We’ve all
had it where we read a book and then watched the movie which depicts the
characters and settings. One of my
favorite movies is a perfect example of this scenario- Dear John. However, after reading the book, I
found that it didn’t perfectly resemble the movie. Though movies based on books try to tell the same story,
sometimes they contain differences and even surprise you with a twist that
wasn’t in the book.
Though
there are details that differentiate the book from the movie, there are several
similarities. Both the book and
the movie portray a man named John Tyree who is in the Special Forces. The other main character displayed in
both the movie and the book is Savannah Curtis, a college student. Throughout their stories, they discover
that the relationship that they establish will be far from easy and will
contain many ups and downs.
Savannah has to go back to college and John has to finish his enlistment
in the army. After two weeks
together, they must say goodbye.
They decide to write letters to each other, allowing them to keep in
touch while they are apart. Once
John’s service in the army is completed, something terrible happens… 9/11. His whole squad makes the decision to
re-enlist for three more years making John and Savannah wait even longer to be
able to spend their time together.
They
keep writing letters to one another, but as the weeks go by, the number of
letters that John receives from Savannah shrinks. He hasn’t gotten mail from her in a long time, making him
wonder what is happening. He waits
and waits to hear a single scrap of news.
Then, one day he receives a single letter. Enclosed in the envelope is a message that will change both
their lives forever. Savannah
tells him that she is engaged to someone else and that their relationship has
come to an end. When
John returns home for his father’s funeral, he finds out that Savannah married
Tim, a friend of hers. After a
short marriage, Tim becomes very ill and spends a great deal of his time in the
hospital.
Up
until this point, the major details of the book and movie have stayed fairly
the same. However, this is where
they take different paths. The
book tells the reader that Tim develops skin cancer. When John finds out, he donates money that he inherited from
a coin collection to Tim so he may undergo an experimental drug that ends up
saving his life. The movie paints
the ending a little differently.
Tim comes down with lymphoma and doesn’t have much time to live. John gives a generous amount of money
to help pay Tim’s medical bills.
After spending a short time out of the hospital and saying his final
goodbyes, Tim passes away.
Following Tim’s death, the movie leads you to believe that John and
Savannah get back together again.
Along
with the altered ending, there were also a few minor details that were changed. For example, the book very clearly
describes Savannah with dark brown hair while the movie shows her with blonde
hair. In the book, Allan, another
main character, is Tim’s brother.
On the contrary, the movie shows Allan as Tim’s son. Overall, the movie puts a bigger
emphasis on the letters written by John and Savannah then the book.
Though
they have their differences, I found both the movie and the book quite
enjoyable. They both portray main
characters that learn from life experiences; some of which can be applied to
our lives today. People may tell
you otherwise, but saying one is better than the other is strictly a matter of
opinion and is ultimately up to you to decide which one is in your best interest.
