Movie
Director: Iain Softley
Screenplay: David Lindsay-Abaire
Starring: Brendan Frazier, Eliza Bennett

I loved the premise of Inkheart from the moment I first saw the previews and the idea of bringing to life the characters who inhabit the pages of our favorite stories. The pages of Funke’s book didn’t disappoint either-it’s filled with quips, quotes and anecdotes that any book lover can relate to. And Softley’s film version is true to the book inspiring even the most reluctant reader to explore the world of words.

In the “real” world, there are people with special powers, known as readers, who can read characters and other elements of the story out of the book and into the real world.  Luckily, what those readers bring out of the storybooks brings excitement and danger to the story: Capricorn, the enemy of all, and his henchmen, led by Basta, and Dustfinger – who is just confused and wants to go home.

Straight to the Point

Funke spends the first 100+ pages of her book introducing Mo (Frazier), Meggie’s obsessed father; Meggie (Bennett), the precocious 12-year old; Dustfinger the fire-juggler who longs to go home; and Elinor, a crotchety old woman who loves books more than any living person. We learn about how the family worships books: Mo works as a book binder and Elinor’s entire home is devoted to her book collection. Dustfinger first appears at the old farmhouse where Mo and Meggie make their home – a mysterious figure in the rain, who Mo invites in. He calles Mo “Silvertongue” and tells him that Capricorn would like to see him. The mismatched trio travels together to Elinor’s mansion, from where Mo is kidnapped by Capricorn’s men. Elinor, Dustfinger, and Meggie must track him down – where they all end up in Capricorn’s village.

Of course, Softley doesn’t have the equivalent of 100 pages of time on screen to introduce the characters and bring us to the heart of the action. Instead, Meggie and Mo run into Dustfinger in a village on their way to Elinor’s. When Silvertongue lies and says he doesn’t have a copy of the book Inkheart (from which Dustfinger, Basta and Capricorn are read) and thus can’t read Dustfinger home, we think he disappears. When he reappears at Elinor’s mansion, he isn’t alone: Capricorn’s men have come with him, and before they take the whole family, they destroy Elinor’s library.

While this change saves precious filming time, you lose a great deal of the history between Dustfinger and Silvertounge. In the book, Dustfinger feels like an old friend; in the film version, he’s another nemesis with whom Meggie, Mo and Elinor must contend. They also cut Meggie’s book box, replacing it with her mother’s copy of The Wizard of Oz that Elinor gives her.

We’re Off to See the Wizard

The Wizard of Oz plays a major role in the on-screen version of Inkheart, although it is never mentioned in the book. We’re first introduced to the book when Elinor gives the copy to Meggie which Dustfinger later saves from a bonfire of books. Because Meggie smuggles the book with them to Capricorn’s village, Mo can use the book to bring a tornado to Capricorn’s village, providing the perfect cover for an escape. Of course, the flying monkeys that are seen in the cells are also from the Wizard of Oz. And when Meggie discovers her skills in the film, she reads Toto out of the book when she’s staying at Fenoglio’s.

Whether the changes were made in an attempt to Americanize the story; to avoid copyright problems; or just to create additional action [is debatable, but forgivable]. Funke uses a wider range of stories from which to bring out characters. Meggie learns of her skill while she and Fenoglio are being held captive by Capricorn: she discovers books under the mattress and while reading aloud, TInkerbell appears. In order to prove her skill, she also reads a tin soldier from a Hans Christen Anderson fairytale.  The wider variety of books that Funke uses encourages the reader to expand their horizons, while Softley’s version has familiar and comforting scenes for most American viewers.

“Reading”

Of course, the story couldn’t be complete if the only people that were read out of books were from years before the action; and Mo can’t be the only person with the skill. First we meet Darius, a new reader that Capricorn has found. Darius reads an army of henchmen from Inkheart for Capricorn’s evil doings. However, because of Darius’s unfortunate stutter, the people appear with unsightly tattoos and physical flaws (the flattened facial features of Flatnose, Resa’s missing voice). He also proves to be unreliable for Capricorn’s other motive: to read treasure from books. In the movie, Capricorn’s cells are filled with magical creatures that Darius has read for him: a unicorn, the ticking crocodile from Peter Pan and flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz. (The book doesn’t show us who else is in the cells.)

Neither Mo nor Meggie have the trouble that Darius does, as whatever they read out of books appears flawlessly. None of the readers can control what comes out of the story, and in Funke’s version, the readers don’t use their power for personal gain. Mo won’t even read outloud without force or coercion – his only goal in reading aloud is to now read back out his wife, who disappeared on the night that Basta, Capricorn and Dustfinger appeared. Little does he know that Darius already read her out, and she’s now the mute maid that works for Capricorn.

Capricorn needs a good reader to complete his final evil deed: to read The Shadow out of Inkheart so that he can use the power to wreak havoc on the world. Since Mo has escaped his grasp, Capricorn can use Meggie’s skills to complete his evil plot. But in the end, reading is what must save the story, since reading is what created it. Fenoglio, the original author of Inkheart, comes up with the idea of re-writing The Shadow, so that rather than bending to Capricorn’s will, the Shadow would attack Capricorn and then disappear back into the story. Funke’s version has Meggie hide a new page up her sleeve (literally), written so that the Shadow turns into all the people (or fairies, etc) that he’s destroyed. Again, lending to the excitement of the big screen, Meggie herself must re-write the ending (on her arm) to protect those she loves.

Do the changes to the story reduce its appeal or detract from Funke’s vision? Definitely not. Rather, they bring the excitement needed for the big screen while staying true to the basic story and premise that Funke has laid out. There are several opportunities for increased depth and discussion in both stories (like what happens to people who are read into the books, and what happens to the books from which characters are read?), but Funke has written two more books in the series that may address these questions, and which may be brought to life on the silver screen.

Book

Movie
Directed by: David Frankel
Starring: Owen Wilson, Jennifer Aniston
Released: December 25, 2008
Rated: PG

Marley & Me joins the long tradition of oft-read and well-loved dog stories like Ol’ Yeller, Lassie, Rin Tin Tin, and more. In the case of Marley, the overly-friendly yellow Lab isn’t out to save lives, but rather to make them as entertaining as possible. Young couple John and Jenny decide to get a dog (after Jenny kills their houseplant, it’s only natural for her to want to try her hand at raising a puppy), and without the highly recommended research, pick Marley from the first litter they see.

As soon as they get Marley home, the antics start.  He’s playful, especially when it comes to chewing… he’ll chew through nearly anything he can get his mouth around, and a few things they didn’t think he could. His behavior training goes horribly awry, as by sheer size and strength alone he demonstrates that he is the alpha-male of the house.

Marley is full of the type of humor that you’d expect from a rowdy dog story. He steals the 18-carat gold necklace that John gets Jenny, and of course, swallows it. There’s nothing that John can do other than sort through the “output” until the object of his desire appears. He bounds into the family swimming pool and nips at baby diapers.

The film movie condenses the stories into those that can be staged and controlled – namely those that they can get one of the 22 dogs that played Marley can be directed to do. So, of course, there are funny anecdotes that don’t make the cut. Owen Wilson plays a passable John, but the John in the books seems a bit more polished than the uncombed, untucked John that Owen provides. Jenny, played by Jennifer Aniston, doesn’t bond with Marley as deeply as in the book; however, that’s somewhat understandable when you’ve got more 4-legged co-stars than 2-legged.

Speaking of 2-legged co-stars, the film version creates deeper supporting characters than those in the book. Eric Dane plays John’s college buddy Sebastian who babysits Marley briefly when Jenny insists that Marley leave the house. (In the book, John simply spends quite a bit more time with Marley’s training, hoping that Jenny will remember her love for the dog. She does.) Neither do we meat John’s boss in the book (Arnie Klein played by Alan Arkin). Rather the book stays focused on the main character: Marley.

Any pet lover knows that dogs don’t live forever, and in particular, big dogs have a shorter life-span than some of their smaller brethren. It should come as no surprise how the book and film end. Unfortunately, rather than just letting Marley fade into that great dog run in the sky, Grogan details very clearly Marley’s decline and demise. It is in sharp contrast to the happy-humor that has colored the rest of the story, and is uncalled for.

Author: Kate DiCamillo
© 2003
Published by Candlewick Press

The Movie

Directed by: Sam Fell, Robert Stevenhagen
Starring: Matthew Broderick, Dustin Hoffman, Emma Watson
Released: December 19, 2008
Rated: G

The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread joins the genre of award-winning children’s books converted to animated film. The previews of the film looks like the adventures of a happy and brave mouse. Once the lights go down, the darker side of the film comes out. Desperaux is a story of lessons – lessons that the world isn’t fair. And it isn’t full of light.

Light and Dark

Roscuro, the rat in Desperaux and Desperaux himself are characterizations of the overall theme of light and dark. Roscuro is not like normal rats; in the movie, he’s a ship-faring rat who loves being on deck, and relishes sunlight. In the book, he’s a darker character in general, born in the dungeons. While the rest of the rats relish in creating suffering for others, Roscuro believes that light is the answer. That is, of course, until he is punished for an accident (he falls into the queen’s soup – she’s startled to death so all the rats are outlawed and  soup is banned). Roscuro then turns to darkness, seeking to punish the pricness and make her suffer.  Even Roscuro’s coat is dark.

In sharp contrast to Roscuro is Despeaux. His white coat and wide eyes (he was born with his eyes open) are symbolic of his openness and hope. As a youngster, he’s also shown that life isn’t fair, but rather than learning to cower and scamper like a normal mouse, he wants to be more than a normal mouse – he wants to be a hero. Even when he is punished for refusing to conform, he does not give up hope. In a sense, he carries the light in his heart.

Neither the book nor the film of The Tale of Desperaux is “light” – both carry the lessons of light and dark, good and evil. But they both show that light can overcome darkness, and that if you strive to do what you believe is good and right, then it can overcome evil and adversity.

Soup

Soup plays a major role in these stories, especially in the film version. The city in which Desperaux lives loves soup; they hold festivals for it. There’s even a film character (Boldo) who is made up of soup ingredients. The sad banishment of the rats (and the soup) is the result of a rat falling into the soup of the Queen; of course, upon seeing the rat, she expires. The heartbroken king forbids everyone in the kingdom from eating soup, and makes rats outlaws.

Just as the banishment of the soup served as the start of darkness in the story, the return of soup is the climax leading to the triumph of good over evil, and soup over… well, sandwiches, I suppose.

Family

Family plays an important role in these stories; in particular the relationship between Desperaux and his family . Desperaux isn’t a normal mouse; he doesn’t act like a normal mouse, doesn’t learn to act like a normal mouse, and doesn’t fit in with his normal mouse family. In the book, his brother tries to teach him to scamper, but Desperaux stands in the middle of the room to look around. His sister tries to instruct him how to eat a book, but instead he reads it. (In the film there is no sister, so his brother teaches him.) It’s his father who turns him into the mouse council, and at least in the book his brother takes him to the dungeon.

While his family must feel remorse for what they have done, they also feel the need to protect their way of life. When something (or someone) doesn’t conform, it must be removed. Desperaux teaches that it’s ok to be “different.” It also teaches the hard lesson that you may not be accepted when you are different.

Overall

Both the novel of and film of Desperaux had incredibly redeeming qualities, and were quite enjoyable. They’re both dark stories, the book moreso than the movie, but they’re well thought out, and well executed.