Warm Bodies – Book vs. Movie

SPOILERS: For both book and movie.

I have to say, there is absolutely nothing better than curling up with a good book and getting lost in a story for hours. On the other hand, there is also nothing like going to the movies and watching your favourite stories come to life in front of your eyes. Now if you are a fan of YA fiction and you have a soft spot for those apocalyptic stories, then this is a book for you.  Isaac Marion takes a different route with the typical apocalyptic, zombie outbreak story, finding its hero in the undead, amnesia stricken young adult R. Now if you’re unsure about whether or not you want to see Jonathan Levine’s adaptation of the movie, then lucky for you I have read the book and seen the movie to be able to fill you in on the main differences between the two.

Now one of the main differences that really surprised me happened very early on in the movie. In the book, R is a married Zombie… with kids! The Boneys (the elders/leaders/overseers of the airport colony that R lives in, “marry” R to a blonde zombie and then assign them two zombie children to watch over and hunt. However, in the movie, R is very much a care free zombie who takes Julie on a joy ride in a convertible and cautiously exploring their relationship for one another. In the book version, R contemplates his feelings for Julie as well as trying to figure out what it means to be a father, and the responsibility he has to these two children that were given to him. This leads us to….

The Boneys Leadership. In the movie they are simply described as being old zombies, so old that they have lost all of their flesh and are doomed to wander the earth as skeletons forever. Obviously they weren’t very happy when they found out that R was trying to protect and save Julie, but they weren’t that much more upset than all the other Zombies. In the novel, the Boneys are the foreboding elders that dominate and rule the Zombie colony. The Boneys have enough consciousness to have church  and school as well as being able to argue opinions. Even though they can not talk, they make their opinions very clear, like when they handed a series of Polaroids showing the massacre of Zombies to R, in an attempt to prevent R from falling in love with Julie.

Another difference was the way Perry was used as R’s spirit guide. Poor Perry… now he gets killed off pretty much immediately in both versions of the story, but in the book, he is far more present in R’s day to day choices and how he handles things with Julie. Even though R chows down on Perry’s brain a few times throughout the movie, experiencing Perry’s memories with Julie and how he really felt about her before he died, Perry is essentially R’s spirit animal in the book. As much as the story is about R becoming human again, it is also about dead Perry learning how to live through R. He challenges and provokes R, and then later guides him, finally ending up at peace in death. This is completely different to the film where, both the audience and, R experience a few flash backs, we experience great character development through Perry’s guidance of R.

This then leads on to R telling Julie about killing Perry. This confession emerges itself later in the book than in the movie. In the movie, R tells Julie that, by the way, he ate her boyfriend and he’s been snacking on his brains for weeks, when they are on their way back to the colony in which Julie lives. Julie explains that she understands and then runs away from him. However, in the book, it is not until the ending chapters that R confesses what he has been struggling to tell Julie. He takes her to the ex-foster home where Perry used to live and uncovers Perry’s secret manuscript (that was dedicated to her, of course), things he would have only said to her if he had been eaten in the apocalypse. She forgives R immediately, no quick exits required. (Because she loves him.)

Now one thing I must point out is Marion’s book is heavy, where Levine’s movie is more lighthearted, not that either of them have a soul-crushing tone. It’s the little details that lend a hand to the novel: Julie is briefly mentioned to be a cutter, and revealed that she had sex for money at a young age. Nora, an orphan girl who lived on her own for years, had sex with Perry shortly after finding her way to the stadium. Julie’s mother couldn’t take the pressure of apocalyptic life and walked straight into a pack of zombies, leaving her daughter to bury an empty dress for her funeral. Julie’s father is an alcoholic who can’t deal with the loss of his wife as well as humanity. Perry’s father was killed by a falling brick at a construction site a random and non Zombie related accident. Oh and there’s the whole Zombies taking over the earth thing…

R’s outfit is something that must be addressed in this comparison. In the movie, R sports a red hoodie, which leads him to believe that he was either unemployed or a student. However, in the book he’ wearing a dark suit and a red tie, and thinks he may have been a temp or an office worker of some sort. When he goes to the stadium later on in the book, the girls make fun of him and say he is about a decade behind in fashion.

R’s outlook on life, or the after life for that matter, is something that is very difficult to capture on screen, however, I feel that the movie attempted at this and did it well. Movie version R seems almost content with his existence wandering around the airport in his red hoodie, spitting out one liners in his internal monologue (most of which are relatively humourous). In the book, R seems to want something more out of life. He wonders why he is different, wishes he could read, why he feels certain things when he hears music, wants to know what his peers’ names are and who he was before this all happened. While in the movie he is simply being, in the book he is trying.

The final battle scene differs somewhat between the book and the movie (the movie includes large battle scenes and focuses on the main characters’ smaller struggles as they try to move through the stadium), but no detail changes more than how R makes his way into the stadium. In the movie, he finds a secret passageway by using one of Perry’s memories to help him. In the novel, however, he uses M as a distraction , pretending that he is being attacked and bolting into the city of “safety”, pretending to be a human.

Now the ending, the ending is very different. The movie brings us a happy ending, where everyone learns to co-exist and except one another, whilst Zombies learn to love and slowly begin to return to their human state. Whilst R and Julie go on to live their lives together as humans. Not so much in the book. As explained before, the book has a very dark undertone to it. In a final rooftop confrontation, Julie’s dad’s best friend stabs him in the ankle to stop him from shooting Julie… in the head. When he falls, one of the Boneys grabs him and they begin to eat him. He eventually gives up fighting and is pulled off of the roof and dies with the Boney attacking him. In the midst of all the choas and before Julie’s dad falls to his death, R and Julie do the only thing they can think of: they kiss. What R and Julie have between them has begun to infect many others, causing them to change. The living decide to give the changing undead a chance, and let them try to assimilate into their society. So the book has somewhat of a happy ending, that is surrounded by total darkness and having many of their loved ones die in the battle.

So that’s it. Movie adaptation was a good attempt at telling this weird Zombie love story, but the book is just so much better! High five Isaac Marion for producing some A+ work. I am looking forward to reading your next master piece The Burning World (a prequel to Warm Bodies).

 

 

 

Steel Magnolias (1989)

“Laughter through tears is my favourite emotion” – Truvey Jones

There really is no use fighting it, Robert Harling created a brilliant laugh-getting, tear jerking movie that moves the audience completely. Steel Magnolias concerns six women that spend most of their time in a Louisiana beauty parlor, starring the luminous likes of Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis and Julia Roberts. The result of this movie can be best described as brilliantly entertaining.

Sally Fields has the key role of a self-sacrificing mother who would absolutely do anything, even donate a kidney, to save her sick daughter, who is played by Julia Roberts. Even though they are key parts of the movie, the real fun comes with Shirley MacLaine and Olympia Dukakis. MacLaine plays the hilarious town crank and Dukakis as the wealthy widow who goads her to distraction; these two women are priceless. We quickly introduced to Dolly Parton who plays the sassy-weet beauty-shop owner and the deglamourised Daryl Hannah who is the beauty-shop assistant. These women together create an incredible chemistry, you would think that they have been friends for years. In an interview Sally Fields said that it took them 30 seconds to become friends on the set and they have come away from making this movie with friendships that will last a life time.

Steel Magnolias is essentially a series of comic one-liners that have you quoting them for years afterwards. It has to be said that the one-liners are hilariously funny and the tragedy deserves most, but not all of the tears. The movie takes place in Louisiana during the 1980s and involves a tightly knit group of women friends who husbands (being dead, absent or depressed) leave them lots of time to gossip in the beauty parlor. Gossip is what these women do best, and it is Olympia Dukakis that says “If you have something bad to say about somebody come sit down right here beside me!” What these women treasure the most is anyone with a “past”, and when Daryl Hannah makes her appearance at the beauty parlor as the new assistant, they are in their element when she confesses that she “thinks” she is married. The beauty shop is run by Dolly Parton, reminding us that she is the sunniest and most natural of actresses there is. It is into her hands that bride to be Julia Roberts appears, who quickly becomes entwined in the friendship of these women. Dropping in to exchange their insights are Sherly MacLaine and Olympia Dukakis. These two women are the closest of friends, even if MacLaine’s character has an odd way of showing it. The six women are the steel magnolias of the title, Southern Belles who are dippy on the outside but are strong on the inside and can survive any challenge that is thrown at them, and in this film there are many.

Male characters are seen but not heard onstage. We are introduced to the husbands and boyfriends of the women played by Tom Skerritt, Sam Shepard, Dylan McDermott and Kevin J.O’Connor. But the men are not the point of this movie. Steel Magnolias is all about its actresses, who tap into the real lives and fundamental truths about the strength women derive from one another. These women are live wires and create sparks throughout the movie. Shirley MacLaine’s character dislikes men, especially Tom Skerritt’s character, she simply says “Drum is a real gentleman, I bet he takes the dishes out of the sink before he pees in it!” and “Men are the most horrible creatures, honey. They will ruin your life.” This is a woman’s picture, the women cook, sew, go to church and drive around town, they fight and make up, hug each other and cry.

At first we are not aware of the impending tragedy due to the movie sticking so successfully to its comic dialogue. I absolutely love the way these women talk, they are witty, funny and sarcastic all the time. Parton observes most of the time until she says something like “What separates us from animals is the ability to accessorize”. When tragedy strikes and there is a death in their group, they have the strength to grieve and the character to smile through their tears. The big scene in the movie is a heartbreaking monologue by Sally Field, who simply asks God the question that is often uppermost in all of our minds, “WHY?”. The way Fields asks this, and the words that she uses are tremendously effective and we are all moved. But like the rest of the movie the tears are followed by laughter when Dukakis offers Fields to hit MacLaine in order for her to feel better. This scene offers a comic lines that will always be remembered, “Are you high Clairee?!” and “We’ll sell t-shirts sayin’ I SLAPPED OUISER BOUDREAUX! Hit her!” Steel Magnolias is willing to sacrifice its over-all impact for individual moments of humor that people take away with them, you have to hand it to those women. Every moment works!

 

Spider-Man Vs. The Amazing Spider-Man movie

Whatever life holds in store for me, I will never forget these words: “With great power comes great responsibility.” This is my gift, my curse. Who am I? I’m Spider-man. – Peter Parker from Spider-Man

We all have secrets: the ones we keep… and the ones that are kept from us. – Peter Parker from The Amazing Spider-Man

Ever since I was a kid I have always loved action movies and movies that involved superheros. I have always had that nerdy side of me that absolutely loved the comic book superheros that saved the day. Now it has to be said that Spider-man has always been one of my favourite superheros alongside with the heros of The X-men and Batman. In this blog I will be comparing the two movies and giving you my opinions on both of them.

Back in 2002 Marvel released their first Spider-Man starring Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker and Kirsten Dunst as Mary-Jane Watson. This movie was based on the comic books written by Stan Lee in the 1960’s. This movie was increible when I first saw it and I have the same opinion now 10 years later. Spider-Man follows the basic template of the original Stan Lee comic with Peter Parker an orphan, intellectual teen loner living in New York with his Aunt May and Uncle Ben, dreaming of getting the girl next door, Mary-Jane Watson. We follow Peter Parker on a school trip to a Columbia University Lab where Peter is bitten by a genetically altered spider and overnight in gains superhuman strength, perception and agility. We are introduced to his powers in an amusing way, watching Peter trying to figure out exactly how they all work. When watching the movie we see Peter use his powers for material gain. When Peter fails to stop a burglar from robbing the wrestling arena, a tragedy follows that compels him to devote his powers to fighting crime as Spider-Man. Peter feels responsible for the death of his Uncle and decides to fulfill his Uncle’s golden advice “With great power comes great responsibility”. When Peter is not busy being Spider-Man he moves into an apartment with his best friend Harry Osborn, and beigns to work for the Daily Bugle as a photographer. Meanwhile his alter ego finds a nemesis known as the Green Goblin, a super powered, megalomaniacal villain who is the alter ego of Harry Osborn’s father Norman Osborn.

I found that the movie really followed the comic book Origins of Spider-Man, As well as following the comic book we see that Spider-Man also has a few dark moments that catch the audience off guard. The final fight scene between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin is quite violent and bloody, more so than the comic books. The other scene, where Spider-Man confronts his Uncle’s killer, it is quite chilling and is much more than what the audience was probably expecting. There are a few other dark moments in the movie that did surprise people, however it shows the overall feel of teen angst and emerging adulthood. In a way it added some sort of “real life” into way may have been a silly comic book movie.

Spider-Man was a fast moving movie filled with intense drama, teen crushes and love affairs, and plenty of action. The CGI in the movie was decent at the time in which the movie was made, however compared to what we have now it can be seen as “too-fake”.

Now Spider-Man appeared in several series of comic books including The Amazing Spider-Man, which was actually the longest series out of them all, beginning its series in 1963. The comic books were slightly sinister yet affectionately cartoony, combined with the humour of Stan Lee’s writing. All of this was portrayed in the 2012 movie starring Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker. Andrew Garfield plays the sarcastic and humorous character very well using lines such as “Oh, no! You have found my weakness. Small knives!” and “Really? Seriously man… Do you really think I am a cop?” . The story line is similar to that of Spider-Man where Peter is bitten by a genetically altered spider and gains superhuman strength etc. However, Spider-Man’s web does not come out of his wrist like the Tobey Maguire movie. Peter creates a device that allows him to spin adhesive webbing out of his wrist, because intitially the spider bite did not give him the power to spin his own web… who knew?

In this movie we are introduced to one of the original villians from the comic book series, The Lizard. The Lizard is Dr. Curt Connors, Peter’s fahter’s partner at Oscorp. Curt Connors was a genetic biologist who researched the ability of certain reptiles to regrow missing limbs, partially to find a way to regrow his own missing arm. After a test on himself, he transforms into a violent lizard monster. Though able to revert to his human form, he suffers occasional fits of his alter ego breaking free. Like the comic books, this movie has a lot more information about Peter’s parents. Whereas Spider-Man only tells us that his parents died.

A lot of people have said that they thoroughly enjoyed this movie and they enjoyed the plot a lot more than the first 3 Spider-Man movies. However, I would disagree with the majority of people. I prefer the story line of the older Spider-Man movies, I like the fact that Peter can spin his own webs and not have to use a device to do it. Although I do like the sarcasm and humor that comes with The Amazing Spider-Man a long with the incredible CGI effects. However, that is all I see with The Amazing Spider-Man movie, I just liked it for the action and effects. Nothing else.

If the two movies combined everything that I liked about them then there would be a brilliant movie!

 

 

The Breakfast Club

Who would have thought that 28 years later the John Hughes classic The Breakfast Club would still be the best attempt at understanding the stereotypes we find in High School? Most of the movies that we find about high school are normally patronising and very unrealistic. However, this teen movie successfully shows the audience what it’s like to actually be different but how we are all evidently the same.

The Breakfast Club is a classic movie about a group of High School students who end up with Saturday detention. We are introduced to each of the characters by the stereotypes that each student considers the other, the Nerd (Anthony Brian Hall), The Beauty (Molly Ringwald), the Jock (Emilio Estevez), the Rebel (Judd Nelson), and the recluse (Ally Sheedy). Not only are we introduced to the stereotypes of the students but also of the mean teacher (Paul Gleason). Mr. Vernon is the teacher that is in charge of the Saturday detention. During their detention Mr. Vernon gives them a simple assignment. The students must write an essay about “Who You Think You Are”. Now each of the students think they know exactly who the other is. However, during several discussions and arguments, they each learn that they actually have more similarities than they first thought. At first we see The Rebel initially focuses all of his anger at Andrew the Jock and Claire the Beauty. We see that he has an outward hatred towards their “good lives”, this hatred masks the hurt about his own life. In reality, Claire wishes that her parents would give a damn about her, and Andrew wishes that he had the guts to stand up to his father. All three of them think that Brian is the “perfect son” and does not have the same problems that they have. We see that these characters are very developed and we learn a lot about them. However, Allison is under developed and we don’t learn nearly as much as we do about the others. The problems that Allison has are problems that she created herself in order to get attention yet distance herself from others.

Each students has their own problems and as insignificant they might appear, to a teenager, they are everything. Being a teenager myself I can completely understand how the characters feel. This is what captures the movie so well. Teenage years are a time of self-consciousness and angst. I’m sure when most people look back at their teenage years it may seem a little ridiculous. Yet at one point it was important. Parents don’t understand and teachers don’t understand.

The movie does and incredible job portraying and deconstructing the stereotypes of the students. There have been different critiques of the movie and how it was a little to contrived. Those people were not paying attention on the middle of the movie. A normal Hollywood movie would have had a clear happy ending to it and they would have all become best friends. This movie allows us to see what would have actually happened, the movie admits that come Monday they probably won’t be friends. The biggest truth about high school is missed here. Most kids, while saying they want to be more than just a stereotype, will never actually take that risk. By the time Monday comes they will return to their comfort zone rather than risk the ridicule of their “friends”. While the ending of the movie leaves us with the idea that the Jock and the Recluse hook up, the Rebel has found his Beauty and the Nerd has actually found friends, we could also leave with the opposite idea. When Monday arrives, the Jock and the Beauty will return to their own kind, the Rebel might go back to hating everybody, and the Nerd and the Recluse might still get ignored in the hallway. Hughes leaves this all to us to figure out for ourselves. How you feel about the ending might be due to the stereotype you actually represent yourself with.

At the end of the movie we get to see what the essay that they wrote says. At the request of the group, Brian agrees to write the essay that had been assigned to them earlier that day which challenges Mr. Vernon and his preconceived judgments about all of them. Instead of writing about the actual topic, Brian writes a very motivating letter that is the main point of the story.

He signs the essay “The Breakfast Club”, and leaves it on the table to be read by Mr. Vernon. There are two versions of this letter, one read at the beginning and one read at the end, they differ slightly; showing the shift in the students’ judgments of each other, and their realisation that they actually have things in common.

The beginning of the letter is as follows:

Dear Mr. Vernon: We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was that we did wrong. What we did was wrong. But we think you’re crazy to make us write this essay telling you who we think we are. What do you care? You see us as you want to see us… in the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. You see us as a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, and a criminal. Correct? That’s how we saw each other at seven o’clock this morning. We were brainwashed.

The letter ends as follows:

“Dear Mr. Vernon: We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was we did wrong, but we think you’re crazy to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us… In the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain…Brian Johnson …and an athlete…Andy Clark …and a basket case…Allison Reynolds …a princess…Claire Standish …and a criminal…John Bender

Does that answer your question?… Sincerely yours, the Breakfast Club.

The letter is the most important part of the movie, it demonstrates and illustrates the changes the students have undergone during the course of the day; their attitudes and perspectives have changed and are now different.

If you haven’t seen this movie then you need to. After watching this movie it made it into my Top 10 Movie list. It is a must see!

The Walking Dead

After a few friends of mine begged me to watch the hit TV series The Walking Dead I gave in. I now know what all the fuss is about, it is incredible. If you haven’t watched it you must!

Based on the comic book series, a group of survivors, led by Rick Grimes must fight for survival against a world full of zombies. The Walking Dead comes from the brilliant mind of Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption), supplying the show with incredible actors, make up and special effects. 

“Days Gone Bye” is the episode that really show you what The Walking Dead is all about: now a lot of people approach this series with hesitation thinking it is going to to be horrifically gory have a lot of jump scares like many other zombie stories. However, that is not the case. Robert Kirkman (the creator of the comic book series) took a completely different take with his comic book series and Frank Darabont was able to bring the story to life, especially the title “The Walking Dead”, referring to the living as much as it does the zombies in the show. It examines that which is changed and exposed in the hearts of the living, as human are faced with the hell that is on Earth. 

The very first episode emphasises this theme with the subplot about the character Morgan Jones. Now Morgan Jones is the human heart in all of the zombie insanity as he deals with the internal struggle to let go of his wife who was turned into a zombie and do what is best for his son. The agony of his struggle is clearly emphasised as we watch Morgan Jones hold a rifle up and aim it at his zombie wife’s head, making his finger falter. Not only do we feel his agony we actually understand it, why the visage of a lost lover still has the power to be able to move someone. We have seen moments like these is zombie stories before, however it is the strength of actor Lennie James that gives it the emotional impact that we see. 

We are introduced to the character Rick Grimes, a character that we are made to root for. From the opening scene of the episode – Rick and Shane (played by Jon Bernthal) discussing their different approaches when dealing with women – we instantly get the sense that Rick is going to be the good guy. However, we know that in the midst of the hell on Earth Rick is sure to cross a dark moral threshold and do some terrible things in order to survive. 

The scene where Rick returns to the park to give his condolences to the half-a-torso zombie girl is where we see him set aside his humanity in order to shoot the girl in the head. In every scene that Rick encounters a zombie it is foreshadowed with the complexity of his character. We are given a brief look at Rick’s wife Lori and son Karl (who we are lead to be missing when Rick returns to the house to find them) partner Shane and the other survivors, we immediately establish that there will be some serious drama that will unfold later on in the series.  

The final minutes of the episode remind us that in the middle of all the drama there is plenty of zombie action to get our blood really pumping. We watch with anticipation as we see Rick enter Atlanta nearly getting torn to shreds by the walkers that surround him (unfortunately the horse that Rick rode on it gets the worst of it and gets eaten). This scene had my heart racing with panic even though I knew very well that Rick would survive the huge heard that surrounded him in the tank. The final shot of all the walkers surrounding the tank was amazing and really emphasised how far up shit creek all of the characters really are. 

It took me about a week to get myself up to date with all of the episodes in all three series and there are a few things that I have noticed. In the first episode when we are introduced to Morgan Jones’ wife we can see that she clearly recognises where she is and has familiarity with the house she used to live in. However, later on in series we are told that walkers have to memory of the life they used to have or any recognition of their family or friends that they once had. Another thing I noticed was the fact that his wife tried to open the front door of the house. Again we are told that walkers cannot open doors and the only thing they can physically focus on is their hunger and feeding. 

All in all this is a series that I would definitely recommend for all you horror, thriller, zombie fans out there. 

 

Being a Fresher…

I have to say that I have really been slacking on the posts due to the fact that I have moved to University! All is well and I am fine, I haven’t poisoned myself with too much alcohol and I haven’t starved yet…

So the first week of University is Freshers week, or in my University’s case freshers fortnight which consists of plenty of drinking, meeting people, dancing and again more drinking. This will therefore be my first post about University…

• Ok so the first thing that I was to be aware of is the dreaded fresher’s flu. This didn’t catch up with me until the end of October, it left me suffering in bed for nearly 2 weeks. Tips for beating the flu, water, duvet, tissues, medication such as paracetamol, cold and flu medicine, and sleep for as long as possible but most importantly keep drinking and partying, it will soon pass through your system, keep going!
• You will never sleep properly again! Your sleeping pattern will be destroyed, you soon realise that when you are not out partying you actually have to entertain yourself, leaving you awake at godly hours of the night.
• University can be awkward at first. You have to meet your flatmates for the first time, a really sweaty annoying guy may start grinding on you, you will without a doubt get lost, falling over when you are too drunk to realise what is going on and being reminded of said night that you were too drunk to realise what was going on.
• Doing your own cooking isn’t as bad as it seems. I have come to learn that the microwave and the toaster are my best friend. Living off pasta, toast and super noodles isn’t so bad, and the occasional pizza if you can afford it.
• All girls will soon learn that HEELS SUCK!!! especially when you have to run for the bus, walk up stairs and stand upright after a few drinks. However, if you have great guy friends they may be nice enough as to carry you back to your flat when your feet feel like they are on fire.
• You will meet some incredible people on nights out, some will be people you just say hi to but others will become your friends for life (best part of uni).
• You WILL drink a lot. You will always have fun and have a laugh with your flat mates and friends that you have made. It is a good idea to experiment with drinks you have never had before, then suffer the next day with an awful hang over. An experience  I am willing to share with the world is the time I tried Absinthe for the first time… turns out I am actually allergic to it. I broke out in a huge rash that lasted about 2 hours… yay me!

Keep partying on!

The Notebook Book vs. Movie

I actually saw the movie before reading the book by Nicholas Sparks, which to a certain extent was a bad thing. This was only a bad thing because, like most people, I enjoy being able to create the characters in my head in the way they were described rather than picturing the actors. The movie follows the book pretty well which made me happy as both book and movie lover. After watching and reading it became apparent to me that this has to be both my favourite movie and book. The love story is both heartwarming and yet tragically sad for all viewers and readers. We are introduced to Noah Calhoun as the narrator in both the book and the movie and we can’t help but instantly fall in love with his sweet character. Both book and movie flip back and forth through the past and present as Noah tells the story of how he fell in love with Allie Nelson. Later on we find out that Noah is telling this story in order for his wife, Allie who is suffering from a severe case of dementia, in order to try and get her to remember him and their love for one another. There are moments when Allie remembers who Noah is but it doesn’t normally last very long. The doctors cannot figure out how she can possibly remember parts of her past because of her level of dementia but it becomes clear to both viewer and reader that it is her undying love for Noah that assists her in remembering him.

There are a few differences in the film than in the book but this happens with most movies. The director thought that the film needed more drama in order to keep the audience interested in how their relationship turns out. In the movie we see Noah and Allie getting to into an argument after Allie’s parents clearly state that Noah is not good enough for their daughter. This makes Noah incredibly upset and causes him to leave the house. This argument between Noah and Allie causes them to break up, leaving the viewer just as upset as Noah and Allie are. However, in the book there isn’t an argument between Allie and Noah, it is much calmer. In the movie it is stated that they argued over everything “but the one thing they had in common was, they were crazy for each other”. In the book we are made to believe that their relationship was perfect and that they never argued, which is in essence true as they were so madly in love with each other.

After breaking up with each other and Noah realising that Allie went away to school he decides to write to her everyday, in the book it was two years and in the movie it was one. However, she never got one letter from Noah which forced her to move on from him because she thought he didn’t care anymore. Allie gets engaged to someone else during this time apart from Noah. Allie is getting her wedding dress fitted when she comes across a newspaper article on Noah and the house that he fixed up over the years. Allie then decides to go visit Noah and they instantly know that they never stopped loving each other. Noah takes her on a boat so she can see the swans when a thunderstorm hits. When they dock the boat she demands to know why he never wrote to her as he explains that he wrote to her everyday. This eventually leads to them kissing passionately in the rain. This scene is one of the most memorable in both book and movie, along with the beach scene where Allie wants to be a bird and Noah says “If you’re a bird then I’m a bird”. The kiss in the rain scene never happens in the book but has become one of the most important scenes in the movie. Even though this scene is very different to the book it allows the viewer to see how madly in love they have always been for each other even when they were apart. In the book Nicholas Sparks describes the events in much more detail which is what I love about the way he writes. In the book Sparks describes the scene when Allie shows up to see him. Sparks describes everything that Noah is doing, he explains the way Noah is cooking the lobsters and fresh vegetables so we as readers can imagine it perfectly. However, in the movie we are only shown them finishing dinner which was a bit of a disappointment when I watched it.

Our first encounter with Noah in the movie at the fair ground really showed off Noah’s personality which I loved. We were able to see that he was bold, flirty and determined, allowing us to see that he was not going to give up until he had Allie for himself. Both book and movie showed the events that took place over the summer and portrayed their summer romance amazingly. The movie was able to show us the vibrant colours and wonderful music in these scenes that the book wasn’t able to show us.

I have always said that I prefer the books to the movies because they give me more detail to work with and really bring me into the book. However, I have to say that the movie really captured the story of the book perfectly. I loved watching the movie and seeing the actors do a brilliant job with the characters they were playing. The movie stuck to the story line and didn’t add too much to it. For those of you who haven’t seen the movie or read the book add it to your bucket list because it is a must do. You will fall in love with the characters instantly and will most certainly be added to your favourites list.

The Hunger Games Books vs. Movie

 

When setting up my WordPress account I couldn’t figure out what I should blog about first. After thinking about it for a while I finally came to the conclusion of blogging about Books vs. Movies, giving my opinion on the books that I have read and the movies that have been created because of the books. This is my first post so here goes nothing.

I have recently read The Hunger Games trilogy after being told repeatedly to do so by my friends as they said they were fantastic. I have to agree with them because I thoroughly enjoyed them. After reading these books I decided that I would allow myself to watch the movie to see how they managed to bring the book to life. I have to say that the movie was a bitter disappointment to me.

Suzanne Collins is an incredible writer that created a moving, detailed portrayal of a young girl living under a cruel dictatorship in the future. These books show the extreme poverty and the unequal distribution of wealth in Panem’s society. The people that live in the wealthy Capitol have little in common with the people of the 12 Districts that they regard the deaths of the children as entertainment. The Hunger Games is shocking because the violence is brutal and unnecessary, yet embraced and celebrated by the residents of the Capitol. The Districts tributes are not enemies at all yet they kill each other all the same, some more reluctantly and other with more enthusiasm. As the trilogy goes on it becomes a compelling commentary on the madness of the war and the sad truth of violence in the people’s lives. These major themes however, are woven so deeply that you may not even notice that they are being discussed. When reading the books you become immersed in Katniss’ world that involves poverty and violence a sad but an expected part of life. 

The movie follows the basic story but it completely lacks the emotional depth. The character development of Katniss is nonexistent and the deaths in the area are bloodless in every sense of the word. The tributes are walking stereotypes so the deaths of them have absolutely no impact on the audience. In the book Rue’s death is heart wrenching however it was a little more than a side note in the movie. In all honesty, if i hadn’t read the books I wouldn’t have understood the dynamic of the tributes at all, including the conflicted and complicated relationship between Katniss and Peeta. The romance between them comes across as cheesy and unconvincing on all levels. There is no hint of a bond that grows between them as the story progresses.

My biggest criticism of the movie is that nobody seems to be going hungry! The book is about the survival of the people in the Districts! The movie makers overlooked this important point. The Capitol’s exploitation of the Districts is supposed to be the backdrop of the entire story. When Katniss arrives in the Capitol she is amazed at the quantity and quality of the food. She observes how their food appears at the touch of a button, she can’t understand how the Capitol residents fill their time. The majority of her days are filled with feeding her family. It is what defines her! Most of the tributes have never had enough to eat and this is a major factor in the Games. 

At first the movie seemed quite promising. There was an ominous mood in district 12 which was perfect. It is clear that the people who live there are exhausted and resigned to their fate. When the residents appear for the reaping, they look like cattle being rounded up for slaughter. The Capitol, in contrast, is frightening in it’s artificiality. The juxtaposition was very well done, however they truly lost me when the tributes stepped into the arena. 

I felt like there was a lack of tension in the arena and the tributes make all sorts of noise as they move through the woods, seemingly obvious to the fact that they are being hunted. Katniss stands about ten feet away from Cato when he snaps another tributes neck, killing him instantly, and we are supposed to believe that Cato doesn’t see Katniss hiding? I felt that the scenes of the control room were pointless and added nothing to the movie. The time that the movie makers spent on the control room scenes should have been spent on the character development! Unfortunately, the lack of character development causes the emotional scenes to fall completely flat. The overall result lacks the intensity and depth that the books clearly have. 

I will give credit to Elizabeth Banks for giving an excellent portrayal of Effie Trinket. She adds a certain humor and a sense of the absurdity of Capitol life. Donald Sutherland also portrays a brilliant President Snow. However, Jennifer Lawrence is an inadequate Katniss and lacks the emotion that the book portrays. Josh Hutcherson also plays a terrible Peeta and is not very likable. We are shown none of his inner strength. Instead, he comes across as weak and whiny. Woody Harrelson plays Haymitch well in some parts. However, he is supposed to be a self destructive drunk. His cunning is all the more unexpected because he seems to be incapable of taking care of himself. It seemed that the movie makers watered his character down in order to market it to young adults. 

The movie did have a lot of potential but it fell short in important ways. I feel that I am being harsh by giving the movie a 2/10 but I felt that the movie makers kept all of the plot points, or tried to keep the plot points but kept none of the important meaning. I recommend that people should read the books instead.