Let’s point out the obvious.
Posted by robyngiannini on January 27th, 2007
I just thought I’d take a moment to say that yes, in fact, the movie The Glass Key is DIFFERENT than the book. It was directed by Stuart Heisler; not written by Dashiell Hammett. I think that we can talk about the multitude of differences between the book and the movie, as two entirely unique mediums of art, or we can talk about the quality of the movie as exactly what it is; a movie. Yes, it does not have the refined character development of a novel. I seem to recall that the defining characteristic of a novel is character development, while movies are known for entertainment.
The movie The Glass Key is a completely different creature altogether. It wasn’t made as a tribute to the book–it’s just loosely based on the book. The movie has entirely different objectives at stake. Such as money. Hollywood is about the box office.
That is not to say that all films are just about money–films are artistic creations in themselves. But it’s a totally different form of art than a book. Movies have other concerns; scene shots, costumes, lighting, acting, momentum, etc. I think it’s unfair to compare a movie to a book without taking into account that it will not have the same effect that a book will have on it’s audience. We’ll never enjoy any movies that are based on books (and there are quite a few) if we point out it’s failure to do justice to the book. What about it’s success as a movie? And it’s not just books–movies are often based on historical events, or true stories. Well yes, sometimes movies are historically inaccurate. Sometimes they don’t get the facts straight.
I don’t think that it’s their responsibility to do so. Yes, in the Sound of Music Maria and the children probably didn’t glamorously climb over the mountain to escape the Natzis. It may have been more complicated than that. But damn, that’s one of the most memorable scenes in any movie. It’s a great shot. And you can appreciate it for that. Just like we can appreciate the movie The Glass Key as a MOVIE, and evaluate it’s strenghts and weaknesses as a work of film rather than as a book.