The Reader · written by David Hare · 2008

Hanna and Michael cycle down a sunny hill through the countryside.

Scene 55 of 196 · ≈ 1 min on screen · Act one

Act oneAct two

Begins 23 min into a 1:21 film

The story so farBefore scene 55

As a law student, Michael sees Hanna, his former lover, on trial for war crimes and must face the secret that shaped their teenage relationship.

Scenes 1–6
In 1995, Michael prepares breakfast for Brigitte, then is alone in his apartment and looks out the window.
Scenes 7–24
The sick schoolboy Michael accepts Hanna’s help and returns to her.
Scenes 25–35
Michael enters an intimate relationship with Hanna, organized around his reading to her.
Just before
Scene 52
Michael proposes a cycling trip; Hanna remarks that he likes planning, throws the guidebook aside, and they begin making love.
Scene 53
At dawn, Michael sorts his stamps while his voice reads Schiller’s declaration of fearless love.
Scene 54
Michael sells his pyramid stamp for cash and runs into the street exhilarated as his reading continues.
Scene 55
This scene

55EXT. HILL. DAY

HANNA and MICHAEL are whizzing down a hill together on bicycles. He has a rucksack. It’s a rural paradise - hills on all sides, a gleaming river below, the sun shining brightly. She is wearing a blue dress.