Sophie's Choice

I finally saw Sophie's Choice after seeing some clips from the film about a year ago. At home we have a copy of the book with the same title written by William Styron, but I haven't read it yet. So I can't make any comparisons between film and novel as I've only seen the film. Sophie's Choice might best be known as one of the two films for which Meryl Streep won an Oscar (the other was for her role in Kramer Vs. Kramer). And having seen her performance I can say that indeed she does a great job bringing Sophie to life. Like always Streep gives a masterclass in acting even if the film itself is a bit weak, her performance is always top notch and this certainly is the case in Sophie's Choice. What's most admirable is how easily she switches between languages and her German is just like that of a native speaker, which is very fascinating to watch and her speaking English with a Polish accent seems completely effortless. Like always Streep makes it all seem so easy and truly becomes her character. The film itself is good as well. It's a solid drama with comedic elements showing friendship and relations as well as giving insight in some historical events such as the Second World War and slavery and lynching in the South of the US. The film is very compelling and well structured resulting in that you never quite get the feeling the film is too melodramatic. Its three characters and their strong bond is what makes the film most interesting. Kevin Kline is perfect as Nathan Landau and at times even steals the spotlight away from the already great Streep. Together they form a perfect match and their love for each other is very convincing. I didn't however like the way the film sometimes switched between the kind of banal aspects such as when Stingo (Peter MacNicol) the writer who narrates the story has a date with a girl who claims she could have sex every single moment of the day. It kind of rubs with the strong scenes taking place during the Second World War and some of the themes of the film. But this aside, Sophie's Choice is a well crafted film which introduces you to some very nice characters.

Verdict: A nice drama with two very sympathetic characters played by Streep and Kline who both give great performances. Though sometimes a bit odd in the way historical events are easily mixed in with fiction and banal kind of aspects, in the end it's a very solid drama which is very enjoyable.