Audience Member
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD
I find both the book and film version of The Old Man and the Sea very enjoyable. I personally find the book is far more in-depth and has a slightly less cliche plot than the movie. While remaining faithful to the key elements of the original story, the story is slightly modified in order to be more seemingly fit for a film. I hope to analyze some of these changes and similarities in this comparative essay.
The book has a lot of more easily identifiable symbolism (see my blog prompt on symbolism). Virtually everything in the book symbolizes something else, something meaningful. I felt like the book's symbolism is far more emphasised, so much so that one may feel more of the symbol than the literal object.
The most noticeable difference between the book and film is the addition of two new characters, an American writer and his American wife. These two newly-wed characters have little to no impact on the main storyline, I feel like they are implemented in the story solely to make it less boring to the more modern audiences. They have almost no direct contact with Santiago in the entire duration of the movie. These characters don't even exist in the book. I feel like these two new characters are quite useless to the plot. The time and effort spent on constructing the side-story of the couple is a waste, I think the director should have directed said time and effort into directly making the original story more interesting.
A minor similarity I find is the point of view the stories are told in. They are both in 3rd person omniscient. The movie also shows the side of the American couple. The main 'thoughts' that I see emanating from the movie is just from Santiago talking to himself.
Despite the many differences, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. The book is better in my opinion because it is far more detailed and allows the reader to interpret the imagery in their own way. Some may argue that the lack of special effects is to blame for the faults of the movie, but I beg to differ. I don't think fancy special effects are required for a story about an old man fishing in the sea.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/24/23
Full Review
Audience Member
The audience after watching a movie based on a book, have the opinion that the book is better than the movie. I too read the book and watched the movie later. Just like the my other colleagues, I found the book to be more enjoyable and interesting. In this essay I will be comparing the book old man and the sea and its movie. I will be comparing some similarities and some differences on topics like characters, events, and plot. (Spoiler Alert)
I wouldnt say the characters were different in the movie than in the book, rather several characters were added. The writer and his wife were the two additional characters in the movie that were frequently shown in the movie. The writer, who came for a vacation in the old mans town, is show to be interested in the old man and is taking down notes for his next book, probably based on the old mans life. Another important addition of characters in the movie was the old mans daughter. The daughter of the old man acted as a support for the old man, just like the boy. (Spoilers). Other than that other characters like the old man and the boy were similar to the book.
Events that took place in the movie were similar and different than the book. From the beginning, the old man was challenged by a man from the town and this event did not take place in the book. There were several events in the movie only consisting of the writer and his wife. Other scenes in the movie were same as the book. The only other event that was the most different in the movie was the old mans youth. This was a small part of the film that showed the young old man fishing and after a while in the movie the old man was marrying his wife. (Spoilers)
The plot was not different at all from the movie. The exposition, the rising action, the conflict, the falling action and the resolution were the same as the book. Changing the plot might completely change the story.
According to me the movie was really well picturized. The director made necessary changes in the movie, so that the movie is not really different from the book, but is still fun and interesting. Some events and characters may be different from the book but the theme was kept the same. I would still prefer for the audience to read the book rather than watching the film, because the books are always better; just a personal opinion.
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Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
(***): [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img]
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/18/23
Full Review
Audience Member
A remake of the Ernest Hemingway's Story, Old Man Of the Sea, and even though Anthony Quinn does an excellent job in this movie its still not as well done as the movie with Spencer Tracy. But both movies follow the original penned story and are excellent. 4 1/2 stars only because Spencer Tracy gets 5 stars. 9-2-12
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
01/23/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Absolutely terrible film, I was nearly driven to suicide
Rated 0.5/5 Stars •
Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars
02/15/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Simple, powerful, story to its fundamental human elements and adding elements of characterization which a more 'faithful' adaptation would have missed. I actually enjoyed the straying from the source material this time around. I really like Gary Cole's character and how it reflected Hemingway's own life. How he interprets the old man for us, but subtly, and only as he learns from the example the old man sets. The story is shot and edited exactly as it should have been, and the feeling of Hemingway's story is much better developed than in the previous Oscar winning Spencer Tracey version. But really only due to the changes that were made. An amazing work of humanity at it's worst trying to be whom he once was. Fighting his crisis of self-confidence, and accusations of uselessness. And Anthony Quinn captures it beautifully. It's sad that he is no longer around. Watching him act is wonderful. You see a man who loved what he does. No matter what the role was he is a delight to watch.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/02/23
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