BOOK VS MOVIE: Lean on Pete

Many times in fiction we often see adolescents dealing with the brunt of everyday life beyond high school and puberty. Sometimes they lose a close family member, often by unnatural means. Other times their responsibilities in life increase greatly. But what differs from these depictions is how the teens handle their new situations.

With Lean on Pete, it follows Charley Thompson after his supposedly comfortable home life slips through his fingers. He decides to find his aunt but there's one problem: he's in Oregon, she lives in Wyoming (at least that's where he remember where she lives), and he has no means of getting there. With the titular ailing racehorse as his companion, he ventures out to find a place he can call home.

Willy Vlautin's novel is simplistic in its writing (it's told from Charley's point of view) but its storytelling speaks volumes in the narrative. In a style reminiscent of John Steinbeck's work, the matter-of-fact perspective from Charley shows innocence becoming aware of the hardscrabble nature of everyday life. (No one ever said life itself would be forgiving.)

Andrew Haigh's adaptation condenses Vlautin's novel to a certain degree but otherwise stays true to the source material. As his earlier films Weekend and 45 Years showed, he prefers depicting the small things that happen in one's day and Lean on Pete is no exception. And like his previous entries, Haigh shows how the little things can lead to something big.

So which is better: Vlautin's book or Haigh's movie? Both capture the modesty of everyday life, how one's usual routine can be a change of pace for another. And they also depict something else, something most fiction rarely chronicles and often eschews: the world we're a part of is both fascinating and frightening.

What's worth checking out?: Both.

45 Years

Throughout the years, fiction has frequently depicted holy matrimony. Often times it's depicted as wedded bliss while other times it's shown as a match made in hell. But more recently, the cracks within a so-called flawless marriage have been in the spotlight.

Such is the case with Andrew Haigh's 45 Years. Revolving around the week of a married couple, Haigh depicts how even a marriage as long-lasting as Kate (Charlotte Rampling) and Geoff's (Tom Courtenay) can be far from perfect. (After all, perfection's overrated anyway.)

Much like Haigh's previous film Weekend, 45 Years depicts the quiet lives of two people that are altered by recent events. And while Weekend focuses on the budding relationship between the two men, that marital bond between Kate and Geoff is beginning to crumble. And the end results for both films are just heartwrenching.

Now onto the performances. Rampling and Courtenay, both veterans of the British screen, provide phenomenal work. Rampling (who is clearly the star of the film) gives a silent take on her character but that does not make her performance or the film any less devastating. (Many times the camera just lingers on her.) Courtenay in turn also gives a quiet turn which makes his words to Kate all the more effective.

45 Years is a quiet yet completely devastating film. Thanks to the work from Rampling, Courtenay and Haigh, it's one of those glimpses that is all-consuming and will not let go of the viewer. And that last shot of Rampling is absolutely haunting. (Also, anyone who says there are no great roles for actors over 65 clearly isn't looking hard enough.)

My Rating: *****

Weekend

There have been a number of films focusing on budding relationships, only a handful on same-sex relationships. A lot of them go over the top with emotions, but there are those rare exceptions.

Take for instance Andrew Haigh's Weekend, perhaps the most honest relationship film I've seen. Haigh isn't interested in the amount of physical or emotional intimacy between Russell (Tom Cullen) and Glen (Chris New). He rather focus on the life going around them.

Cullen plays Russell as someone keeps quiet about himself. He likes being among friends but he usually listens to the conversations rather than joining in. (He admits he doesn't like expressing his sexual orientation in public.) Maybe it's because he doesn't want people to think differently about him.

Glen, on the other hand, is vastly differently from Russell. He not only embraces his sexual orientation, he criticizes those who view homosexuality as a bad thing. He is much more confident than Russell, yet New plays Glen as someone who feels and knows something is missing in his life.

Weekend is an exceptionally great film. Haigh throws out the tasteless cliches of same-sex couples, and treats Russell and Glen as an average couple. The scenes between Cullen and New are beautiful and at times heartbreaking to watch. Forget any prejudices you might have towards same-sex couples. This is a film everyone needs to see.

My Rating: *****