Ethan Frome: Book And Movie Review Essay, Research Paper

The book and the movie were quite different both in interpretation, and my personal liking. The book was more in depth and in tune to the basic part of the story, while the movie was written in a way to expand the length. The book did not always move at a steady pace, as did the movie. However, the novel allowed us to portray our own version of the characters in our own mind. I did not like the way that the characters we over exaggerated. I did not picture, in my mind, Ethan Frome with that noticeable of a limp. In the book they did not describe his limp as that of a paraplegic. Ethan did not appear to me, in the book, as a hunchback. They might have well put him in some Disney cartoon. Ethan also gave me the impression, in the book, of being clumsy around women. He seemed very confident and charismatic in the movie when he was around Mattie. Zeena was a little on the negative side. I imagine that after a woman cares for an elderly couple, she would have more compassion. She came off as being a nagger, and a wiener. However, I liked her reactions on the film better then in the novel. The intensity and emotion was more prominent in the movie. She did however seem very similar to the book in that she controlled the household.

Mattie was portrayed fairly well. She could have been a little more desirable. She was spoke of in the book as if she was the best looking in the county . I agree with Ethan s quote of, she looks a little sickly . Although, she did fit in quite well during the last scene of the film. A character with more beauty could have ruined the effect wanted in the scene. The last scene was very opinionated. There was a definite difference in the underling tone of the last scene. The book showed the irony and the roll reversal that took place after the accident. The director of the film however interpreted that last scene slightly different. He saw the last scene as an opportunity to show how terrible Ethan s life is in addition to the irony. I personally liked the ending in the movie because it showed how awkward the situation was. A perfect example was when the Minister mistook Mattie for Ethan s wife. In conclusion, both the book and the novel are both very well written, but it is up to the local interpreter to decide what they like best.