Book vs. Movie: The Giver

By Sara E Thompto

*Some very minor spoilers may be present in the movie portion of this review if you have never read The Giver.

When I was in seventh grade my English class was assigned The Giver by Lois Lowry and I wasn't thrilled to read it. 

First off, I hated being assigned to read something I didn't want to read, and second, I wasn't a huge fan of dystopian story lines. But, I read it anyway because that is what you're supposed to do when assigned a book in school.

I'm glad I did too because it has stuck with me ever sense as one of my favorite childhood books.   

The Book

The Giver portrays a future world that has given up on individuality and has morphed into a world of sameness.

The world is literally black and white. People are all the same skin color, boys all have one hair style and girls all have the same hair style. Clothes do not vary from person to person. No one is an individual - every person and every thing is the same.

There are also no physical relationships, and there are no career decisions or educational decisions. Each person is assigned a career path, a spouse and two children - one boy and one girl.

On the other hand, there is also no violence and the world is at peace.

But the question becomes, at what expense is this peaceful existence?  What has been giving up? No one knows or understands, because it is not in their mind to know or understand. That is, not until Jonas, a boy of 12, is given the career as The Receiver of Memories.

There is always one receiver - one person who knows the worlds history who can help guide the society from making bad decisions that might lead them into a fitful world again.

But what about the beauty that was lost? What of the joy and love?

These are all questions Jonas not only asks himself but asks The Giver, the person who was previously The Receive.

Although this is a young adult book, I believe the message to be quite powerful. Especially to those who are young adults. The message of individuality, love and culture is a strong message for young people to learn. With the good, comes the bad. But is it worth giving up the good to get rid of the bad?

These types of questions arise in The Giver and I strongly recommend reading this book if you've never done so before.

The Movie

When the movie was announced I wasn't sure what to think. Successful adaptations are rare. This one was no different - it definitely did not follow the book to a T but it was decent representation.

I'll start with my issues first though:

First off, in the book Jonas is a 12 year old boy. In the movie he is written as an 18 year old adult. I think this change made an interesting plot as far as the movie is concerned, but it also changed the entire feel of the story line.

The book is more innocent - to give a 12 year old child the pain of the entire world is a heart wrenching concept to grasp. No person wants to be the one to ruin a child's innocence, let alone spoil their innocence from zero pain to all of the pain the world holds.

Changing Joanas from 12 to 18 lessens that blow in my mind. In our society, an 18 year old is much more likely to know of many of the worlds pains. I understand Jonas doesn't, because he doesn't live in our world, but the age change did make a huge difference in my empathy for the character.

The other issue I had with the movie was how the mother (Katie Holmes) treated Jonas. In the book the mother and father were always nurturing, it seemed. Or, as nurturing as parents could be who lived in that world. It's what made the lies and lack of trust heartbreaking. However, in the movie, Jonas's mother was cold, and followed the rules to a T, which made her not as likable. It's one of the main points of the movie I was extremely disappointed about.

The only other plot change I found more startling was the role of the community leader, acted by Meryl Steep. She seemed blood thirsty and evil, something that was never portrayed in the book. And she definitely seemed to know more of the world than someone in the community should know, other than the Receiver. Her character was a villain which was not needed.

On the other end, there are quite a few things I loved about the movie. I enjoyed all of the acting. And, even though I had some hesitation about the casting of Jeff Bridges as The Giver, I thought the casting was completely well done.

I also loved how they kept the beginning in black and white (true to the book) and had color develop as Jonas began to learn of color. The visual was a nice change of pace and the development visually interesting to see.

Lastly and surprisingly, I love the additive of a love interest for Jonas. I mean, sure, in the book Jonas has an interest in Fiona. But the movie takes it further and a genuine love story develops. When I saw this love interest in the previews I was definitely worried. But, I think it played out well on screen and was written in a way that didn't detract from the main plot points I admire in the book (unlike the changes I mentioned above, which did detract).

Overall I would recommend seeing this movie, however I wouldn't watch it thinking you're going to see a film depicting a beloved childhood book.

If you watch it for what it is: a futuristic dystopian movie, than I think it's worth seeing.