Compared to the movie, I think the book tells the story in a much more powerful way. The movie seems constrained by its shorter length, and its inability to delve into how the characters are feeling except through what the characters say. The book, The Soloist, portrays the different characters in a vivid and complete way. The book, by including more events, tells the story in a way that allows readers to see how the relationship between Lopez and Nathanial develops.
The more detailed string of events provides more context and a better understanding of how Lopez responds emotionally to Nathaniel.The book also provides more information about Lopez’s efforts in a more detailed and descriptive way, and it gives readers a more explicit vision of Steve Lopez and Nathaniel as characters. The book, by showing the process of the development of the relationship between Nathaniel and Steve Lopez, helps form a strong emotional agreement between readers and the author. In contrast, the movie presents the story in a very brief way that does not allow the audience to be affected by the story fully. From my perspective, I prefer the book over the movie.First of all, the book and the movie present the characters differently.
The book includes that Steve Lopez has a nice family, while in the movie he is a divorced man. Having a nice family in the book helps readers picture Steve Lopez’s challenges while helping Nathaniel. Lopez states in the book that “I don’t have the stamina to serve indefinitely as his keeper, worrying about his safety while trying to be a columnist, husband and father” (95). It helps the readers to visualize the relationship between Lopez and Nathaniel, and Lopez’s desire to get back to his life.
Also, the book’s plot line of Lopez having a family provides the richness of emotional detail provided by Nathaniel’s visiting the family, the questions Nathaniel has about the family, and the connection between Nathaniel and Lopez’s family. It says in The Soloist, “When Nathaniel begins playing Saint-Saens, Caroline stops and stares at him and his cello; She’s mesmerized, at least for a minute” (Lopez 221). This is the moment in the book that Lopez’s family formed a connection with Nathaniel, especially Lopez’s daughter Caroline.Because of this connection, Lopez begins to think that Nathaniel is becoming part of his family.
The Soloist says “In Nathaniel’s case, though, I suppose I’m beginning to think of him as extended family. Having him here seems natural and overdue” (Lopez 220). Because of the connection with Lopez’s family, Nathaniel’s personality could also be expressed fully. However, in the movie, Lopez is portrayed a divorced man who lives by himself and his ex-wife is his boss. He is busy searching for a story every day for his column, and he doesn’t have a family that needs him and competes for his time and attention.There is a scene in the movie that shows when Lopez comes back from the hospital.
Instead of being welcomed by his family, he went straight to bed with a bottle of wine. The movie didn’t bring the relationship between Nathaniel and Steve Lopez and his family to a new level, where Lopez starts thinking that Nathaniel is part of his family. The novel did a better job than the movie in painting both the development and the depth of the friendship between the two men. The second point I want to discuss is that the book description of the plot is better than the movie.In the book, it presents many parts that Lopez trying to convince Nathaniel to move into a Skid Row apartment. For example, Steve Lopez makes an agreement with Snyder who agrees only to give Nathaniel free music lessons in the Skid Row apartment.
Snyder states that “you come here as often as you can, so maybe we can have another lesson” (Lopez 168). Also, Steve Lopez asks Nathaniel to teach him violin in order to help Nathaniel move into apartment. Lopez states that “Instead I tell him I’m going to need some privacy for my lesson.A quiet place nearby, such as, say, his apartment” (181). It provides the readers adequate information to picture how Steve Lopez trys in many different ways to convince Nathaniel to move to the apartment.
In stark contrast, in the movie, it just briefly shows that Lopez helped Nathaniel to move into the apartment. For example, there is a scene showing Lopez helping Nathaniel move his cart to the apartment, showing the set up of the apartment, and wishing that Nathaniel liked it.So it doesn’t show the many ways that Lopez’s well-organized ideas help Nathaniel to associate himself with the apartment. I feel I related to the book instead of the movie at this point.
Also, the book portrays the emotional happiness of Steve Lopez better than the movie. When Snyder told Lopez that he agrees to offer free music lessons to Nathaniel, Steve Lopez is more excited than Nathaniel. When Snyder showed Lopez how amazed he is by Nathaniel’s talents and skills, Lopez is the happiest person to hear that. Lopez states that “I feel like a parent whose hild has just aced his audition” (167).
The book impacts the readers in a way that they could feel the real happiness when Steve Lopez sees Nathaniel’s talent in music. However, in the movie, there is only a scene where Mr. Snyder teaches Nathaniel music lessons in the apartment. It didn’t express Lopez’s emotion changes. In this case, I prefer the book better than the movie. Last but not the least, Nathaniel’s reactions when Lopez gives him the court papers to sign is expressed differently in the book and the movie.
Lopez’s words deeply touched me, and I can feel the strong bond between Nathaniel and Lopez. However, in order to show Nathaniel’s sickness, the movie shows the audiences a scene that Nathaniel literally beats up Lopez instead of threatening, yelling and cursing him. I understand the filmmaker’s intention to show Nathaniel’s inability to control himself when he is really anxious about the court paper, but I personally think it overly dramatized Nathaniel’s dark sides. Also, the book writes Lopez’s response about Nathaniel’s sickness, but it didn’t show any scenes in the movie.
From my point of view, I feel I related more to the book as a reader instead of being an audience in the movie theatre. All in all, I think the book tells the story in a more powerful way. Not only has it given the readers freedom to visualize the characters and the plot, but also it provided more detailed information about Lopez’s emotional changes to see Nathaniel’s process of recovery, his talent, and his sickness. It shows the readers how the friendship between Nathaniel and Lopez is growing stronger and stronger.
