I'm really torn here. I want to write about Water for Elephants because it is one of my favourite books, and it is on my short list of top five books with the best and most surprising endings. I want to say that it is a great book for everyone-teenagers and adults-to read, and no one should miss the opportunity to see the movie. There's no better way to spark a love for reading-or relish the love for reading that already exists-than to discover a book that has a movie tie-in. At the same time I absolutely hate it when a movie butchers a great novel, and that usually is the case.
I'm not quite sure what fascinates me so much about the novel Water for Elephants. The dialogue is simple; the story borders on being corny. The writing is sometimes clumsy, but there is something deeply moving about Water for Elephants. Maybe we all dream of escaping life's hardships by joining the circus. It is a great escape.Jacob Jankowski, the main character in Water for Elephants, is certainly an example of just how someone can survive in the worst of circumstances. He tells his own story in moving flashbacks that he recalls when he's is in his 90s and living in a nursing home.
Jacob can't remember his exact age, but he does remember how he joined the Benzini Brothers' Circus in the early 1930s, the worst years of The Great Depression. He also remembers the tragic circumstances that propelled him to join the circus.One minute he was a promising veterinarian student in an Ivy League school; the next minute Jacob Jankowski had learned his parents had been killed in a car crash, and he learned this just before his final exams.Jacob discovers there is nothing left in his ideal life: No family, no house, no money because his parents had sold everything to send him to veterinarian school. His father had been bartering his services as a veterinarian because he couldn't bear for animals to suffer in the depression.
When Jacob goes to sit his final veterinarian exam, he cannot write a single answer. He runs away from everything, and he ends up hopping a train, which turns out to be moving the Benzini Brothers' Circus across the country.The Benzini Brothers' Circus is a poor excuse for a circus. The people who work in it are all misfits. It doesn't seem like a place Jacob would run to, but the author, Sara Gruen, does an admirable job of luring him into this surreal life.Once he enters the circus, Jacob falls for Marlena, the gentle wife of the ring master, August, who is heartless and cruel. The story really begins when August acquires an elephant.
The bond Jacob and Marlena form with the elephant become the central story of the novel. Here the themes of love, compassion, honour, faith and loyalty develop. These strong themes are truly the strength of this novel. An unforgettable setting and memorable characters-especially the elephant-make up for any flaws in this novel.Sadly, the movie did butcher the novel that inspired it. The movie totally ignores the secret in the beginning. It is the main point of the book. The movie takes great liberty with the plot, mostly trying in vain, as usual, to condense a story. Most of the characters are not very well developed.
Reese Witherspoon gives an adequate interpretation of Marlena, but there is no real chemistry with Robert Pattinson (of Twilight fame) who plays Jacob. Hal Holbrook makes a good enough Jacob in old age, but Christoph Waltz, who plays the brutally demented August, really steals the show-along with the elephant.Ironically, Francis Lawrence, the director of Water for Elephants, makes August even more complex than he is portrayed in the book. August comes off as deeply troubled-not merely cruel.
Life is a juggling act for August where he balances his dreams and the dreams of those working under him with the harsh economic realities of trying to keep a circus afloat. Although totally inexcusable, his anger that manifests itself in impulsive, raging, jealous abuse is almost explainable. It is quite possible that anyone who has not read the book might enjoy the movie and even think that it is great. That's because they don't really know what they're missing. Twilight fans will want to see the movie if they liked Pattinson.
If you saw the movie and didn't read the book, you're in for a great treat. The book really is much better than the movie. If you read the book, you will still want to see the movie for the memorable moments that do emerge. There's no greater fun than comparing a movie and a book-even if the movie doesn't meet your expectations.Any time I feel discouraged about how little some people read, I am equally encouraged by opportunities like this. A book and a movie: There's no better entertainment.n Next week: Something else to be excited about: Great, new Caribbean literature.