The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas Good morning 8V.
I enjoyed both the novel by John Boyne (The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas) and its cinematic adaptation. However, if i had to make a decision about which form was the better of the two, i would chose the movie, although there are some parts of the book where it does surpass the movie. For example the novel allows the reader to feel and imagine the deep loneliness and bewilderment of Bruno when he arrives at OutÂWith, where as the Film almost tells us what to think. How then does the director of the movie make it more enjoyable for me.
To begin with, the film directors let the audience know a little about the treatment of the Jews by the Nazis. By showing them being put in trucks and also the boys calling the Jewish passerby "a rat". This historical part is not in the novel as is begins with Bruno already at home. In this way the novel is reimagined.
Although not actually reimagined Bruno physical description is much more vivid in the movie as
Bruno is depicted with a very Nazis/ Hitler like hair style. It helps the audience to understand the underlying tension in the film. John Boyne the book's Irish author tends to almost omit any reference to the war in Germany, even referring to Auschwitz as OutÂWith. Another device used by the filmmakers is the immediacy of the events. A really good example of this is in the final scenes.
Here the audience is able to feel the fear of the family when Bruno is lost, the horror of the gas chambers and the brutality of the guards. The film moves very quickly from shot to shot causing fear and suspense, even the rain helps create the forbidding atmosphere.
On the other hand the scenes in "What Happened the Next Day" are much more gentle and concentrate on the friendship of Bruno and Shmuel. John Boyne relies on creating loving, peaceful ending for the two friends. The cruelty of the Nazis is very evident in the character of Lieutenant Kotler. Whilst in the book he is portrayed as young, slick and quite cruel, his depiction in the film is much more dramatic. This is particularly true in his scenes with Pavel. The
