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From: ellen@reed.UUCP (Ellen Eades)
Newsgroups: net.movies
Subject: Re: Warning: The Color Purple
Message-ID: <2306@reed.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 30-Dec-85 15:04:03 EST
Article-I.D.: reed.2306
Posted: Mon Dec 30 15:04:03 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 31-Dec-85 18:45:05 EST
Organization: Reed College, Portland, Oregon
Lines: 43

> This is a warning  to all who may think, from reading all 
> the great reviews, that The Color Purple is worth seeing.
> IT IS NOT!
> The book is great, but everything meaningful has been
> deleted to make a pointless, confusing, lifeless movie.
> Skip the movie.  Buy the book.

> S. Sobel

I'm afraid I am going to have to disagree with this even though
I really empathize with the comment about meaningful things
being deleted.

It's quite true that a major portion of the book's two subthemes
(Celie's love affair with Shug and Nettie's experiences in
Africa) have been excised from the movie.  However, this does
NOT make the movie "pointless, confusing, lifeless".  
The movie is not 100% true to the book; it's Spielberg's
interpretation.  However, he does a damned fine job and I had to
admit after seeing it that maybe "Temple of Doom" is not
indicative of his style all the time (bleaahhhh).  

I am not going to give a lot of spoilers but I will say that the
movie touched me deeply (I got a headache from crying for three
hours nearly straight).  The Color Purple IS worth seeing.  I
don't know if I can stand to see it again, but I think everyone
should try to see it.  

On another note entirely, however -- the preview I saw was,
ironically, for the movie version of Jean Auel's novel "Clan of
the Cave Bear."  I say "ironically" because Auel's novel has
been attacked by some who feel it presents a very derogatory
view of people of color (blonde, blue-eyed, intelligent heroine
alone amongst the dark and stupid Neanderthals).  Well, no one
said movie theaters had a lot of sensitivity.

Ellen Eades
-- 
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	"Who's been repeating all that hard stuff to you?"
	"I read it in a book," said Alice.
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	tektronix!reed!ellen