FREE ESSAY ON FICTION INTO FILM

FICTION INTO FILM

It is said that books are better then the movies created from books. I feel that the story
and the film complement each other for Willa Cather's short story, "Paul's Case," is
about a young, Calvinist man who did not feel that he belonged in his life. He lived on
Cordelia Street in Pittsburgh, PA. Cordelia Street was littered with cookie cutter
houses, suburbanite-like city-dwellers, and a general aura of despair. Paul's room was no
different. Paul felt that his abusive father, uncaring teachers, and classmates who
misunderstand him aren't worthy of his presence and company. Paul is so infatuated with
living the life of a performer that it leads him to thievery.
Paul's only joy comes from his love for the arts. He is an usher in a concert hall, and
spends most of his time behind the scenes in a theatre helping the actors. He longs to
live the life of a rich person but doesn't seem to realize that he must work for it. Both
the film and the short story emphasize these characteristics within the main character,
and after seeing the movie, the reader gets a better idea of the emotions that are
running through Paul's head. You really don't get a feel for Paul's character until you
see the expression on his face while watching a play be performed, his face changing with
the music and the joyfulness he feels when the drama is complete
This sort of fantasy world he wishes to lives in soon becomes a reality for him. After
being fired from his position at the concert hall, and being expelled from school, Paul
is given a job by one of his father's friends. Paul was sent to the bank with server
thousands of dollars to make a deposit. The movie tells that he just took it all and went
home. Where in the book, he actually went back to work; finished his shift asked for
Saturday off and then went home. The next day Paul took the train into New York. Paul had
always spoken of New York and he dreamed of going there. Now he had his chance. 
When Paul was in the city, he lived like a rich person; He slept at the finest hotels,
ate the best foods and spent money like it was no object. After living like a king for
more than a week Paul discovered the entire affair exploited in the Pittsburgh papers,
the papers also spoke of a rumor that he was seen in a New York Hotel. He knew his father
would come looking for him. Confused and scared, Paul panicked. During the file, this
portion of the story gives the viewer some confusion as to what is going on. Paul's
believes he sees his father in the lobby of the hotel room, without reading the book, the
viewer would have no idea that the person asking questions was, to Paul, his father.
The Ending to Paul's case is better told in the written form. Paul's character is better
understandable at this point and you beguine to feel what he is going through. As he
nears the train, all of his emotions, his fears, and thoughts become very understandable.
And even as he partakes in his owe destruction the reader is given his every feeling,
right up to the end.
With so much going on in this story, it is some times hard to understand it all that is
why the movie is an excellent tool to help comprehending Paul's case. Without having
reading the book, the movie would have made little sense and the viewer would become
lost. This is why both, the movie and the book, complement each other.