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A review by dirtyseagull
A Time to Kill by John Grisham
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I want to keep this brief unlike this novel, the story here is a heartbreaking one that is masterfully written by a legend in the genre but oh my god is it too long.
The film not only was able to succinctly get to the point of what was happening in this case, the stakes and all the different considerations that had to be made way sooner than this book did, but it ingratiates you to the characters better as well.
Jake, is not really the most likable person in this novel and isn't supposed to be. To him this is just a job to get some money coming in and get some notoriety, even if its a losing case. He knows that it was wrong what happened and he knows that he is fighting a losing battle the moment he takes it, but its never shown as well as it is in the film that its about more than that to him when reading it.
Matthew McConaughey absolutely kills this role in the movie and shows through his acting chops what makes this story so good and how well it can be told from a more distant perspective. Things are a lot clearer in the film, and it doesn't deviate much from the source material but what it does change, I promise is for the better.
I am not really that down on this book, you should still read it but if you were thinking about reading it, understand that afterwards you need to watch the movie if you have not already to get, in my mind, the superior version of this story.
The film not only was able to succinctly get to the point of what was happening in this case, the stakes and all the different considerations that had to be made way sooner than this book did, but it ingratiates you to the characters better as well.
Jake, is not really the most likable person in this novel and isn't supposed to be. To him this is just a job to get some money coming in and get some notoriety, even if its a losing case. He knows that it was wrong what happened and he knows that he is fighting a losing battle the moment he takes it, but its never shown as well as it is in the film that its about more than that to him when reading it.
Matthew McConaughey absolutely kills this role in the movie and shows through his acting chops what makes this story so good and how well it can be told from a more distant perspective. Things are a lot clearer in the film, and it doesn't deviate much from the source material but what it does change, I promise is for the better.
I am not really that down on this book, you should still read it but if you were thinking about reading it, understand that afterwards you need to watch the movie if you have not already to get, in my mind, the superior version of this story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Rape, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Stalking, Sexism, Sexual violence, Gun violence, and Torture