MovieChat Forums > Winter's Tale (2014) Discussion > I loved the book - I don't know if I wan...

I loved the book - I don't know if I want to see the film...

posted 10 years ago by osofine
3 replies | jump to latest

I read this book a couple of decades ago and absolutely loved it. I don't remember much about the overall plot, but there are scenes and setting that left a lasting impression:

- The East River of NYC frozen over and people setting up stalls and walking over it.

- The best fictional tour of Grand Central Terminal I've ever read, including the Oyster Bar and hidden passages. (Grand Central is one of my favorite spots on the planet.)

- A woman strapping her baby to herself and making the long voyage down to NYC from the Hudson River Valley on skis.

At least I think that is what I read (it was a very long time ago)! I might be mixing some of it up with another fantasy based on the New York area, "Little, Big" by John Crowley. Or a dream. LOL! (Actually, it's sad... I used to remember every page of every book read. Not anymore.)

I'm going to re-read the novel and see if it holds up to my memories. Even without all of the mixed reviews of the film, I'd be wary of altering the images the book creates in my mind and replacing them with someone else's vision (this is the case with many screen adaptations of books, of course!).

Has anyone read the book first and then seen the film?

[–] ranwulfs 10 years ago

Hi there - This is one of the greatest novels ever written - my all-time favorite. It changed my life. And as we speak I'm doing my best to sit throught the movie. It's really not good. While I'll agree that the book is too vast and complex to be easily turned into a film, this is no excuse to dumb down the story, alter the characters and turn it into a cheesy romance bearing scant resemblance to the original work. At the half-way point in the film, and so far Russell Crowe's Pearly Soams is ridiculously over the top and - get this - he's also a literal demon who goes to Lucifer (Will Smith) to ask for permission to go outside of Manhattan to chase down Peter Lake. Plus too many small, entirely unnecessary changes to count. I had looked forward to this film adaptation, hoping it wouldn't ruin Mark Helprin's masterpiece. It did.

[–] alittlebirdie 10 years ago

I know a movie is often disappointing after a favorite book, but
I loved the movie so because of your thread I'm going to read the book.
Thanks

Only the gentle are ever really strong ~ James Dean

[–] philipbirtwistle-1 9 years ago

The book will always be amongst my very favourites. I remember buying my first paperback copy (gone through a few editions by now) after reading the blurb on the back, assuming the different points listed referred to set of short-stories, and then being amazed to find out it was a novel.

I felt it would be unfilmable as it stood, so was very concerned when I saw a feature film was forthcoming. I feel the film is very good, and they have done as good a job as possible in transferring it to the screen. Yes parts of it are altered or omitted, but I feel what is left gets the point of the story across in a way that the average movie goer can comprehend, and also fits into a 2 hour timeframe!!

Not the best film ever, but a fine attempt.

Philip