Of all the things which irritate me when watching films of books which I have read the one which irritates me most is the script writer who thinks s/he can improve on the original. Of course a very long book has to lose characters and sub-plots, but "The Chimneys of Green Knowe" is not a long book, and for every character lost Julian Fellowes has invented a new one.
I have great respect for Julian Fellowes as an original screen writer, but the arrogance with which he has sought to 'improve' on Lucy Boston's novel really sets my teeth on edge. I suspect that someone who has never read the original will thoroughly enjoy this film, but the book is much better and much more subtle in both the relationships between the characters and the nature of the 'ghosts' which Julian Fellowes has made so much more conventional than Lucy Boston's unusual take on the nature of time and mutability.
I have great respect for Julian Fellowes as an original screen writer, but the arrogance with which he has sought to 'improve' on Lucy Boston's novel really sets my teeth on edge. I suspect that someone who has never read the original will thoroughly enjoy this film, but the book is much better and much more subtle in both the relationships between the characters and the nature of the 'ghosts' which Julian Fellowes has made so much more conventional than Lucy Boston's unusual take on the nature of time and mutability.