Question

We have watched the film version of The Outsiders, as well as, read the novel. What changes (3+) were made between the two versions and what impact did those changes have on your understanding of the story? Were there any "meaningless" changes? Make sure you cite evidence to support your conclusions.

Answer 1

9

Darry's Role Is Smaller

Darry (Patrick Swayze) is Ponyboy's eldest brother who acts as a surrogate father to both Sodapop and Ponyboy after their parents' death. Darry is a stern but constant presence in Ponyboy's life and he talks about him and their rocky relationship frequently throughout the book.

The book lays out their difficult relationship and how Ponyboy truly thinks that Darry hates him, which makes their reunion at the hospital after the fire more emotional in the book than it does in the film.

8

the Courtroom Scene Finale

The book ends with a courtroom scene that has Ponyboy take the stand regarding Johnny killing Bob the Soc and about his home life with Darry and Sodapop.

The film mentions that after the killing in self-defense and the fire the only thing that the authorities cared about was making sure that Ponyboy had a stable home life living with his brothers, but it doesn't show any of the ending courtroom scenes where Ponyboy explains he's happiest with his brothers.

7

Blonde Hair Vs Black Hair

The book describes the Greasers as having all different types of hair colors, some even having blonde hair including Dally whose hair is described as almost white, but the movie chooses to give more distinction between the Greasers and the Socs by giving the Greasers dark black hair and the Socs lighter hair colors.

It's not a significant difference to the plot and visually on the screen, it makes sense as a further representation of the rivalry between the two groups, but it's still odd reading Dally's description and comparing Matt Dillon's look to the description.

6

Sodapop's Significance To Ponyboy

The film chooses to focus more on Ponyboy and Johnny's relationship than focusing on Ponyboy's relationship with his older brothers Darry and in particular Sodapop (Rob Lowe). Ponyboy isn't very close to his oldest brother Darry and thinks that Darry hates him even though Darry's roughness is more about him caring for and wanting to protect Ponyboy but he is incredibly close to Sodapop.

Soda tends to keep the peace between Darry and Pony and much of the book is dedicated to Ponyboy writing about his love and admiration for his brother, which is pretty absent in the film version.

5

Clearly Explaining Johnny's Past

The book spends a long time discussing Johnny Cade's (Ralph Macchio) life and past events, particularly being jumped by a group of Socs in a blue Mustang, the same Soc he stabs to protect Ponyboy, which has turned him into a nervous wreck.

The film alludes to this event and to his abusive home life that leads to his nervous demeanor, but it's not as clear as it is in the book and the little clues in the film might be missed if the viewer isn't familiar with his backstory.

4

Dally's Role Is Bigger

The film decides to focus more on Dally (Matt Dillon) and his relation to Johnny and Ponyboy as he helps them go on the run after Johnny kills Bob the Soc.

All of the same events happen in the book where the two go to Dally for help, but since the film doesn't focus on Ponyboy's brothers Darry and Soda as much the film including all of Dally's scenes shifts the focus to him, giving him a bigger role in comparison.

3

No Rodeos

The book mentions local rodeos multiple times and talks about how Sodapop wanted to own a horse called Mickey Mouse and was crushed when the horse was sold to another farm.

The stories work to contextualize the Oklahoma setting of the story, but the rodeos are never mentioned in the film. Although it's a small detail, it did provide characterization for Sodapop and provided a strong sense of location.

2

Ponyboy Shutting Down After The Fire

In the book, Ponyboy has an incredibly difficult time dealing with the events of the past few days and the death of both Johnny and Dally. It's completely understandable that he shuts down and becomes sick both physically and mentally after learning Johnny died from his injuries during the fire and Dally was killed by the police.

He becomes distraught, sleeping for days, and continually claiming that he was the one who killed Bob, not Johnny. The film only chooses to show him physically hurting from his injuries during the fire and fighting through it so he can go to the rumble with the Socs.

1

Ponyboy's Narration And Missing Moments

The film does provide a lot of narration from Ponyboy, but it misses some insightful moments that the book covers through Ponyboy's inner thoughts and can quickly establish his voice as a narrator, which the film struggles to do at times.

There are small moments in the book that are left out of the film, like Ponyboy breaking a glass bottle to threaten a Soc but picking up the glass after so no one gets a flat tire, that is left out of the movie and makes Ponyboy's character a little more difficult to understand.