Sophie's Choice (1982)
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The story
In 1947, a young writer named Stingo moves to Brooklyn and becomes neighbors with Sophie Zawistowska, a Polish immigrant, and her emotionally unstable lover, Nathan Landau. While Nathan's volatile behavior and jealousy create a tense living environment, Sophie carries the heavy burden of her past in a concentration camp. As Stingo gets to know them, the narrative explores the complexities of their lives in Brooklyn and the secrets Sophie keeps regarding her survival and the choices she was forced to make before arriving in the United States.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1947, writer Stingo lives in Brooklyn with Sophie, a Polish immigrant, and her volatile lover Nathan. Nathan suffers from paranoid schizophrenia and frequently subjects Sophie to abuse. Sophie reveals she was interned in Auschwitz, where she was forced to choose which of her two children would be sent to a gas chamber to save the other. She chose to save her son, Jan. After a violent confrontation where Nathan fires a gun, Sophie and Stingo flee to a hotel. Sophie eventually agrees to be with Stingo but refuses to marry. The next day, Stingo finds that Sophie and Nathan have committed suicide together by taking cyanide. Stingo later moves to a farm in Virginia to finish his novel.
- First release year
- 1982
- Runtime (minutes)
- 151
- Production countries
- United Kingdom; United States
- Original languages
- English; Polish; German
- Directors
- Alan J. Pakula
- Writers
- Alan J. Pakula · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Meryl Streep · Zofia "Sophie" Zawistowska; Kevin Kline · Nathan; Peter MacNicol · Stingo
- Genres
- psychological drama
- Themes
- survival; trauma; sacrifice; memory
- Tone and mood
- somber; heartbreaking
- Setting
- Brooklyn, New York and Auschwitz, Poland during the 1940s.
- Premise and plot tags
- historical drama; war aftermath; romance
- Source material / true-story basis
- William Styron's 1979 novel
- Content notes
- suicide
- Reception
- The film received positive reviews from critics and was praised for Meryl Streep's acclaimed performance.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 75% · scale: percentage · review count: 44; Metacritic · score: 68 · scale: 100
- Awards and nominations
- Best Actress · Academy Awards · win
- Production trivia
- Meryl Streep won the Best Actress Oscar for this role.; The film was based on a novel by William Styron.; The film was shot in New York City and Zagreb.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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