Sophie's Choice: Book Vs. Movie
By: Aubrey Kennedy
An Unfathomable Choice
Hitler's Main Target
Rape
Attempted Suicide
In the novel, Sophie is at such a depressed state that she even tries to kill herself while she is at the beach with Stingo, but he rescues her. For some reason, this was completely left out of the movie. Not only did Sophie not try to commit suicide, but she doesn't go to the beach with Stingo either. Because this is not included in the movie, it takes away from just how depressed Sophie was. The audience, through watching the movie, would not be able to understand just how miserable Sophie is.
This gives the viewers the wrong idea of just how much Sophie's choice affected her.
Sophie's Virginity
In the novel, Stingo begins to wonder certain things about Sophie because of the lies she had managed to tell him. Stingo wanted to know who Sophie had made love with and she told him that the only man she had made love with besides Nathan was her husband, which is a lie. Sophie also made love with a lover she had in Warsaw. This conversation does not happen in the movie. Because this is not mentioned in the movie, the viewer doesn't get to see Sophie lie again, which says a lot about her character. Without this conversation, the audience misses where Sophie stands with her morals when it comes to things like this.
My Thoughts
I have always loved books more than movies, and this was especially true when is came to Sophie' Choice. The movie was sad and depressing, but the viewer isn't nearly as emotionally connected with as they would be if they read the book. The movie leaves out important situations and settings that could potentially change the viewer's/reader's opinion on Sophie or the situation. The book was extremely intriguing and I would have liked the details to have been portrayed in the movie as they were in the book. If I had to suggest one or the other, I would definitely suggest the book.