The Great Gatsby: Book to 1974 movie comparison

You may remember my review of The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald last year and so when this 1974 version of the film starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow came on TV late one night I rushed to record it. I had not seen it before and the imagery for this famous adaptation had always convinced me, before reading the book, that the 'Great Gatsby' was a car. Now, of course, I know different, although the car is gorgeous, and very iconic of the age.
My memories of this novel are a colourful montage of images, opulent parties and lavish clothing, houses of the elite during the Jazz Age in America after the First World War. Fitzgerald's lovely descriptions, especially of the exotic party goers, are what stayed with me, as well as the huge set pieces that were begging to be translated into a film.
I was not disappointed. This film pulls out all the stops to accurately reproduce each scene with care and attention to detail. Costumes of the Long Island rich are extravagant and ridiculously impractical, make up and hair flawless. Everything reeks of money.
The casting works brilliantly too. I was aware of Redford as Gatsby already, so his presence may have infiltrated my reading of the book anyway, but Mia Farrow, Bruce Dern and Sam Waterstone are excellent in their roles also.
The narrative slides by, quietly and with sophistication, as does the book. The party scene mid way through is a spectacle in itself with wild Charlston type dancing and millions of extras.
My only criticism was that it was a little long and I was quite tired by the end. I would imagine that for anyone who has not read this brilliant novel it may be a bit of a slog and not fully hold your interest. I don't know. I enjoyed it because I enjoyed the book and this enhanced the former experience by faithfully reproducing the mood, era and images to a screen. There were scenes in this movie, the petrol garage particularly, that were almost exactly as I had imagined them. If I did not have that foundation to build on I might have found it a bit dull and drawn out. I know that it has mixed reviews, but it cannot be criticised for any lack of glamour, or effort, or loyalty. It is pace that lets it down, but it is also this that recreates, in my opinion, the heady mood of the original novel.
In conclusion, this movie may be best watched after experiencing the book, as a faithful revisitation of a hugely loved story, one that many, and not just Americans, have grown up with. I would love to think that it would inspire a non-reader to read the novel, and very possibly it has, but I wonder if for others it may be considered long-winded and they find their attention waning half way through. 
I enjoyed visually revisiting this classic novel that I enjoyed last year, I do love Robert Redford too, and I am very much looking forward to the new version later this year with Leonardo di Caprio, Carey Mulligan and Tobey Maguire.
This post completes #5 of my personal challenges during 2012 to compare 3 books to their movie counterparts, the previous ones being North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell and We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver.

We Need To Talk About Kevin: Book to Movie Comparison

You may have read my review of the book We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver in my last post. The whole time that I was reading the book I had a strong compulsion to write to Eva, the mother, and narrator of letters to her husband, and tell her how I felt about what she was saying about her son after he had become a killer, hence the letter form of the review. You may know too that the book was made into a successful movie that was released last year.
As part of this years challenges I wanted to compare some books that had been made into movies. I totally loved the book and only read it after seeing the movie last October at the cinema. So I have to thank the film for encouraging me to read the novel at all.
I thought that the casting of Tilda Swinton as Eva was brilliant. An unusual looking lady, gangly, independent and strong, plus more European looking than American, perfect as Eva. I also liked the various incarnations of Kevin, good looking but with a slyness that matched his emotionless exterior. The part that I had a problem with was Franklin played by John C Reilly. It wasn't his performance which suited the all American dad, but his look did not go with the book descriptions of him. I thought (my apologies Mr Reilly) that Franklin was supposed to be extremely attractive, to explain why such a strong willed, unusual woman like Eva married him, and continued to love him while he became unsupportive and alienated from her as he became obsessed with Kevin. I couldn't imagine them having any kind of relationship.
The movie is dictated by Eva's point of view but without the letters. It successfully conveys all of her emotions that are in the book. The sense of unease is communicated by imagery dominated by the colour red. Conjuring disgust excellently in the viewer, this is one of the things that I took away from the film. The use of food in messy, served up in horrible ways, which added to this, as well as building tension throughout. There was a continual build up of nausea while watching.
I found the incidents of Kevins behaviour coupled with Swinton's passive face really had me wound up in a coil throughout. The screen was quite colourful, but the bleakness of the story and her situation clashes wholly with this. The discordance is felt throughout and is what I most enjoyed about the movie. A cleverly used device in this film.
The book has more detail than the film, and I was quite glad about that. It gives you enough so you can imagine the rest. It is easier to take when it is words on a page. The film is largely faithful to the incidents in the novel, including many details I recognised along the way.
This is a disturbing subject for any book or movie to tackle and I enjoyed both. I related to the Eva in the book more, but she is talking to you directly. It is this that I enjoyed more than the film. Tilda Swinton was in my head throughout though.
A brilliant book, and a very good movie adaptation with many strengths, intelligently made, and leaving a tangible impression after it has ended. Both are recommended, but especially the book.
You can read about We Need To Talk About Kevin - the movie, by using the link.
There is a Reading Group Guide to We Need To Talk About Kevin, use the link.
Also, there is an interview in The Guardian with Lionel Shriver about the book and film. Use the link.

The Shipping News by Annie Proulx

My friend told me about this book years ago and has asked me several times if I have read it. After seeing the film with Kevin Spacey and Judi Dench about 4 times and loving it, I pounced on this copy in an Oxfam Shop.

It is the story of a man called Quoyle, a bit of a no-mark, overweight, bullied by his father and bumbling through his existence apologetically. When his wayward wife dies in a car accident he takes off with his 2 children, following his aunt to Newfoundland, to resurrect the family home. The Quoyle's have lived there for generations going way back. It is a chance for both to start again. Quoyle gets a job with the local newspaper, The Gammy Bird, doing the Shipping News and Car Wrecks. Slowly Quoyle finds his place in the world. The cold, harsh landscape of his ancestors, the warmth of the friends he makes at work and in the town all help him survive this turning point in his life and make the most of it.

The back of the book says it is 'an irresistable comedy of human life and possibility', and this pretty well sums up the feel of this story. It is really funny, mainly due to Proulx's sharp and punchy sentences which illustrate all of the cadences of each delicious character.

'Here is an account of a few years in the life of Quoyle, born in Brooklyn and raised in a shuffle of dreary upstate towns.

Hive-spangled, gut roaring with gas and cramp, he survived childhood; at the state university, hand clapped over his chin, he camouflaged torment with smiles and silence. Stumbled through his twenties and into his thirties learning to separate his feelings from life, counting on nothing. He ate prodigiously, liked a ham knuckle, buttered spuds.

His jobs: distributor of vending-machine candy, all-night clerk in a convenience store, a third-rate newspaperman. At thirty-six, bereft, brimming with grief and thwarted love, Quoyle steered away to Newfoundland, the rock that had generated his ancestors, a place he had never been nor thought to go.'

This is the opening to the book and it instantly put me behind Quoyle, willing him to find a way out of his drudgery. All of the characters are explored with enough information to understand their motivation, and there are many people to care about. Proulx infuses each one with warmth and humour, but also with fallability. They felt very real to me as I read.

I also loved the location, the freezing cold, raw Atlantic coast, infused with myths and tales of survival. The steamy interiors that battled the cold and gave refuge. I was reluctant to let it go when I finished the book.

You have probably cottoned on by now that I loved it. I wanted to be there, with the house strapped to the rock by metal ropes that sang in the wind, or drinking tea in The Flying Squid Lunchstop with everyone who knows each other, listening to the icebergs clanking in the bay. I cared a lot about many of the characters. I liked the growing fondness between Quoyle and Wavey, not over romanticised, but real and gentle. I also liked the way both of their names compliment each other, curving shapes around both of them.

I loved this book because it made me laugh and feel lots of things for the people in it and the location. It transported me away each time I picked it up. There are lots of interesting sub-plots and episodes, and nautical themes throughout (each chapter starts with a nautical knot complete with picture). It is a book I will probably read again at some point, and I will definately look out for more by Annie Proulx. Highly Recommended.

A reading group guide can be found here

The Newfoundland Studies Journal have also published an interesting article about the novel.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby

This is not really a review of this book because I read it about 8 or 9 years ago. To properly review it I would need to read it again, and I think I am going to add it to my personal challenge list for next year. The reason why I have brought it up is because this fantastic, unusual and enlightening book has been made into a movie which I saw over the weekend.

This book was recommended to me in about 1998. It is only a small book in size, so quick to read, but huge in its bravery, optimism and inspiration.

It is the true story of the editor of Elle magazine in Paris, a successful journalist, a womaniser, a father of three, who suffers a stroke at 42 years old and as a consequence suffers the rare and agonizing condition of 'locked-in syndrome'. This is where the mind functions normally but the body is entirely paralyzed, only able to communicate with one eyelid. It is with this eyelid he is able to dictate his book, with the help of his dedicated speech therapists, family members and the publishers, letter by letter as they go through the alphabet and he blinks on the right letter. A painstaking work of love and determination, his book tells of his experiences with an eloquance, humour and insight which can only inspire the reader.

Sadly, Bauby died in 1997, just months after the book was published, but he has managed to voice a truly moving account of his thoughts, his imagination and his condition. It is not depressing, although I got a little teary in parts, and it has been on my 'books you should read' list forever.

I was intrigued about how on earth they were going to make this into a film, about a man who cannot move at all, his thoughts and feelings. It could have been awash in sentiment and sympathy, or too light and fluffy. Or even the opposite, dreary and grey. But I honestly think they have got it spot on. It is a vibrant piece of work. The cinematography is wonderful and the movie sticks pretty faithfully to the book. The performances and casting are excellent in a film that must have been quite an undertaking. It is entertaining, moving, imaginative and does full justice to Bauby's words. I loved it and wanted to urge people to read the book or watch the film. Both are excellent and will make a difference to those who encounter them.

It is not often that a movie can be said to match a book but both hold their own this time within their own form, and come out very much on top.

Click here for a review of the film by someone who has also suffered a stroke:-

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2008/02/08/bfdiving208.xml

You can click on the following link for a reading guide to the book:-

http://www.bookrags.com/The_Diving_Bell_and_the_Butterfly