My grandma and I watched Rebecca last week. I was really excited to see it. I loved the book so much, and was really curious how the movie was going to be. Maybe a little nervous too. I wasn't sure what they were going to do to it frankly. To my surprise and pleasure, the movie stuck pretty closely to the book. There were some changes, but none that I thought were horrible. We watched the making of documentary, and it turns out it was Selznick who wanted to keep to the book. This surprised me since they said that Hitchcock was desperate to have the rights. Weird that he would be so desperate, and not want to tell the actually story.
There is a lot one could say about both the book and the movie, but I'll stick to what I liked the most which was the performances. First of all, the book is a first person narrative of the second Mrs. de Winter, and most of it her musings. In fact, my grandma was getting frustrated by how sidetracked she'd get. The new Mrs. was very self conscious about her short comings, and never thought she could stand up to the memory of Rebecca. The book was very internal. I wasn't sure how that was going to translate.
Secondly, in the book Maxim is very distant and moody. I had a hard time wanting to these two stay together. It was necessary for the plot that he be that moody and dark, but it didn't support the love story, I thought anyway. I figured Lawrence Olivier would be dark and brooding just as Maxim was in the book.
What I got from the movie was something a bit different. First, Joan Fontaine's performance was amazing. Oh my goodness, she was fantastic. She was more likable than the Mrs. in the book. She was childlike, and absolutely fun to watch. In turn, Olivier was much softer and attentive to her than Maxim was in the book. I loved it!!
Yes, I loved the book because the language was so rich, and it was so fun to read. I loved the movie because the characters came to life in the best way. Oh yes, it was beautifully shot too. I think I am going to add it to my collection.
There is a lot one could say about both the book and the movie, but I'll stick to what I liked the most which was the performances. First of all, the book is a first person narrative of the second Mrs. de Winter, and most of it her musings. In fact, my grandma was getting frustrated by how sidetracked she'd get. The new Mrs. was very self conscious about her short comings, and never thought she could stand up to the memory of Rebecca. The book was very internal. I wasn't sure how that was going to translate.
Secondly, in the book Maxim is very distant and moody. I had a hard time wanting to these two stay together. It was necessary for the plot that he be that moody and dark, but it didn't support the love story, I thought anyway. I figured Lawrence Olivier would be dark and brooding just as Maxim was in the book.
What I got from the movie was something a bit different. First, Joan Fontaine's performance was amazing. Oh my goodness, she was fantastic. She was more likable than the Mrs. in the book. She was childlike, and absolutely fun to watch. In turn, Olivier was much softer and attentive to her than Maxim was in the book. I loved it!!
Yes, I loved the book because the language was so rich, and it was so fun to read. I loved the movie because the characters came to life in the best way. Oh yes, it was beautifully shot too. I think I am going to add it to my collection.
via pmcmovieline
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