The Time Traveler's Wife

[resqgeek]

I loved Audrey Niffenegger's novel The Time Traveler's Wife when I read it several years ago. I tell people that it is the single most romantic love story I've ever read, hands-down. So I jumped at an opportunity to get passes to an advanced screening of the movie based on the book (which opens in theaters tomorrow). I was primed to love the movie, but worried that I would be disappointed. The novel's structure is complex, and I wasn't sure how well it would translate to the screen.

Last night, my wife (who hasn't read the book) and I saw the advanced screening in Washington, DC. I'm glad I did. I enjoyed this adaptation, which captures much of the magic of the novel. While the movie re-orders some of the storytelling, and some of the details are changed or glossed over, this was to be expected. The book had far to many details to include them all, and the complexity of the book's structure needed to be simplified for the screen. In spite of all of this, the core of the story remains intact. While time travel is the central conceit of the story, at its heart, this is a love story. Henry and Claire are soul mates, with a deep love that buoys them through all the difficulties their unusual life presents them.

Perhaps it helps that I'm several years removed from reading the book. Someone who has read the book more recently might find the changes in the movie more jarring. But, for me, this was as faithful an adaptation as I could expect, and I found it both entertaining and moving. Maybe that's just because I'm an incurable romantic, but I'm recommending this movie as a romantic alternative to the noise and action of the typical summer movie.

Comments

[skyring.livejournal.com]

Tearing up just watching the trailer...

Pete, joining the incurable club

[wyldanthem.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad to be hearing so many good reviews of the movie version! I too was worried the movie wouldn't be able to live up to the beauty and depth of the book (it ranks second only to Rebecca on my list of favs). I'm hoping to see it this weekend -- how lucky you were to see an advanced screening!

(P.S. Sorry for the delayed response -- playing LJ catchup. Hope all's well!)