sophie choice be set in brooklyn in the late 1940s and soon after the end of the second world war . the three main character be stingo and a young writer from the deep south and and nathan and sophie and the couple who befriend him . nathan be a jewish new yorker who tell stingo that he be a research biologist for a pharmaceutical company . sophie be a polish gentile immigrant who have survive imprisonment in auschwitz by the nazi . at first the atmosphere be relatively light and one of love and friendship and fun . this part of the film be shoot in brilliant colour in a summer setting and and the affluent suburb of new york seem a safe haven from the horror of the war that have recently ravage europe . gradually and however and the tone darken a we become aware that the gentle and beautiful sophie be hide a dark secret . we learn that her beloved father be not and a she claim and an anti nazi intellectual and but be actually a rabid anti semite and admirer of nazism whom the german murder by mistake . nathan originally seem eccentric but vivacious and likable and but a the film progress he begin to show sign of disturbance and insulting stingo whom he have previously treat a a friend and and unreasonably suspect sophie of be unfaithful to him . we and and stingo and learn from nathan brother that he be in fact suffer from mental illness and that he be only employ by the pharmaceutical company in a lowly clerical position and not a a research scientist and although sophie remain unaware of these fact . in 1982 there have be many film make about the second world war and but relatively few about the holocaust and which seem to daunt film maker by it very enormity . alan pakula be therefore break new ground and particularly a he approach the subject from a controversial angle and tackle the question of war guilt not the legal and moral guilt of those who perpetrate the holocaust and but the psychological guilt of those who survive it . after liberation from the camp and many survivor such a sophie experience feeling of guilt that they have survive whereas many others and include friend and family member and have die . sophie feeling of guilt be exacerbate by her knowledge of her father odious political view and by the fact that she have attempt to exploit her father reputation and her fluent knowledge of german in an attempt to ingratiate herself with rudolf hoess and the commandant of auschwitz and whose secretary she become . sophie most agonising secret and however and be the choice of the film title the fact that she be force by a brutal nazi officer to choose which of her two child should live and which should die . her love for the jewish nathan and whom she cling to despite his mistreatment of her and may be a way of atone for her guilt feeling . there be a few weakness in the film . during the first half the action can be too slow and and stingo and a play by peter macnichol and seem a fairly weak figure . the scene of his sexual encounter with a girl who talk like a whore and act like a prude would be funny in a comedy but be out of place in a serious film like this one . despite these weakness and however and this be a film which more than justifies it ambitious theme . meryl streep be one of the great film actress of all time and and certainly the best of the early eighty and and this be possibly her best ever role . she demonstrate her famed linguistic talent and play the auschwitz scene in excellent german and the english language scene with a polish accent and but ( contrary to what some hostile critic have sometimes claim ) there be more to her act than a collection of foreign accent . one criticism that be sometimes make of streep be that she be too intellectual an actress and self consciously think her way into a part rather than try to live it emotionally and but in this case at least this seem to be the right approach . it be difficult to see how the method could cope with a role like sophie and whose emotional experience be so far beyond those of any actress likely to be call upon to play her . certainly and i find this one of the most affecting performance i have see . never can the best actress oscar have be well deserve . kevin kline be unlucky not to have be nominate for his part a the tormented and tragic nathan . this be a dark and sombre film but one of high quality and great emotional power . positive .