Elegy.

I decided to do this post about Elegy, the movie (based upon The Dying Animal by Philip Roth, I already have a post about it with the title Let's talk about sex...) because it just got to our country (staright to DVD, of course) and has got many bad reviews (as far as I know it wasn't very well-received abroad either). I had the chance of seeing only a few weeks after it hit theatres in Spain and I must admit I understand why some people don't like it.

BUT: I love it. I read the novel before watching the film and I think the creators found the way to transmit the atmosphere of the book, that strange mood that makes it different from others, that makes the sometimes vulgar language seem necessary and anything but unacceptable. It is an interesting movie and book about the rare but absolutely not impossible case when a totally normal young woman loves an elder man.

What I didn't feel in the book but is present in the film is that the girl, Consuela is like a fairy - like she was a dream. Maybe the whole movie is dream-like but this difference from the written version is not a bad thing, actually, it's wonderful.

Of course, the movie is an independent piece, not really the kind of picture that attracts masses to the cinema. But it is very well done if you like these kinds of films. I understand if someone says they expected more or something else because of the actors (who are great in their roles, again), or because they didn't read the book and didn't know what it's like or because they read it but thought it could have been made differently. But in my opinion, it's a great interpretation. They didn't change too much and what they changed didn't reduce the value of the result which is quite rare with based-upon-a-book movies.

I suggest this movie, even if you can't enjoy it as much as I do every time I watch it. But believe me, it's like those old classics - you might suffer watching them, but when it's over, you'll really feel you've got something wonderful.