Is there any Adaptations from the Book to the Film Script?
Although this isn't my main focus on the essay, I thought it would be useful to compare the actual dialogue between the script and the book, so that I have a direct example of how the film may've been purposely changed for whatever reason which may be applicable.
Firstly, I will evaluate the beginning and ending of the texts to see if the opening and closing have any similarities. I will then choose a moment within the film which is quite important and see if this has been adapted and altered or not.
Gatsby Film Script taken from:
http://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=the-great-gatsby
The Great Gatsby online book from:
http://www.publicbookshelf.com/fiction/great-gatsby/younger-vulnerable
Introduction of the Two Texts
Firstly, I decided to begin by examining the begin of the two texts. Below are the two introductions:
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| The Great Gatsby book |
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| 1st part: Gatsby Film |
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| 2nd part: Gatsby Film |
Even within the introduction of the book, you can see notable changes. One of the main must be the change in Nick's vocabulary choice. The book is far more advanced - Fitzgerald uses words such as 'plagiaristic' and 'quivering', not forgetting the sheer depth of description that Nick uses as a narrator. The film script however has clearly been adapted to suit the conventional say 'film vocabulary' - it is generally quite basic and simplistic so that the audience don't become confused and can understand it.
Another interesting point is that there is already a significant distinction with character development between the two texts. We learn straight away in the film that Nick had a problem with alcohol, where alcohol isn't even mentioned in the introduction of the book (not forgetting that Nick never had this problem with alcohol in the book anyway - in fact he had barely drunk). Theres even a new character introduced (the doctor) whom isn't even mentioned in the book. As mentioned in my 'Gatsby Analysis' post, all of this may've been changed purely to give Nick a more 'challenging' characterisation for the film - to make it seem more dramatic and entertaining by bringing up the past.
Which leads me to my next point. The narrative structure has been altered as well. The film begins subverted - It goes back into the past talking about where Nick first met Gatsby. Which when looking at the introduction of the book, you are nowhere near the understanding of Gatsby, barely anything about Nick himself especially not where he lives and his alcohol problem like shown in the film. However, the film opens with the same as the book which in a way works quite effectively for those who have remembered the book, so at least it continues to maintain some traces of originality.
So to conclude, the film is much more simple with a faster narrative pace, and in a way has characterised Nick to be more problematic therefore more dramatical for the narrative - all in a way to make the film easy to understand and to promote its entertaining values.
Tom & Nick's reactions to Myrtle's Death (at the scene)
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| Gatsby Book |
A key point in both the texts has to be the death of Myrtle, therefore I've decided to compare the texts showing when Nick and Tom arrive at the death scene, and their reactions to it. The narrative in both texts are the same - Tom and Nick arrive together and comfort Wilson. They both talk about how there is a crowd around her body and with the policeman trying to control the matter.
However the main differences is mainly from Tom's reactions. The book explains his reactions to be very surprised and shocked. For example, he calls "Oh my Ga-od! Oh my Ga-od!" This differs to the film - Tom is still in shock however from the dialogue we learn that he is too shocked to react at first and is speechless. Nonetheless, the main difference is how Tom immediately tries to find out who it was who killed her. You can also tell from the dialogue that he is concerned about Myrtle like he is in the book, which is obvious due to their past relationship.
Surprisingly, judging from the dialogue, it is the book instead which seems more dramatical because of Tom's reactions being very shocked and surprised. However the film reinforces this issue of alcohol as he demands someone to get Wilson a drink. However both texts reinforce this idea of deception - Tom is trying to comfort and help Wilson despite him having an affair with Myrtle.
Ending of the Two Texts
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| Ending of the book |
However after comparing the ending of the two texts, in a way they are considerably similar. To generalise, the narrative ending is the same in the film as in the book - Gatsby is killed and has left Nick feeling lonely and remorseful. Additionally, they both even talk about the 'green light' - this shows how you can argue that the ending of the narrative is the same as the original. In fact, the ending of the film is exactly the same as the ending of the book in terms of dialogue - similar like how the film starts the same as the book.
Conclusion
After comparing the two texts directly through the dialogue, you can argue that the film infringes the integrity of the original text however in my opinion not as much as expected. The dialogue is kept the same in numerous parts of the narrative and more importantly the starting and ending are very similar. It is obvious that the film will be different as the film needs to maintain its dramatic intensity throughout, and more importantly to adapt to the post-modernist demand for entertainment in a film.
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