Thursday, July 16, 2009

Book & Movie Review: My Sister's Keeper

So many people I know LOVE Jodi Picoult, but until a couple weeks ago I'd never read her work. So I was thrilled when I had the chance to read My Sister's Keeper right before the release of the movie. Normally, when I read a book and then watch the movie I tend to be disappointed. But when I heard that Nick Cassavetes, director of The Notebook, had directed the movie version of Picoult's novel, I was hopeful. The verdict? The movie was GREAT! It's one I'd consider buying and watching again and again. The only downfall was that some crazy person in the theater kept blowing her nose during the tear-jerking scenes...oh wait, that was me. (P.S. bring tissues!)

The movie definitely differed a lot from the book (don't worry, no spoilers) - certain characters were changed, a couple were left out, a few sub-plots never made it to the big screen and the overall story works itself out differently in the movie than in the novel. After the movie, Dave asked me which version I liked better and my honest answer was that I really loved and appreciated both. One thing that I applaud Cassavetes for was that he used a good amount of the author's voice and dialogue in the movie (he did this with The Notebook too). Picoult is definitely present in the movie, which made me like it all that much better.

Overall recommendation: Definitely worth the $10 to see it in the theater.




1 comments:

Katie Oldenburg said...

If you like her books, I strongly recommend 'Plain Truth,' by her. It's one of my favorites. They also made a movie based on the novel, starring Mariska Hargitay. Both are awesome, but read the book first.