Movie Review: Gone Girl

Holy. Moly.

David Fincher's film version of Gone Girl hit theaters this weekend, and since my book club read this book a few months ago (click here to see my review), we decided to go see it as a group.

And oh boy, did Fincher capture the book pretty much perfectly on film or what? There were some aspects that were even darker than the book (Desi's "offing" especially), and only a few differences and characters left out or downsized, probably because of time restraints (the movie is already over two and a half hours), but he pretty much got the twists and turn of the plot down pat. And, contrary to rumors that had been going around prior to release, the ending is pretty much the same as the book. I know many had their hearts set on a new conclusion... sorry guys.

The film stars Ben Affleck as Nick Dunne, and Rosamund Pike as his wife Amy, who move from New York to Nick's home town in Missouri after losing their jobs during the recession, and when Nick's mother becomes ill. On their fifth wedding anniversary, Amy goes missing, and Nick is blamed for her disappearance and suspected murder.

Affleck was perfect as the sometimes (or more-than-sometimes) unlikeable Nick, and Pike's "Amazing Amy" was just that. Spot on. Oscar worthy even. And Trent Reznor's score was perfectly haunting.

This film is rightly rated R for very strong violence, language, adult and sexual situations, and nudity. I would definitely recommend it only for VERY mature high schoolers (we're talking the oldest of the senior class here), possibly even college-age and up.

I give this one an A-.

Book Review: Sarah's Key

 

Sarah's Key by Tatiana De Rosnay

American journalist Julia Jarmond is living in Paris with her French husband and their daughter, when she is asked to write an piece for her magazine on the Vel' d'Hiv, a roundup by the French police of the Jews living in Paris during WWII. When she finds that for the past sixty years her in-laws have been living in an apartment that had belonged to one of those Jewish families, her discoveries threaten to destroy her family.

 I really liked this great work of historical fiction. It really brought to light the terrible conditions of the  Vel' D'Hiv, which I had never heard of before, and the sad, yet hopeful, story stayed with me for a long time after I finished reading the book.

I give this one an A.

If you liked this book, you might also want to try The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak.

Book review: Gone Girl

 

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

I’d heard so much about this book, that when my book club decided to read it, I was pretty excited.

Gone Girl is the story of Nick and Amy Dunne, a seemingly happy couple that moves from Amy’s native N.Y.C. to Nick’s hometown of North Carthay, Missouri after they both lose their jobs in journalism. But when Amy goes missing on their 5th anniversary, Nick, of course, is the main suspect.

Being a fan of murder mysteries/true crime stories, I enjoyed the psychology of what could possibly have been “the perfect crime”. The length which the characters go to prove both guilt and innocence is fascinating, and keeps the story flowing well. However, although the characters are developed well, it was hard to find any character that was actually likable.

I recommend this one if you’re a fan of the mystery/suspense genre, and enjoy a good plot twist!
I give Gone Girl a B-.

The movie version, starring Ben Affleck, is supposed to be in theaters this October.

Movie Review: Divergent

Let's just start out by saying that movies are NEVER EVER as good as the books on which they are based. Actually, I can think of one movie I liked better than the book, and that was The Notebook. But that is the only one. And believe me, I've read a ton of books that have been made into movies. It has taken my a l o n g time to teach myself to separate movies from the books they are based on, as if they are two completely different forms of entertainment with the same base story lines. But it has made for much more enjoyable movie-going experiences. And I truly love going to the movies. (So much so, that right out of high school, I set a goal for myself to see at least one movie a week for a year. I way surpassed the 52 movies in my goal, and saw over 80 movies, in the theater alone, that year. This was obviously before kids and any kind of actual bills I had to pay...)

That being said, I can honestly say I did really enjoy Divergent. The script worked for anyone who had not read the books beforehand (which is a big deal when seeing a book-based movie), and the acting was good. And Four (played by Theo James a.k.a. Mr. Pamuk a.k.a. the guy who died in Mary's bed in the first season Downton Abbey. Yes. That guy.) is quite the looker, with a voice like honey to my ears...

Ah-hum. moving on...

But of course, because I have read the book series (more than once even...) I definitely found some major differences. They're things that, if you have not read the books, will not be a big deal, as the story still flows fine (for the first movie at least...) and I'm sure at least one omitted scene had to do with keeping the rating a mild PG-13 as opposed to an R rating for goriness. Also, I've heard so many fans say they think author Veronica Roth must be so upset with what they've changed... Um, you guys. She was a producer on the movie. She had a say in what got changed, and may have even done the changes herself to fit her vision, yet keep it within the time and rating restraints. (And Bonus: Did anyone else see her cameo? She was the first Dauntless out on the rooftop in the zip-lining scene!)

So here are where some spoilers might be starting. Don't read ahead if you don't want to know! You've been warned...

Major difference #1: Where the heck was Edward? The whole getting-his-eye-stabbed-out-with-a-butter-knife scene was a big part of Divergent, and why Tris hated and feared Peter (played by Miles Teller, who, in the movie, is definitely mean, but nowhere near as evil-cruel as in the book) so much. Edward practically did not exist in this movie, which makes me really wonder what they'll do for the second movie in this series, Insurgent, which will start filming next month, and, according to it's IMDB page, is due to be released March 20, 2015. Edward kind of has a big part in the rest of the story, as a factionless leader.

#2: It was never established that Will and Christina are actually dating, which will make it SO much harder for Tris to tell Christina that she killed Will when the Dauntless were under the serum attack, which in turn makes Christina kinda hate Tris for a bit there.

#3: So this isn't that big of a deal, I know, but Tris's mom doesn't sneak in to the loading dock area to warn her she's in danger. She comes to parents night at the Dauntless, and Tris realizes her mom used to be Dauntless when she tells her to try the chocolate cake, because it's delicious, after she tells Tris to be careful in a dauntless hallway, hidden from the view of the cameras.

#4: Jeanine and the Erudites (that sounds like a band name, doesn't it?) were not in the control room while Four was controlling the serum simulation (while under the simulation himself) and therefor was never "serumed" by Tris and Four to stop it. Four shuts it down on his own, after he breaks out of his serum-induced trance thanks to his love for Tris.

OK, those are all the spoilers I'm including... for now.

Like I said above, I really did like this movie. Enough that I would even see it again. It may not be as well done as the Hunger Games movies, but it was still an entertaining story and a great way to escape life for a couple hours.

I'd recommend Divergent to mature upper elementary aged kids, so maybe 11 or 12 and up, due to violence and some adult situations.