Indoor Sojourner: cinema

10:44 AM

I know it's been a while since I made a Top 5 Friday post, but I'm bringing it back today in the form of book to movie adaptations! There are plenty of great adaptations out there, but these are a few that at least fit the following criteria:

I've read the original text.
The film accurately represents the original text.
It's a quality film that can stand firm on its own.

For starters, making this list was so difficult! I wanted to add The Hunger Games, Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, but I haven't actually read LoTR or Harry Potter (~hides from angry fangirls~). As much as I love The Hunger Games films, there's still one more to go, so it would feel slightly wrong to include any of the current films if the last one could potentially be my favorite.

Now that the flimsy excuses are over with, let's get started with the actual list!

5. Tuck Everlasting (2002)

As a children's/middle grade book, this story deals with love, death and mortality in a way that's tangible for a younger audience. Even though it's not 100 percent accurate from what I can remember, the movie captures the overall essence of the book and still tugs on my heartstrings whenever I watch it.

Also, Johnathon Jackson. o___o

4. Holes (2003)

Besides being a memorable part of my childhood, Holes was incredibly accurate to the book and is one of those movies I'll always enjoy watching. Like most children's stories, the plot itself is also pretty ridiculous, but that just makes me love it all the more.

3. The Great Gatsby (2013)

the great gatsby animated GIF

The 1920's would have been considered modern times to the characters of The Great Gatsby, and the vibrant colors and integration of modern music captured this perfectly. The movie didn't seem like it was portraying a period in the past; it was as if the characters and setting were on the cutting edge of style, which further emphasized the parallels between the story and real life.

2. Jane Eyre (2011)

I know I've mentioned Jane Eyre several times on my blog, but I absolutely love this movie and the story as a whole. The book has a mysterious, almost ethereal mood throughout, and I think the 2011 adaptation captured this wonderfully. Even though it's not perfectly accurate to every detail, the actors portray the characters in a way the feels raw and true to the story. It also has a lovely soundtrack, so if you don't have time to watch the movie, you can check it out right here!

1. Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Seriously, this movie is beautiful. The scenery, the soundtrack (listed below), the characters, the people playing the characters...everything about this movie simply beautiful. This movie captures the essence of Pride and Prejudice and turns it into something magical.

What are your favorite book to movie adaptations? Let me know in the comments!

Thanks for reading,

Annie
Indoor Sojourner
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9 comments adult books, books, children's, children's books, cinema, classic literature, classics, couples, film, gifs, movies, reading, romance

Review: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

4:18 PM

"Hey, I heard you got leukemia. Sounds like you need an emergency prescription...for Greg-acil."

Rating: 3/5

Description: Greg Gaines is the last master of high school espionage, able to disappear at will into any social environment. He has only one friend, Earl, and together they spend their time making movies, their own incomprehensible versions of Coppola and Herzog cult classics.

Until Greg’s mother forces him to rekindle his childhood friendship with Rachel.

Rachel has been diagnosed with leukemia—-cue extreme adolescent awkwardness—-but a parental mandate has been issued and must be obeyed. When Rachel stops treatment, Greg and Earl decide the thing to do is to make a film for her, which turns into the Worst Film Ever Made and becomes a turning point in each of their lives.

I wanted to wait a little while before writing a review on this book because I felt so conflicted about it. It’s obvious from the start that Me and Earl and the Dying Girl isn’t your typical, TFiOS-esque, YA “cancer book”. In fact, dealing with cancer isn’t even a major part of the plot; it almost seems as though it’s a parody of the YA “cancer book” trend since Greg constantly makes light of Rachel’s condition.

Greg’s voice is both my favorite and least favorite part of the book. He has such a quirky and self-deprecating sense of humor, but after a while, it seems like the author was trying too hard to make Greg seem relatable. For instance, Greg constantly criticizes his writing style, his personality, and basically everything about himself throughout the book and even says the following:

“If after reading this book you come to my home and brutally murder me, I do not blame you.”

…What?

Because I am one (until next month), I totally understand that teenagers are goofy and melodramatic, but there were multiple quotes like this one, and it wasn’t long before it started getting old. As a whole, the teenagers in this book refreshingly acted normally and realistically, but Greg’s borderline obnoxious voice made it difficult to connect with the characters.

At this point, I’m going to discuss the ending, and there are some mild spoilers…you have been warned!

For me, the ending definitely fell flat. In a sense, I think that was the author’s intention; since this isn’t a sweeping, beautiful, cancer filled romance brimming with angst and drama, it would make sense that the ending would be just as ordinary as the rest of the book. After all, Greg wasn’t terribly close with Rachel, so it would make sense that he wouldn’t be drastically impacted by her death.

Still, I was genuinely confused after the last chapter because I was reading the movie edition on my Kindle. There was some bonus content that consisted of about fifteen percent of the book at the end, so I assumed there would be a few more chapters or an epilogue somewhere mixed in. After frantically searching throughout the author interview and screenplay and such, I realized that the book was in fact over, which was a bit of a disappointment.

As a whole, I liked Me and Earl and the Dying Girl; it’s a quick, witty read that made me both scoff and laugh out loud. It wasn’t one of those books where the plot and characters really resonated with me after I put it down, so think some of the hype surrounding this book is a bit much. If you want to read something that’s unique from a lot of other contemporaries out there, I suppose I’d recommend it, but I honestly don’t feel very strongly about this one. However, I do want to see the movie because I think this story would translate so much better on screen.

If you want to discuss the book further, feel free to contribute in the comments section!

Thanks for reading,

Annie

Indoor Sojourner