Paul Tremblay | Bookshelf Fantasies

I’m back with two more book-to-screen comparisons… and I have to say, it’s very weird to combine these two extremely different books/movies into one post! But I’m lazy… so here goes.

Which was better — the book or the movie? Read on to find out!

Face-off #1:

The Cabin at the End of the World
Book by Paul Tremblay, published 2018
Knock at the Cabin movie, released February 2023

Thoughts: After reading the book several weeks ago (check out my review, here), I’d been curious about the movie adaptation. The book tells a terrifying story of a family terrorized by strangers who show up at their remote vacation cabin and inform them that they’ve been chosen for a terrible mission: They must willingly chose to sacrifice one of their family members, or the world will end. Are these people crazy? Are they doomsday cultists? Can anything they say be true? The book is scary and claustrophic, and in many ways, the movie captures the feeling of dread and the way a happy interlude can change to absolute terror within mere moments. The movie’s casting is terrific, especially David Bautista as Leonard, the leader of the intruders — a huge, powerful man with a quiet voice and a sad, kind demeanor, whose gentleness makes his instructions all the more awful. The movie is well done and — based on my family’s reactions — very powerful for those who haven’t read the book.

However… the movie changes the ending in significant ways, and that was a bit of a dealbreaker for me. The book’s impact is enhance by its ambiguity — we’re left to wonder whether any of what the intruders said was real, and whether there really was any connection between the events inside the cabin and the fate of the world. I actually loved that about the book — we’re left to consider for ourselves whether mass delusions and coincidences were at play. The movie removes the ambiguity, as well as changing the family members’ fates, and I thought both changes cheapened the overall impact. I’m glad I watched the movie, but it just doesn’t live up to the book.

Verdict: The book for the win!

Face-off #2:

Wonder
Book by R. J. Palacio, published 2012
Movie released 2017

Thoughts: After reading White Bird by R. J. Palacio a couple of weeks ago, I was inspired to finally read Wonder, a book which has become a phenomenon in the 10+ years since it was first published. This middle-grade book is sweet and thoughtful, with an emphasis on kindness, inclusion of multiple points-of-view and experiences, a remarkable main character, and even plenty of humor. I was a little hesitant about watching the movie, worried that it would lean too heavily on the sweet to the point of becoming saccharine, but actually, I found it very, very good. Given that the parents are played by Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson, their roles are a little more prominent than in the book, but not distractingly so. The focus remains on Auggie and his experiences going to school for the first time, and the young cast is quite impressive. The movie captures most of the book’s plot beats, although by necessity, some elements end up left out or diluted. Still, it’s a very well-made adaptation, and well worth checking out.

Verdict: The book for the deeper looks into characters’ experiences… but the movie is great too!

Have you read any of these books or seen the movies? Do you have an opinion on my face-offs? Please share your thoughts!

Title: The Cabin at the End of the World
Author: Paul Tremblay
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Publication date: June 26, 2018
Length: 336 pages
Genre: Horror
Source: Purchased
Rating:

Seven-year-old Wen and her parents, Eric and Andrew, are vacationing at a remote cabin in northern New Hampshire. Far removed from the bustle of city life, they are cut off from the urgent hum of cell phones and the internet. Their closest neighbors are more than two miles away in either direction.

On a summer day, as Wen catches grasshoppers in the front yard, a stranger unexpectedly appears. Leonard is the largest man Wen has ever seen, but he is friendly, with a warm smile that wins her over almost instantly. Leonard and Wen continue to talk and play, until three more strangers, two women and a man, all dressed like Leonard in jeans and button-down shirts, come down the road carrying strange, menacing objects.

In a panic, Wen tells Leonard that she must go back inside the cabin. But before she goes, her new friend tells her, “None of what’s going to happen is your fault. You haven’t done anything wrong, but the three of you will have to make some tough decisions. I wish with all my broken heart you didn’t have to.” As Wen sprints away to warn her parents, Leonard calls out, “Your dads won’t want to let us in, Wen. But they have to. We need your help to save the world.”

The Cabin at the End of the World is a terrifying tale of the impending apocalypse… or of a group delusion… or of evil masquerading as people with a mission. What’s actually happening here is open to interpretation, but no matter the truth, it’s scary, violent, and claustrophobic.

We open with a lovely little family — 8-year-old Wen and her dads Eric and Andrew — enjoying a peaceful country vacation. The pretty cabin they’ve rented is remote but comfortable, a landline and a large flatscreen television the only devices to connect with the outside world. All is well, until a huge stranger appears from out of the woods and talks to Wen while she’s outside.

Leonard seems kind and Wen — even though she knows she’s not supposed to talk to strangers — is oddly drawn to his open manner — until three more people begin walking up the driveway, all dressed similarly to Leonard and carrying scary-looking implements. She doesn’t know it, but by the time she runs to the house and urges her dads to lock the doors, it’s already too late. The strangers start by knocking, but it’s clear that they’re coming in, no matter what.

Even once the cabin’s haven has been invaded, Leonard’s kindness, overlaid with deep sadness, persists. He won’t hurt the family. None of them will. But Eric, Andrew, and Wen must make a choice. The apocalypse is coming, and only they can stop it… by choosing one of their own to sacrifice. Eric, Andrew, and Wen must willingly choose which of them will die, and then carry out their decision by killing their sacrifice. Otherwise, billions of people will die and the world will be left a wasteland.

Does this make sense? Of course not. Eric and Andrew fight as much as they can. But the crazy people stay, and have the family at their mercy, and they are fanatically determined to see their mission through.

Why these four people are involved, who they are, and how they ended up at this cabin in New Hampshire is revealed over time. The events they foretell seem to be backed up by the momentary glimpses of news events when they occasionally turn on the TV. But are these real, or pre-recorded programming? Is any of this really happening? Even if it were, how could this one family in any way have anything to do with the outcome?

Horror stories set in isolated cabins have a certain vibe all their own — the helplessness, the idea of a beautiful escape from the world turning into a hellish trap, the lack of resources and impossibility of rescue. Here, the elements add up to a riveting story that features bursts of terrible violence, with a psychological tension that never lets up.

The story does not provide succinct answers, and even at its end, there’s a huge amount of ambiguity about what actually happened. And while that frustrated me in some ways (because apparently I need clear answers), it also makes the book especially haunting. I haven’t been able to shake if off since reading the final pages, and keep turning it over and over in my mind.

This is my first book by this author, but I’ll certainly be seeking out more… once I recover from this one!

The Cabin at the End of the World was adapted into a movie, A Knock at the Cabin, which was released earlier in 2023. I’ve seen very mixed reviews, but plan to watch it in the next week or so. Based on the trailer, it looks terrifying.