Book or Movie

I loved the first movie that was made in 1939. It only showed the first 16 chapter of the book. But is was much more real and dramatic. Sort of a Gone with the wind. I thought this one was very fake. If they do a remake of the first movie, they also should have updated the lines... They still match the book and it just doesn't fit!

I loved the book btw!

The book of course, no competition!

Time rushes by
Love rushes by
Life rushes by
But the Red Shoes stay on

well, who could prefer the movie to the book, as all the essence of the story comes from the book? that's something I've always found a little absurd, the book or movie debate...the only debate I can think of is whether to watch a movie based on a book before reading the book.

The book is unique and utterly beautiful, edgy, incredibly deep...and I think to put all that into a movie of the same quality as the book has would be very very difficult.

I would say...Ralph Fiennes was a very good choice, as an actor for the role of Heathcliff...I thought Juliette Binoche was a surprising choice, put in the end I was convinced it was a good one too.

I think it's a good movie, and if you don't know the book you'll certainly appreciate it as a beautiful story...if you know the book first, though, you can't help feeling a little disappointed...it's well done, BUT the whole tone of the film is lacking something - Heathcliff is wild, dangerous and edgy from the start, and Cathy is wild too, in her own way, whimsical, stubborn, childish at times...Those two characters are "the same", they match each other in their flaws...and I think therein lies the problem with this movie, which portrays the love story as a pretty story between two "nice" people...the plot feels more like a "the world came between us and tore us apart" story...it's more a story of differences between classes in society...while in the book the caracters are so much more complex and to a certain extent can be blamed for their own unhappiness. As for Heathcliff, I though Ralph Fiennes could have portrayed him as the selvage and dangerous man he is from the beginning of the movie, making him attractive for his savageness rather than for his nice manners! In the second part of the movie, he finally becomes the Heathcliff he is in the book.

As for my favourite scene in the book (and one of the best to have been written in English literature), the one where Cathy confesses to Nelly that it is Heathcliff she really loves, that he is "more myself than I am"...I think Juliette Binoche's acting is impressive and moving, but, again, if you have read the book, you will miss something in the tone...there is a lot more arguing, tension, and Nelly's wise way of making Cathy realize she doesn't love Edgar, and Cathy's stubbornnes in wanting Nelly's approval of what she knows in her heart is wrong...I think all that is missing, to the extent that when Nelly asks "what's the obstacle?" I don't think somebody watching the movie will fully understand where that question is coming from...

Anyway, it was great to see a good movie and to see one of my favourite fiction-couples come to life on a screen...I just wish they had kept their edge.



'If nothing else, it's life. It's real, and sometimes it *beep* hurts, but it's all we have.'

The book, no question. A superb piece of victorian literature, so much more eloquent and passionate, and it all plays out in your mind.

Time rushes by
Love rushes by
Life rushes by
But the Red Shoes stay on

Definitely the book. I don't think any of the movie adaptations has done it justice yet (at least of those I've seen), and certainly not this one.

However, in fact I watched this version before reading the novel, but it left me quite confused, so I picked up the book hoping to understand the plot better - and boy, am I glad that I did. So at least I could argue that something good came from watching it.

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I'm a part-time genius. Today happens to be my day off...