Love or Stone

            Why is it that Hollywood often destroys a story by missing the position the author anticipated? Hollywood often sacrifices meaning and creates suspense and action to imprison the audience. In doing so the production of the movie is frequently far from the story interpretation. In the short story "The Rocking-Horse Winner- written by D.H. Lawrence and the movie portrayal The Rocking Horse Winner directed by Peter Medak. There are discrepancies between the short story and its movie depiction. The most noticeable features between the two are differences in setting, characterization and plot. .
             Setting affects the mood and atmosphere in the short story and the movie. A major dissimilarity between the two lies in the description of the house. In the short story the house is described as a "pleasant house, with a garden, and they had discreet servants, and felt themselves superior to anyone in the neighborhood."" In the movie the house appears to have the structure of a castle. There is no implication of any neighbors instead the house is isolated from any other outside contact. It gives a feeling of houses that date back to the medieval era. Nor in anyway is it portrayed as a "pleasant house- castles commonly give off an eerie vibe and are known for being haunted. The atmosphere created by the house is creepy and unpleasant. .
             Characters described in the short story are exposed differently through there actions and attitudes. Many personalities in the movie are unlike characteristics in the short story. Paul is a character that is innocent and obsessed in getting the love and the affection of his mother. In the movie Paul is portrayed further as "crazy- and "psycho- then the short story. The details, which influence this is the lack of introduction of his siblings. In the short story it describes Paul having two more sisters and that "they would look into each other's eyes, to see if they had all heard.