Gone Girl: Book vs. Movie Adaptation

I first read Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn, back in October 2012, and I remember being shocked by all the twists and turns in the novel. I didn't review the movie, because I saw it after it came out in theaters {generally I see movies at pre-screenings}, but it was very good, and seemed to follow the movie's story very closely.

You can see a more complete list of book-to-movie changes here, but here's some that I did notice:

(heads up .... a few SPOILERS are ahead, so skip those if you haven't seen the movie OR read the book yet)

• The book is written in first-person point-of-view (POV) - first from Nick's POV, then from Amy's
• A few of the minor characters in the book were cut out of the movie
• The way that Amy (SPOILER!!!) sets up the murder scene to frame Nick
• We learn a bit more about Amy's crazy past (aka, that she is CRAZYPANTS and has been for a while) in the book than in the movie
• The way that (SPOILER!!!) Amy kills Desi

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The Secret Life of Walter Mitty: movie vs. short story

Ben Stiller in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

*Disclosure: I was provided with a complimentary Google Play download of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty to facilitate this post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own.

I was able to see the film version of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty back in December 2013 (click here for review) and I still remember how great the cinematography was and how it was such a breath of fresh air - a very original movie. The movie is actually based on a short story of the same name, by James Thurber, which was published on March 18, 1939. I was able to read the short story recently and was surprised by how different it was from the movie.

The general theme of the story is the same as the movie: Walter tends to daydream - okay, he daydreams a LOT - and it helps him cope with his mundane life.
Some major differences are:

• In the story, he is married, and it revolves around a day of him accompanying and dropping of his wife for errands; in the film, he has a major crush on a coworker (Kristen Wiig), and even goes as far as to join eHarmony just to talk to her.
• The story was published in 1939 and has the feel of that time period - "overshoes," brandy, etc. is referenced throughout. The film takes place in present-day.
• The story seems to take place in the suburbs, and Walter Mitty lives in NYC in the movie.
• And, the most major difference: Walter Mitty decides to have a real-life adventure in the movie, for the purpose of finding a lost photo negative of which he was in charge. The story's character doesn't do this at the end of the story.

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