Alice Munro's The Bear Came Over The Mountain

The Bear Came Over the Mountain was a refreshing short story by noble laureate Alice Munro. The story chronicles the lives of Grant and Fiona from their past to present. I enjoyed the story line because Munro didn’t focus on Alzheimer’s itself but how the disease brings forth memories from the past which causes conflict within the marriage of Fiona and Grant. To continue, I enjoyed the style of writing Munro used. She used several flashbacks throughout the story which added depth and insight into the character of Grant. And from Grant’s misdemeanor, one could understand and feel the pain Fiona must have felt over the past years. Munro also uses the character of Aubrey in an intelligent fashion. Aubrey, brings forth jealousy from Grant as Fiona

While in the movie it feels as if Polley is trying to showcase Grant’s love for his wife. Munro writes in a style, which makes the reader unable to forgive Grant’s past infidelities and showcases the pain that Fiona had gone through these past years. While Polley allows the reader to forgive Grant as the movie primarily focuses his love towards his wife. While in the story, there were excerpts describing his affairs which was disregarded in the film version. I feel that if these excerpts were put into the film, the viewer could understand a bit more about the character of Grant. The story made the reader dislike Grant while the movie portrays Grant as

Julie Christie’s performance as Fiona was magnificent. She allows the viewer to connect with Fiona’s sadness and anguish over Alzheimer’s but also showcases the importance of memories. During the car scene, Fiona justifies that she will never forget the pain Grant had cost over the years with his numerous affairs but is thankful that he still stood by her. And as she rivets into the depths of Alzheimer’s, she begins to fall in love with another man which garners the jealousy of Grant. I found the movie to be a bit slow but it’s pace matched the story line and atmosphere of the story. Sarah Polley directed the movie in manner, in which the viewer believes the lives of these characters are real and this is the daily ordeals they encounter. The benefits of cinema are that the viewer can quickly grasp the atmosphere and plot. While in a story it is much harder to establish the plot and atmosphere. For instance, in the short story, I had to reread some excerpts to understand it’s significance to the story. While in the movie one could easily understand the underlying meaning. But they are limitations with film, as no director can express the underlying emotions and thoughts each character endures. And short stories, allow readers to imagine the story which is different for every individual and can never be accurately portrayed in