Anybody read the book?
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Less Than Zero
PussyCrusher_Principal — 10 years ago(December 13, 2015 02:26 PM)
I procrastinated for years reading the book, mostly because, while I'd heard it was different than the film, I assumed it had to be KIND OF close in terms of story, etc. OMG, the only thing in common is names of characters! I'm a little more than halfway through (quick read), but it's obvious Hollywood saw a chance to jump on the Reagan Just Say No bandwagon, and proceeded to create a come,Ethel's different tale, one of morality concerning drugs. The drug use in the book is completely matter-of-fact, and that's the whole point, from the title on down. The title makes no sense in regards to the film, but read a couple e Ceres and you realize what it is supposed to mean.
The film is an interesting curio of the eighties, but there is nearly no similarity to the book. -
redhillpb — 10 years ago(December 20, 2015 09:12 PM)
I like both of them but they are extremely different. The film has an MTV-generation feel to it that they must have thought was necessary. Seen it many times, though. For some reason I have always really liked it, even though it gets too movie-of-the-week at times.
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SCY385-1 — 9 years ago(June 07, 2016 07:05 AM)
I always thought that the 'style' that the movie was shot in was kind of reflecting the decade of the 80's. On the outside everything and everybody was beautiful, wealthy, healthy, and happy. But if you scratched the surface you would find that things were not what they seemed. The beauty was due to constant, expensive plastic surgery. The wealth was built on junk bonds, or people had credit cards maxed out. The health was in jeopardy due to constant cocaine use and then there was AIDS. And the happiness didn't really exist except in people's perceptions. The 80's was an interesting decade, but it was also so very shallow. I think Less Than Zero captures just how shallow it was.
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Kompressor_Fan — 10 years ago(February 26, 2016 04:14 PM)
I love them both. But, I saw the movie when it first came out, and I didn't read the book until the late 90's. They are very different, but both are very good in their own way. I think if I had read the book first, I would have reacted negatively to the movie (as have many that read the book first.)
But, reading it so much later, it made it easy to separate the two as being two separate stories about the same group of people, in a sense. Even the author, years later, softened up on the movie for this very reason.he liked the movie as a separate story. -
dl4060 — 10 years ago(February 29, 2016 09:34 PM)
I saw the movie in my early teens, the late 80's. I did not read the book until my late teens. I agree that if I had read the book first I might not have liked the movie.
I read The Rules of Attraction and American Psycho before seeing those. I liked both movies, they were closer to the books than Less Than Zero. I really liked American Psycho, I thought Christian Bale really nailed Patrick Bateman. I liked both books better than the movies but I still loved the films. They are two of the better adaptations I have seen. Less Than Zero was a good movie, but obviously not as much of an adaptation of the book.
Did you read Imperial Bedrooms? In it it seems to hint that Ellis has grown to like the movie version, like you said. -
fiero-49251 — 9 years ago(July 15, 2016 08:51 AM)
The book seemed to be too intense for the "brat pack" to play at the time! The rating would have to be more strict as well; the drugs, rape, pimping out! Will Tarantino ever re-make it? It'll probably be rated "X!" ;-/
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fiero-49251 — 9 years ago(July 15, 2016 09:27 AM)
It was too much for me 30 years ago! I'll have to go buy the book! Are there other cuts of the film available outside the version that plays on TV all the time? It's about as crazy a movie as Spader's, "Crash" effort! Too weird! ;-/
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Times_Up — 9 years ago(August 14, 2016 05:34 AM)
I'm pretty sure lines like "nice tan" and "you look pale" are about the only dialog from the book. The Christmas card, coming home from college, Julian's problems, referencing the author and record deal are some other easter eggs and incidental plot points. It's an in-name-only adaptation.
update:
re-reading through the book, I saw the "don't fuct off, don't be a bum" "just like you" "just like me" exchange is straight from the book. Just prior to that in the book when Rip asks him if he wants some coke Clay is, of course, interested, but in the film he blows him off. There is some other stuff that is either given to someone else or condensed and used in a different context. For example, he asks him about school rather than Julian, but instead of just "Harder than I thought" he elaborates about music classes and that he wrote lyrics and that he and Rip should make music together. Later at the party Trent tells Clay he looks pale. In the film Blair says this and in both she asks him if he loves him. In the book he kind of hems and haws and doesn't really care while the movie he is very sentimental about it.
Were trying to pretend as if these comic books dont exist. - David Goyer on the DCEU