Okay, so I was supposed to read this some time in elementary school, I think. But I’m sure I never did. I saw the movie tonight. With Vince the Hottie, whom I hadn’t seen in like 5 years. He’s still a hottie. And now single. I’ll introduce you to him if you come to my party. Anyway… =)
I liked the movie with a giant caveat, which I’ll get to later. It’s a touching story about two talented kids on the outside, from very different backgrounds, bonding over a shared imagination. It’s also a story about loss, and what it means to us. It is very touching, and for the most part, they did an excellent job with.
However, they WAY overplayed the fantastic/special effects elements. They were not the movie’s strong suit. Couldn’t they have let us imagine what the kids were imagining? Maybe that wouldn’t have been as true to the book, I don’t know, but I found them unneccessary and distracting. The scene with Leslie’s parents was way more touching and advanced the important part of the story much more than the final visual effects extravanaganza. It distracts from the bonds between the people. And that’s what the story is ultimately about.
This is ‘merica.
If I don’t see a supermodel do a barrel roll out of a helicopter and throw a grenade into a barn full of evil unicorns, it’s not a movie.
I loved that book in school! I think I’ve read it ten times. I haven’t seen the movie since the commericals made it look totally different then the story.
My mother was a Jr. high librarian, I had no choice but to read that book.
And OMG, I found it SOOO fucking depressing.
And them movie? From depressing book?
Ack.
Anyway, enjoy the disneyfication. 😉
They do turn the ending into one of uplift, or at least they try. But again, the special effects made me want to gag.
Despite the heavy use of special effects, it actually did stick very closely to the book (which is very short). I was really worried that they ruined it from the commercials too.
I agree with your guess tho, in the book, there isnt nearly that much focus on the imaginary world, it is much much more about the relationships. For commercial success, I suppose they felt inclined to go overboard with it. Although, the special effects couldhave been even ten times worse, in some ways they showed considerable constraint for Disney.
It’s true. They did limit the special effects to a relatively small portion of the movie. And maybe they needed it to pad the movie length. But, yeah, well, I’ll quit beating a dead horse. =)