 |
| Source: kissthemgoodbye.net |
It's been a while since I've done a Book versus Screen post, so I'm rectifying that with a (slightly heated) analysis of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.
For those who haven't read the 2008 book by Mary Ann Schaffer (or seen the 2018 film), The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society follows Juliet Ashton, a London-based writer who has gained success from her book of humorous essays, all written during World World II. However, it's now 1946, and Juliet is tired of being funny. She's looking for something serious to write, and that's when the island of Guernsey (located in the English Channel) and the members of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society enter her life. As she learns more about the society members and their life during the German occupation, she becomes more entwined in their lives and finds passion in a new writing project.
Please note: I am making no effort to contain the spoileriness of this post, so consider yourself forewarned!
Here's what's coming up:
1. NOTABLE CHANGES
2. ODD CHOICES
3. WHAT THE MOVIE DID WELL
4. MARK
1. Notable Changes
Five minutes into the movie, I already had beef with it. They cut out John Booker and made Eben a drunk!!! I'm sorry, but that is unforgivable. It felt like they just used Eben as an odds-and-ends catchall character: he made the potato peel pie (instead of Will Thisbee); he was postmaster, not a fisherman (I'm still not sure why they made that choice); he was the drunk (instead of Eben). But then they had Jane be Amelia's daughter, instead of Eben's, and I wasn't sure why.
In fact, they cut out a ton of minor characters and side plots. In addition to John Booker (and all the society members, in fact, except for Amelia, Eben, Elizabeth, Isola, and Dawsey), they cut out Sophie (except for the barest mention) and Remy; Gilly Gilbert and Billee Bee Jones (and the teapot which Juliet threw at Gilly Gilbert's head–alas); the lady digging for her teapot; Isola's friendship with Sidney and her obsession with different interests, such as phrenology; Granny Pheen's Oscar Wilde letters; Sidney breaking his leg, etc. While those minor characters and side plots were by and large rather pointless, they lent charm to the book and I liked them.
Side note: Because they cut out Remy, they had Mark discover how Elizabeth died instead of Remy telling them, which I thought was weird, but ... okay.
In the book, the society members knew that Juliet was writing a book before she came, and were all eager to have her; she didn't just show up unannounced and receive an extremely cold and secretive shoulder. I didn't feel like there was a good reason for any of that, except perhaps suspense for viewers who haven't read the book. It felt like the producers were trying to make Elizabeth and Kit's backstory a shocking reveal, but it just didn't work for me (and I suspect it wouldn't have even if I hadn't already read the book).
Why did they change Dawsey and Christian's first meeting? The old farmer guy being there kind of ruins the moment they shared on the cliffs.
A couple random notes, like "They didn't take the pigs, they just kept track of them" (in the book). And, "Why did they change Adelaide Addison's name to Charlotte Dimple? I'm baffled."
There was a Little Women moment at the end with Juliet and Dawsey almost missing each other on the boat, which made me think of the umbrella scene, but not as good.
(Completely random side note that doesn't really have to do with the movie: I noticed that Lily James has been in two movies where her character loves another character named Kit–two completely different kinds of love, but still!)
2. Odd Choices
Apart from the story itself, I noticed some odd filming choices:
1. At one point, Kit's hair accessory changed within a scene. I had to rewind to make sure, but here is the proof:
 |
| Source: kissthemgoodbye.net |
2. Sometimes cuts didn't align properly and that bothered me (as in, it was obvious that they smooshed together multiple takes into one scene, and even between cuts–which is fine, just make sure they align smoothly).
3. There was one ten- or fifteen-second clip where Juliet just walked up an entire flight of stairs. It wasn't important, the filmmakers just decided that fifteen seconds of Juliet walking up a flight of stairs was more important than character or story development, I guess. Then, later, they showed a random clip of the sea at night. It was unclear why.
3. What the Movie Did Well
1. I liked the touch with the blue door. Such a small scene, but a lovely nod to the book.
2. I made a note when I was watching: "Elizabeth is Rosie the Riveter." It seemed they took inspiration from Rosie the Riveter to craft Elizabeth's onscreen character, and I dig it.
 |
| Source: kissthemgoodbye.net |
3. I love writing montages. (Again, rather like Little Women, but much better than the other Little Women-esque scene.)
4. I was afraid for a second that they would have Dawsey propose to Juliet, but they kept her proposing to him–word for word from the book! I loved that.
4. Mark
 |
| Source: kissthemgoodbye.net |
Markham V. Reynolds deserves his very own section in this post, and here's why: I think the movie made him too likable. First of all, they cut out his mysterious courtship of Juliet. At least they showed her room filled with flowers, but we didn't get to see him winning her over at all: she was already with him at the start of the movie (side note: that steamy little nightclub in the first scene we get to see him in the movie is NOT the kind of place he takes Juliet in the book). And I know there's only so much you can squeeze into a 2-hour film, but I think that was a big mistake. In the book, it's immediately obvious that Juliet doesn't belong with Mark. In the movie, it's just weird because Mark seems like a great guy, if a little cocky, she gets engaged to Mark right before she gets on the boat to Guernsey, and while her in-person relationship with Dawsey starts out a bit rocky (or tile-y?), she seems to fall in love with him and forget about Mark awfully fast.
Comments
Post a Comment