Book to Movie: My Sister's Keeper

I'm going to start out by saying My Sister's Keeper is one of my all time favorite books. I bawled like a baby. So if you've read this blog with any regularity, you'd know that Lisa and I weren't very excited that Cameron Diaz was picked to play the matriarch, Sara. I will admit I was impressed with her performance. She actually made me feel more sympathetic towards Sara than I did while reading the book. I couldn't stand her in the book. I have to say all the performances were excellent. It was cast perfectly. Now, onto the book vs. movie.

I do think it's rare when the movie outshines the book and My Sister's Keeper was no different. Granted it's been about 2 years since I've read the book but it sticks with you. They definitely change it to suit the movie, but it's not all bad. They add a love interest for Kate which to me made her character more true to a teenager. Where the book was heavily centered on Anna, it wasn't in the movie and I do feel that some of the power of the book was lost because of that change. They also left out a couple of plot points that I thought were pertinent to the storyline, eg. Jesse's issues with drugs/alcohol. They also moved the setting of the book from New Hampshire to LA. Not that it's a big deal but I did spend sometime wondering how they afforded their house when Brian was a Firefighter. That's just me being nit picky.

Of course the ending was changed. Now it's not a bad ending, it's just not the ending of the book which I loved/hated. They did keep one major plot point consistent with the book which was appropriate.

I do have to say I loved Alec Baldwin as Campbell Alexander. He was perfect even if his role was diminished from the book to the movie. To me, they should have used him more.

All in all, it's entertaining, heart wrenching, family drama that's worth the price of a movie, even if it isn't the book. Now, I understand why Jodi was a bit disappointed with it.


Book to Movie: 3.75/5