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Winslet's Oscar Bid Battered by Nazi Furor

'Nazi porn' asks use to 'empathize with mass murderer'

By Mary Papenfuss,  Newser Staff

Posted Feb 15, 2009 8:37 AM CST
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(Newser) – Mounting criticism of The Reader as an apologia for the Nazis is seriously undermining Kate Winslet's chances for an Oscar, reports the Telegraph. Critics have blasted the film as "Nazi porn," and the author of a book on Hitler charged in a recent article in Slate that it "asks us to empathize with an unrepentant mass murderer." Winslet plays an illiterate concentration camp guard who later seeks redemption by learning to read.

Critical comments are being circulated to board members who choose Oscar winners, according to an industry insider. "Kate Winslet is in a very tough fight with Meryl Streep for best actress," he added. "If people get put off The Reader, they've got an obvious place to go. This just might make the difference."

British actress Kate Winslet clutches her award for Best Leading Actress for her role in 'The Reader', at the British Academy Film Awards 2009 last week in London.
British actress Kate Winslet clutches her award for Best Leading Actress for her role in 'The Reader', at the British Academy Film Awards 2009 last week in London.   (AP Photo/Joel Ryan)
British actress Kate Winslet arrives for the screening of 'The Reader' in Berlin earlier this month.
British actress Kate Winslet arrives for the screening of 'The Reader' in Berlin earlier this month.   (AP Photo/Herman J. Knippertz)
British actress Kate Winslet arrives for the screening of 'The Reader' at the Berlinale in Berlin, Germany, earlier this month. The film has been blasted as an apologia for Nazi Germany.
British actress Kate Winslet arrives for the screening of 'The Reader' at the Berlinale in Berlin, Germany, earlier this month. The film has been blasted as an apologia for Nazi Germany.   (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 7 comments
NxBigmouthery
Feb 20, 2009 2:45 AM CST
When awards become about political correctness & boosting b.o. numbers to the point where the actual films don't matter anymore, they become redundant. Why? People stop watching the ceremonies and spend less time in the cinema.
Guest
Feb 15, 2009 9:58 PM CST
So if she'd played, say, an Israeli fighter pilot who bombed the s--- out of a Gaza women's hospital, she'd be a lock?
EddyTeach
Feb 15, 2009 9:27 PM CST
Since when did the subject matter of the film affect the academy awards? Heath Ledger played a murdering sociopath and will certainly win supporting actor-- shouldn't there be protests for this? Where is the clown community's outrage for this bad publicity?

No Oscar for Winslet!
Slate

 
Academy Awards • Germany • concentration camp • award show • BAFTA • movies • Nazis • Kate Winslet • The Reader • films • Oscars

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