i love this book. i think its an inspired and incredible piece of fiction that perfectly captures the terror of aging and the loss of idealism as youth slides into middle-age. it is also nihilistically and anarchistically hilarious, describing kemps bizarre hedonistic adventures in 1960 san juan.
the movie, unfortunately, abandoned both of these key elements for the most part. instead of preserving the bleak hopelessness of the book, the film creates some bizarre Hollywood happy ending, and also turns the focus of the second half of the movie into kemp's quest for self-identification, which is boring, clichéd, and completely out of sync with the novel's original intention.
if you've never read the book, maybe this is entertaining, but, like most adaptations, it falls far short of the text.
the movie, unfortunately, abandoned both of these key elements for the most part. instead of preserving the bleak hopelessness of the book, the film creates some bizarre Hollywood happy ending, and also turns the focus of the second half of the movie into kemp's quest for self-identification, which is boring, clichéd, and completely out of sync with the novel's original intention.
if you've never read the book, maybe this is entertaining, but, like most adaptations, it falls far short of the text.