The Reader

The Reader is a film that has received five Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress for Kate Winslet. Getting away from the topic at hand, this is Winslet’s sixth nomination and if there was ever a person that deserves to win, she is it. 

An accompanying soundtrack album has now been released. The music was composed by Nico Muhly. He is a 28 year old graduate of Columbia University and the Julliard School of Music. This was his fourth movie project but the first time he has been entrusted with the music for a major film. 

The Reader Soundtrack is an album of what can best be described as mood music. As with soundtrack albums of this type, it helps a great deal if you have seen the movie so you can place the songs in context. If you have not seen the movie then the album will fall into the easy listening category and would be perfect for background at a dinner party or the like. 

Most of the tracks make use of a single piano for their foundation with strings, occasional flutes, and (I am guessing) oboes filling in the blank spaces. 

The album begins with “The Egg” which starts with a gentle piano sound. The focus is on individual notes with subtle strings in support. This song sets the tone for the eighteen tracks that follow. 

“Spying” features a flute flowing in and out of various stringed instruments. “The First Bath” contains more weaving of a piano sound with some violins. “You Don’t Matter” creates a somber mood. Here again I think oboes, and strings run counterpoint to the piano sound. “Cycling Holiday” has more of a grand sound than the other tracks as the strings rather than the keyboards dominate. “Go Back To Your Friends” is another strings dominated track with a plaintive flute joining in. 

The Reader Soundtrack does not try to over reach and become something that it is not. Its main duty was to support the film and that it does well. On its own it is a pleasant if light listen. 

如若仅仅认为它只是一个爱情故事，那应该是对它最为肤浅的理解。这背后对人性，对战争，对大屠杀，对责任，对社会制度的反思，沉重的让人抬不起头来。审判时的那句话“如果你是我，你会怎么做”，我们总是以为，过去的就是过去了，我们能够置身事外。。。。

写给汉娜的诗还没有念。

“我什么都不怕，伤的越深，我的爱就越炙热。危机只会增添我的爱，让它更清晰、更丰富，我会是你唯一的天使，你生命的结局会比开端更加美丽，就连对你敞开怀抱的天堂也会说：只有一样东西，能让一个灵魂如此完整，那就是爱。”

书里面有描写，汉娜问了两次。第一次，大家还很期待审判长的答案，但审判长搪塞过去了。第二次，她再问，所有人都显得很不耐烦。以此，来表达，其实所有的人都是平庸之恶

“只有一件事可以让灵魂完整 那就是爱”

The only thing that can make life complete, that is love. 唯一能使人生完整的，是爱。 《朗读者》