Film: High Fidelity

How has the visual interpretation of the story changed your impressions of the characters or situations? Do we get a different feeling about the characters themselves or their relationships with each other? To some degree, the film is told from Rob’s perspective, but we are no longer stuck in the tight first-person narration of the novel. We can see for ourselves. How has this changed things?

For me, the visual interpretation gave me a better understanding of the characters and the situations. This is because I'm more of a movie guy rather than a bookworm. Don't get me wrong, the book was an easy read and it created a few images in my head. But, the movie helped me a lot. After watching the film, I felt that Rob was in a little better shape than the Rob I imagined in book. In the movie, he had a decent apartment, and a pretty nice sized record store. From what I imagined Rob in the book, I thought he had was living in a crappy apartment and small run down record store. Also, I thought Rob was a little more sane in the movie than in the book. In the novel, I thought Rob was a weirdo, obsessive, and a very confused person. But, in the movie, Rob was presented in a way that made it seem that he had smart things to say. I thought the casting directors for the movie picked a good cast for the film, especially the women. In the book, I thought Rob and his girlfriends lacked chemistry. In the film, I thought Rob had a little more chemistry between his ex's, but especially with Laura. I saw a better connection between those two. Also, with the novel, I got kind of annoyed with always listening to Rob's thoughts and his point of view. So, by watching the movie and seeing other people's prospectives. All in all, I thought the changes between the novel and the motion picture were good ones. I really enjoyed the film and I thought the book as an easy read. So, both of them had their positives and negatives. But, overall, I would prefer the film.

High Fidelity: Chapters 27-35

Rob seems to have come to terms with who and where he is by the end of the book. What brought this change about? Is it believable? Do you think he had really achieved peace, or are there any clues that he is still conflicted? What do you think of the ending of the book?

By the end of the book, Rob has finally gotten into a position where he can come to terms with himself and the people of the past. He finally accepts who he is now rather than searching his past memories for answers. I think that the main reason why Rob change in the first place was because of the funeral. I think his whole encounter there made him realize things about himself that he hadn't realized before. For instance, after seeing Laura again, I think he realized that in the end... their relationship was not meant to last especially after hearing Laura reject his offer of his marriage proposal. You would think that this would crush his hopes and dreams. However, by the end, Rob is more at peace than he ever was before. I was glad that the end of the book ended more on a positive note rather than a negative because we already had plenty of negative and self-pity throughout the book. I think the atmosphere around Rob at the end benefits him. The ending doesn't give you, "...and they lived happily ever after! THE END" It kind of ends by showing a direction that Rob has chosen... a road untraveled and it ends with you getting the idea of what Rob's life is going to be like from now on.

High Fidelity: Chapters 22-26

In these chapters, Rob admits that he is afraid of death and dying, and especially afraid of the people he loves dying. What role does this fear of death play in his infidelity? Is this a legitimate reason or just another excuse he has made up? What do you think of his response to Linda’s father’s death?

During these chapters, we find out more about Rob. We, as readers, learn that Rob has another reason why his relationships are so short. It is because he has a fear/phobia of death/dying. I have always wondered why Rob thinks of relationships as a necessity and then he keeps breaking up with all these women. I just thought that Rob was a very confusing character. But, after reading about Rob's fears of death, I could understand why his relationships end so quickly. Death is a painful thing, whether you are the person dying or the people that were close to the person that died. So, in Rob's mind, if he distances himself from the people he cares about, the more likely he will feel less pain or possibly no pain at all for them if they die. So, Rob's fear of death plays a huge role in his infidelity. Personally, I think Rob is making up another excuse so that he can sleep with all the women in England. The only way I would think that his fear of death and loses the ones he loves as a legitimate reason is if he didn't try to contact all of his ex-girlfriends. Why would you try to get back in contact with the women you broke up with and see how they're doing if you fear that you would get to close to them and feel bad if they die??? I don't understand Rob. He kind of fails at life. Anyways, I thought it was understandable why Rob responded the way he did to Laura's fathers death because Rob didn't know Laura's father all that well. Also, you could blame Laura a little because she forgot to mention to her father that Rob and Laura broke up. So, Laura's dad died thinking that Laura and Rob were still a couple. All in all, Rob is very confusing. He keeps adding on more excuses to make his life even more miserable. Rob Fails!!!

Top 5 bad ways to break up with someone

#1.) Text

#2.) Through AIM

#3.) Having sex with someone else

#4.) Showing up with someone else and acting like you forgot they forgot to tell you that they were through.

#5.) Having your partner's best friend come up and tell you that the relationship is over.

Top Five Funny/Spoof Movies

#1.) Airplane

#2.) The Naked Gun

#3.) Scary Movie 3 & 4

#4.) Spy Hard

#5.) Wrongfully Accused

High Fidelity: Chapters 14-21

In this section, Rob goes back to speak with all of his ex-girlfriends. What answers is he looking for? Does he get them? What does the outcome of this exercise tell you about Rob?

Within this reading, Rob confronts all of his previous girlfriends to find out why they dumped him or in other words to get a sense from their prospectives how and why their relationship came to a close. These meetings were intended to help Rob's obsession of the past and to finally tell each girl a proper farewell. Like I assumed, the girls moved on and most likely didn't need a proper goodbye from a guy they dated a while ago. But, for Rob's own good, he had to do this because if not, it would drive him insane since he likes to dwell in his past rather than living in the present. So, he eventually makes his way and meets up with all the ex-girlfriends that broke up with him. He finally knows for sure how each one is doing and says a proper goodbye. But, when he just wanted to talk with them, it didn't turn out the way he thought it was gonna be. However, there were a few that did give him the answers he was looking for. For instance, Charlie told him right up front what Rob didn't have while they were together. She said that she knew he felt like they were totally different people. She knew that he thought she was much more beautiful than he was. And, he only thought that way because he didn't have enough self-confidence. This really helped Rob because he got to hear someone else tell him what they thought and how their thoughts compared to his own. Rob is hearing more and more that he doesn't have spectacular qualities that make him stand out. He's average or normal. And, now that he knows that for sure... he might approach life in a different way.