Principal cast
Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Peter MacNicol, Rita Karin and Stephen D. Newman
Film 396 of 498 on the Screen Path
Sophie's Choice
Between the innocent, the romantic, the sensual, and the unthinkable. There are still some things we have yet to imagine.
About the film
Sophie's Choice at a glance.
Screen Path places this 1982 film at stop 396 in one curated journey through cinema. The learning experience adds context before you watch and deeper analysis after.
Stingo, a young writer, moves to Brooklyn in 1947 to begin work on his first novel. As he becomes friendly with Sophie and her lover Nathan, he learns that she is a Holocaust survivor. Flashbacks reveal her harrowing story, from pre-war prosperity to Auschwitz. In the present, Sophie and Nathan's relationship increasingly unravels as Stingo grows closer to Sophie and Nathan's fragile mental state becomes ever more apparent.
Key craft credits
Néstor Almendros (director of photography), Evan A. Lottman (editor), Marvin Hamlisch (original music composer), Alan J. Pakula (screenplay) and George Jenkins (production design)
- Director
- Alan J. Pakula
- Release
- 1982-12-08
- Runtime
- 151 minutes
- Genres
- Drama, Romance and War
- Country
- United States
- Quiz
- 50 questions
The Screen Path journey
Before. After. Remember.
The featured film is watched outside Screen Path. The app provides the learning experience around it: a guide, an analysis, and a quiz with explanations.
01
Before you watch
Start with a spoiler-free video guide to the context and filmmaking choices worth noticing.
Spoiler-free02
After the film
Return after watching for a deeper video analysis of craft, meaning, and legacy.
Contains spoilers03
Quiz yourself
Answer 50 questions with clear rationales designed to make the ideas stick.
50 questions in this journeyCitizen Kane is the complete public example: both learning videos and a five-question sample quiz are available below.
Start the example →Full cast
Full cast
- Meryl StreepCharacter: Zofia "Sophie" Zawistowski
- Kevin KlineCharacter: Nathan Landau
- Peter MacNicolCharacter: Stingo
- Rita KarinCharacter: Yetta
- Stephen D. NewmanCharacter: Larry
- Greta TurkenCharacter: Leslie Lapidus
- Josh MostelCharacter: Morris Fink
- Marcell RosenblattCharacter: Astrid Weinstein
- Moishe RosenfeldCharacter: Moishe Rosenblum
- Robin BartlettCharacter: Lillian Grossman
- Eugene LipinskiCharacter: Polish Professor
- John RothmanCharacter: Librarian
Full crew
Full crew
- Alan J. PakulaCredits: Screenplay, Director, Producer
- Albert WolskyCredits: Costume Design
- George JenkinsCredits: Production Design
- William C. GerrityCredits: Associate Producer
- Martin StargerCredits: Executive Producer
- John Jay MooreCredits: Art Direction
- Carol JoffeCredits: Set Decoration
- Alixe GordinCredits: Casting
- Evan A. LottmanCredits: Editor
- Keith BarishCredits: Producer
- Marvin HamlischCredits: Original Music Composer
- William StyronCredits: Novel
- Néstor AlmendrosCredits: Director of Photography
- Frank BiancoCredits: Hairstylist
- J. Roy HellandCredits: Makeup Artist, Hairstylist
- Mike MaggiCredits: Makeup Artist
- Halid RedžebašićCredits: Makeup Artist
- Arthur BloomCredits: Sound
- Robert HeinCredits: Sound
Film data and images provided by TMDB. This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.