Back to the Classics Challenge Complete!

Done and done! The Back to the Classics Challenge is finally complete! A huge thanks to Karen of Books and Chocolate for hosting this year! The Painted Veil was probably my favorite of the whole bunch.

Here’s the complete list of the books I read and my reviews:

1) 19th Century Classic: The Warden by Anthony Trollope (Finished
March 2014)
2) 20th Century Classic: In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck (Finished Aug. 2014)
3) Classic in Translation: Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes (Finished Nov. 2014)
4) Classic By Woman Author: The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan (Finished Jan. 2014)
5) Classic by an Author Who's New To Me: An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser (Finished Non. 2014)
6) Wartime Novel: The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper (Finished Dec. 2014)

Optional Categories:
1) Classic American Novel: The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington (Finished March 2014)
2) Historical Novel: The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (Finished April 2014)
3) Classic Mystery Novel: Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers (Finished Jan. 2014)
4) Classic Book That's Been Adapted as a Movie: The Painted Veil by W Somerset Maugham (Finished May 2014)
5) Extra Fun Category: Write a Review of the Movie adapted from Optional Category #4 (The Painted Veil)

I completed all 11 categories and so I will have 3 entries in the final giveaway!

The Painted Veil: The Movie

 



As part of the Back to the Classics Challenge, this year’s categories include a movie option. You read a classic book that's been adapted as a movie and then you watch the movie version and review it. I picked The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham and you can find my thoughts on the book here. 

My review of the movie includes comparisons to the book and assumes you’ve read the book, so there are SPOILERS. As I explained in my review, plot follows a young married couple in the 1920s. After Kitty has an affair, her husband whisks her off to mainland China where he is attempting to help a small village battle a cholera outbreak. I watched the 2006 film version starring Edward Norton and Naomi Watts.

The movie follows the same premise, but uses flashbacks to show the time before they travel into the epidemic area. It’s beautifully shot, with sweeping scenes of the Chinese countryside. It plot veers slightly from the book and focuses on some larger social issues, which was interesting. It takes a much more dramatic look at everything. There’s an added war lord, heightened problems between the British and locals, and a tense chase scene through the streets. There’s also a bigger focus on Walter trying to find solutions to the water access issue for the village.

None of those added elements takes away from the story and some of them add a bit of perspective to the situation. Really I think the biggest change from the book is the character of Walter, Kitty’s stoic husband. I felt like he was more likeable in the book. He comes across as incredible cold and cruel in the movie and a few key points are changed. His offer to let Kitty divorce him was an afterthought, in the book it’s an important strategic decision. On his deathbed he is the one who apologizes to Kitty, which is the absolute opposite of what happened in the book.

The other major change was the ending. In the book Kitty understands her husband better, but she never falls in love with him. The true transformation is within herself and she has to go back to her old life to truly see how much she has changed. She returns to Charlie and realizes she can’t be happy with how things used to be. In the movie we see her years later with her son and she runs into Charlie on the street. It actually worked really well that way and I almost liked that ending better. I certainly think it works better on film because it’s less complicated.

Two thumbs up for the beautiful film and book. Though they differ on certain parts, the overall message is the same and the costumes and scenery of the movie are just gorgeous! 

p.s. Bonus for Game of Thrones fans, Lady Olenna, one of my favorite people on the show, plays a nun in the film!

 

Back to the Classics 2014

The Back to the Classics Challenge is always a favorite of mine and this year it has a new host! Karen of Books and Chocolate has taken over hosting duties and picked some great categories for us. Below are all of the categories along with my selections. You can see the complete list of details in Karen's post here.

1) 19th Century Classic: The Warden by Anthony Trollope (Finished
March 2014)
2) 20th Century Classic: In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck (Finished Aug. 2014)
3) Classic in Translation: Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes (Finished Nov. 2014)
4) Classic By Woman Author: The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan (Finished Jan. 2014)
5) Classic by an Author Who's New To Me: An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser (Finished Non. 2014)
6) Wartime Novel: The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper (Finished Dec. 2014)


Optional Categories:
1) Classic American Novel: The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington (Finished March 2014)
2) Historical Novel: The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (Finished April 2014)

3) Classic Mystery Novel: Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers (Finished Jan. 2014)
4) Classic Book That's Been Adapted as a Movie: The Painted Veil by W Somerset Maugham (Finished May 2014)
5) Extra Fun Category: Write a Review of the Movie adapted from Optional Category #4 (The Painted Veil)