Sophie's Choice (1982)

Director:

Alan J. Pakula

Writers:

Alan J. Pakula (writer)
William Styron (novel)

Release Date:

8 December 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Between the innocent, the romantic, the sensual, and the unthinkable. There are still some things we have yet to imagine.

Plot:

Sophie is the survivor of Nazi concentration camps, who has found a reason to live in Nathan, a sparkling...

Plot Keywords:

Writer | Concentration Camp | Holocaust | Narrator | Nazi

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 11 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Meryl Streep	...	Sophie Zawistowski
Kevin Kline	...	Nathan Landau
Peter MacNicol	...	Stingo
Rita Karin	...	Yetta
Stephen D. Newman	...	Larry Landau
Greta Turken	...	Leslie Lapidus
Josh Mostel	...	Morris Fink
Marcell Rosenblatt	...	Astrid Weinstein
Moishe Rosenfeld	...	Moishe Rosenblum
Robin Bartlett	...	Lillian Grossman
Eugene Lipinski	...	Polish Professor
John Rothman	...	Librarian
Joseph Leon	...	Dr. Blackstock
David Wohl	...	English Teacher
Nina Polan	...	Woman in English Class

Also Known As:

Sophie's Choice (Australia)

Runtime:

150 min | Canada:157 min (Ontario)

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English | Polish | German

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Germany:16 | Iceland:12 | Singapore:PG (cut) | South Korea:15 | Singapore:NC-16 | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn Promenade, Brooklyn Bridge, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Trivia:

Meryl Streep did the final choice scene in one take and refused to do it again, saying that as a mother, she found it too painful and emotionally draining. Years later, Streep appeared on Oprah Winfrey's show and the choice scene was shown. Meryl seemed very uncomfortable while the clip was playing and she revealed that she had in fact never watched the scene back until that very moment.

Quotes:

Nathan Landau: Don't you see, Sophie? We're dying.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Gilmore Girls: Teach Me Tonight (#2.19)" (2002)

Best Performance Ever

Meryl Streep's performance as Sophie is simply the finest performance ever captured on film. Period. The subtlety and depth with which she reveals Sophie's wounds are simply spellbinding. She is at once radiantly beautiful, yet deeply wounded. She is charming, yet vulnerable. She is someone you want to love, yet someone whose pain keeps you at a distance.

This film takes the viewer on an intense emotional journey. Anyone, but especially anyone who is a parent, would have to be an emotional rock to not be absolutely haunted by this story. As much as I have studied and pondered the Holocaust, this film has connected me to those events more emotionally than I have ever been before.

This film, and Ms. Streep's performance, are a gift to humanity.