'Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret': The biggest changes between the book and the movie
Spoiler alert! The following includes specifics about the plot of "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" (in theaters now). Stop reading if you haven't seen it yet and don't want to know.
Judy Blume's young-adult novel "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" packs enough pre-teen drama in less than 200 pages to make an attention-grabbing film,but a few script changes add more zest to the supporting characters.
Blume's tween primer, published in 1970 and centering on sixth-grader Margaret Simon's journey through puberty and religion, is getting the movie treatment more than 50 years after publication in director Kelly Fremon Craig's film.
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Movie adaptations of books often stray from the source text, but in "Margaret," Blume's words come to life with mostly minor tweaks.
Just like the book, the film starts with a move from New York City to the New Jersey suburbs and ends with a rejoice to the heavens after finally becoming a woman when Margaret (Abby Ryder Fortson) starts her period. In between those bookends, Kathy Bates and Rachel McAdams carry out subplots that ignite more drama for viewers to sink their teeth into.
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Here are the major differences between the movie and Blume's impactful and timeless tale:
Barbara Simon, Margaret's mom, wrestles with living in the suburbs, learns how to say 'no'
Margaret isn't alone when it comes to major life changes: Her mother also struggles to adjust to their new suburban life.
In Blume's book, Margaret's mom, Barbara Simon, is a professional artist, but in the movie, her passion for painting is put on the back-burner. McAdams' character becomes a stay-at-home wife and mother, and volunteers for every PTA committee at Margaret's school.
While Margaret feels peer pressure, namely from Nancy Wheeler (Elle Graham), Margaret's mom is crushed by the expectations of PTA president Jan Wheeler (Kate MacCluggage), Nancy's mom.
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Barbara is sent into a silent spiral of attempting to keep up with the status quo. She mentally crumbles under the PTA's request that she cut out thousands of felt stars to paste on the gymnasium ceiling, while also keeping a clean home and cooking delicious meals for her family. Finally, Barbara completely lets go: She tells Mrs. Wheeler she won't be in PTA next year and returns to her art.
The movie omits the rumor that Laura has a relationship with the girls' sixth-grade teacher
A big climax in the plot of "Margaret" is when the main character realizes she has become a bully.
In Blume's book and the movie, Margaret's secret girl gang, consisting of Gretchen, Janie and Nancy, quickly puts a target on the back of their classmate Laura (played by Isol Young), who is taller and developing earlier than they are. As Laura's body matures, Margaret and her friends circulate jealousy-fueled rumors about Laura letting guys "feel her up."
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The book contains an additional rumor about Laura and their sixth-grade teacher, Mr. Benedict. Nancy suggests that their teacher's eyes "pop out" of his head when Laura wears a sweater and that he always chooses her as his partner when demonstrating a square dance.
The movie leaves this narrative out, but still shows the impact body shaming has on Laura, who storms out of the library after Margaret accuses her of letting boys touch her. The accusation leads Margaret to follow her classmate to Catholic confession, where she realizes she hasn't been fair to Laura.
Kathy Bates stirs the pot with Margaret's maternal grandparents about religion
Religion is a major subplot of the book and movie as Margaret struggles to figure out her faith, given that her mom was raised Christian and her dad is Jewish. Margaret opts to talk to a general "God" for all her inner thoughts.
Margaret's close relationship with her paternal grandmother is emphasized but comes to a crossroads when she meets her estranged maternal grandparents from Ohio, who want to reconnect after Margaret's mom sends them a holiday greeting card.
In the book, Margaret's maternal grandparents get to know their granddaughter over a pleasant dinner before hitting her with a hard question: Why don't you go to Sunday school?
To make for a more dramatic movie scene, Bates' grandma character crashes the Christian grandparents' visit and kickstarts the uproar with a simple and cheeky “L'chayim,” a Hebrew phrase used when giving a toast, during dinner.
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Moments after the glasses clink, questions about Margaret's religion arise, with Grandma Simon claiming that Margaret is Jewish after she went to temple out of curiosity.
The complex and inappropriate dinner conversation sends both sets of visitors back home in taxis and Margaret stops talking to God, until he brings her the best gift: Her period.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret' book vs. movie: Biggest changes
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