Though he wrote more than just "Catcher in the Rye", reclusive author J.D. Salinger never could escape the legacy of a book that still sells 250,000 copies worldwide per year. Published in June 1951, "Rye" gives us a 16-year-old teenager for the ages in Salinger's Holden Caulfield, a character whose observations from a California mental hospital still resonate some seven decades later.
Salinger's novel polarized audiences and has continued to do so all these years since Salinger released the book at age 32. Debates have raged over symbolism and message - it's a war polemic, it has pro-Communist passages, it's vulgar and inappropriate for teenagers to read, it's powerful and insightful with mature themes worth discussing. "Catcher in the Rye" …show more content…
After seeing the film, one has to wonder: Did Danny Strong ever read "Catcher in the Rye?" Is he familiar with J.D. Salinger at all?
The answer is likely, and hopefully, yes, but watching Rebel in the Rye, you have to wonder why everything is tidy, neat, and predictable. Salinger's story is strained through the standard biopic filter and very quickly loses any sense of wonder, creativity, or distinctiveness. If one did not know any better, you could watch Rebel in the Rye and think Salinger is just some screenplay creation, a movie about a young man trying to write a book.
This deserves so much more.
Nicholas Hoult is very good playing Salinger, and he has a nice rapport with a scholarly Kevin Spacey, sweatered up as Whit Burnett, a publisher and writing professor at Columbia University, where Salinger became his prized student. We see the two men clash frequently, sharing in a mutual respect and admiration for one another, yet always teetering on the verge of becoming
Salinger's novel polarized audiences and has continued to do so all these years since Salinger released the book at age 32. Debates have raged over symbolism and message - it's a war polemic, it has pro-Communist passages, it's vulgar and inappropriate for teenagers to read, it's powerful and insightful with mature themes worth discussing. "Catcher in the Rye" …show more content…
After seeing the film, one has to wonder: Did Danny Strong ever read "Catcher in the Rye?" Is he familiar with J.D. Salinger at all?
The answer is likely, and hopefully, yes, but watching Rebel in the Rye, you have to wonder why everything is tidy, neat, and predictable. Salinger's story is strained through the standard biopic filter and very quickly loses any sense of wonder, creativity, or distinctiveness. If one did not know any better, you could watch Rebel in the Rye and think Salinger is just some screenplay creation, a movie about a young man trying to write a book.
This deserves so much more.
Nicholas Hoult is very good playing Salinger, and he has a nice rapport with a scholarly Kevin Spacey, sweatered up as Whit Burnett, a publisher and writing professor at Columbia University, where Salinger became his prized student. We see the two men clash frequently, sharing in a mutual respect and admiration for one another, yet always teetering on the verge of becoming