Phase 1 Prompt 2

         Sherman Alexie’s movie “Smoke Signals” supports the themes of his book, “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven.”  However, the movie and book have major differences to get across similar ideas.  Some of these differences include how the movie was made, how the characters behave in both movie and book, and what Alexie’s motives were in making the film.

Despite Alexie writing both the script for the film and the story it was based on, there are still noticeable differences.  Some of that can be contributed to the production of movie.  The difficulty of turning a short story into film is understandable.  According to the director/producer, Chris Eyre, the film’s budget was a measly $1.7 million and was shot in 22 days.  Also, this was Eyre’s first movie to direct or produce.  Eyre approached Alexie about making a movie, so Alexie adapted a screenplay from his story, “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona” (Hofstede).  Still other things were changed as well, such as the characters.

In the movie clip, Victor is more aggressive and brooding than he is in the text. The movie version seems more emotional than the book’s version.  In the book, when Victor and Thomas interact at the trading post, Victor uses phrases like “Let me think about it,” and “We’re not really friends anymore” (Alexie 62).  In the movie, Victor says things like “just get away from me.”  The Youtube clip focuses on Victor’s view of mimicking stereotypical Indians or being a “real Indian.” Victor says, “Get stoic,” which is mostly an apathetic appearance in the presence of pain or hardship.  Victor describes how he believes an Indian should be.  They should appear mean so that people will not mess with them.  They should seem like warriors just back from the hunt.  The reason why he so determined to perpetuate the ideal Indian is unclear, but he believes it is more accepted than Thomas’s style.  (Some other clips from the movie show Victor’s father as abusive, so maybe his desire to be a good stereotypical Indian evolved from his desire not to be his father.)

         From the movie clip, Thomas’s character appears nerdy, clean, and smiles constantly.  The text describes him as having “ratty old braids and broken teeth” (66).  The major difference I see between the Thomas of the story and the Thomas of the film is his attempt to make a change.  He tries taking Victor’s advice on his hair and smile.  He even makes the “stoic face” Victor is looking for.  In the story, the two boys are on a plane when Thomas wants to ask a question to another passenger. Victor quickly tells him not to, but despite this, Thomas asks anyway (66).  This shows Thomas as more comfortable being himself and independent.  He seems more insane than peculiar in the text.  In the trading post, Thomas is seen “talking to himself.  Like he always did” (61). 

The movie does do a better job of contrasting the two characters.  While Victor is more stoic and dark, Thomas is more traditional and optimistic.  The way they interact with one another is more dramatic in the movie because you can feel more tension from their differences. I believe that Alexie chose that story because it is a better example of the theme in his book, “the sons of this book really love and hate their fathers.” (xxii). 

                

Alexie, Sherman. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. New York: Atlantic Monthly, 1993. Print

David Hofstede.  “Director Chris Eyre: 10 years after Smoke Signals.” Cowboys & Indians. Sept. 2009. Web. 29 Spet. 2012. < http://www.cowboysindians.com/Cowboys-Indians/September-2009/Director-Chris-Eyre-10-years-after-Smoke-Signals/>

Smoke Signals.  Dir. Chris Eyre. Perf. Adam Beach, Evan Adams, Irene Bedard, Gary Farmer and Tantoo Cardinal. Miramax, 1989. Film.