Greek, Latin. Produced in Germany, United States.
+51GoodWatch finds legal streaming, rental, or purchase options for The Reader in 65 countries. Pick any of them in Where to Watch to see the local services.
TV Tropes lists 18 storytelling tropes for The Reader, including Oscar Bait, Never Learned to Read, Vomit Indiscretion Shot.
7.6
