Sophie's Choice (1982)
Sophie's Choice (1982)
Have you ever heard of someone use the term “Sophie’s Choice” before? If so, have you thought about what it meant, or where the term comes from? According to Dictionary.com, “Sophie’s choice refers to an extremely difficult decision a person has to make. It describes a situation where no outcome is preferable over the other.” That term comes from the heartbreaking choice the main character, Sophie had to make in the novel by William Styron and the 1982 Alan J. Pakula film, Sophie’s Choice. When this scene appeared in the movie, all my emotional defenses collapsed and I weeped. This scene, where poor Sophie had to give in to the Nazis, tore me apart and is one of the most heartbreaking scenes in any movie that appeared on a giant screen.
I really need to talk about this film’s acting because this film is such a character-driven film. Meryl Streep absolutely owns this role as Sophie, and it shows why she is the greatest actress of any generation. Even reluctant fans of hers admit this performance is amazing, perhaps the best part of the movie. She completely deserved all the accolades. From her performances in The Deer Hunter and Manhattan, Meryl was on one hell of a run. Streep delivers a gut-wrenching performance that hits you to the core. She is excellent at conveying emotions and she came across as realistic with her Polish accent that was on point. Another good performance came from Kevin Kline, making his film debut. Kline, who plays Sophie’s bipolar lover Nathan, really delivers the goods as a crazy romantic. The other big performance is one I was not keen on and unfortunately, it drags down the film somewhat. Peter MacNicol, whom is better known for working in comedies, unfortunately does not stand tall with the other two leads. Maybe it’s because the film is mostly told from his point-of-view as an outsider looking in or maybe Stingo is not much of an engaging character, but MacNicol was miscast and that dragged the film down from perfection.
Right after the Second World War finished, an aspiring writer from the South named Stingo (MacNicol) moves to Brooklyn to pursue his writing interests. In his new apartment, he meets Sophie (Streep) and her lover, Nathan (Kline). They all became really good friends. Stingo later learns that Sophie is an Auschwitz survivor. Everyone should be aware that Auschwitz was the most infamous of all Nazi Germany’s concentration camps. As time progresses, Stingo and Sophie become much closer to each other and Nathan’s state of mind worsens.
The film was directed by Alan J. Pakula, best known for his directorial work in 1976’s All the President’s Men, also a character-driven film. Pakula knows how to work with great actors so it should not be a surprise that he directed Streep to her best work in her incredibly long and satisfying career. The cinematography is very beautiful, thanks to the underrated work of Nestor Almendros. I love his contrast in colors. The use of bright colors when in Brooklyn and the haunting use of dark colors in wartime Poland.
I really liked Sophie’s Choice. Considering how it’s in the AFI Top 100 list, I thought I was going to love the film. I loved Streep’s beautiful, mesmerizing performance but MacNicol’s character/performance dropped the quality of the film a whole letter grade for me. But when Streep is seen on the camera, she absolutely leaves everything to dust with her performance that will surely break your hearts. This made me feel what being a survivor of such senseless tragedy would feel like. It hit me incredibly hard and it is the kind of performance that will stay with you forever. Overall, this is a good film that has some questionable character development but has some incredible thematic work.
My Grade: B
Have you ever heard of someone use the term “Sophie’s Choice” before? If so, have you thought about what it meant, or where the term comes from? According to Dictionary.com, “Sophie’s choice refers to an extremely difficult decision a person has to make. It describes a situation where no outcome is preferable over the other.” That term comes from the heartbreaking choice the main character, Sophie had to make in the novel by William Styron and the 1982 Alan J. Pakula film, Sophie’s Choice. When this scene appeared in the movie, all my emotional defenses collapsed and I weeped. This scene, where poor Sophie had to give in to the Nazis, tore me apart and is one of the most heartbreaking scenes in any movie that appeared on a giant screen.
I really need to talk about this film’s acting because this film is such a character-driven film. Meryl Streep absolutely owns this role as Sophie, and it shows why she is the greatest actress of any generation. Even reluctant fans of hers admit this performance is amazing, perhaps the best part of the movie. She completely deserved all the accolades. From her performances in The Deer Hunter and Manhattan, Meryl was on one hell of a run. Streep delivers a gut-wrenching performance that hits you to the core. She is excellent at conveying emotions and she came across as realistic with her Polish accent that was on point. Another good performance came from Kevin Kline, making his film debut. Kline, who plays Sophie’s bipolar lover Nathan, really delivers the goods as a crazy romantic. The other big performance is one I was not keen on and unfortunately, it drags down the film somewhat. Peter MacNicol, whom is better known for working in comedies, unfortunately does not stand tall with the other two leads. Maybe it’s because the film is mostly told from his point-of-view as an outsider looking in or maybe Stingo is not much of an engaging character, but MacNicol was miscast and that dragged the film down from perfection.
Right after the Second World War finished, an aspiring writer from the South named Stingo (MacNicol) moves to Brooklyn to pursue his writing interests. In his new apartment, he meets Sophie (Streep) and her lover, Nathan (Kline). They all became really good friends. Stingo later learns that Sophie is an Auschwitz survivor. Everyone should be aware that Auschwitz was the most infamous of all Nazi Germany’s concentration camps. As time progresses, Stingo and Sophie become much closer to each other and Nathan’s state of mind worsens.
The film was directed by Alan J. Pakula, best known for his directorial work in 1976’s All the President’s Men, also a character-driven film. Pakula knows how to work with great actors so it should not be a surprise that he directed Streep to her best work in her incredibly long and satisfying career. The cinematography is very beautiful, thanks to the underrated work of Nestor Almendros. I love his contrast in colors. The use of bright colors when in Brooklyn and the haunting use of dark colors in wartime Poland.
I really liked Sophie’s Choice. Considering how it’s in the AFI Top 100 list, I thought I was going to love the film. I loved Streep’s beautiful, mesmerizing performance but MacNicol’s character/performance dropped the quality of the film a whole letter grade for me. But when Streep is seen on the camera, she absolutely leaves everything to dust with her performance that will surely break your hearts. This made me feel what being a survivor of such senseless tragedy would feel like. It hit me incredibly hard and it is the kind of performance that will stay with you forever. Overall, this is a good film that has some questionable character development but has some incredible thematic work.
My Grade: B
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