Book vs Movie: Molly's Game

Earlier this year, I watched Molly's Game, Aaron Sorkin's directorial debut that tells a story that seems too unbelievable to be true, the story of a former Olympic-class skier who, at the age of 26, created a high-stakes poker game in Los Angeles which attracted many Hollywood celebrities as well as wealthy people and sports figures.

It sounds exactly like a story someone would make up, right? Not in this case. In fact, Aaron Sorkin's film is based on the memoir written by Molly Bloom. When I found out, which was after watching the film for the first time back in January, I knew I had to read the book. And now that I have, I couldn't help but pose the fatidic question, how accurate is the film?

From both Bloom's memoir and Sorkin's film, we learn that Molly was a promising skier with Olympic aspirations, the result of years of training from her demanding father. In the movie, we are told that during an Olympic qualifying run, she sustained a terrible back injury that ended her career. In real life, that fall never happened. She decided to retire after finish third because, as she says in the book, she was tired of living with pain --resulting from a back surgery she had when she was 12 after which she was told she could no longer ski-- and was exhausted from trying to keep up with her brothers and of feeling like she constantly had to prove herself. She stepped away from the sport because she wanted to find a new path in life. 

And in order to do that, she moved to Los Angeles, which is where the real story begins. After some waitressing jobs, she meets her former boss --real estate entrepreneur (and real asshole) Darin Feinstein, referred as Reardon Green in the book and Dean Keith in the movie--, who later introduces her to the world of poker. What we get after that is a more (book) or less (movie) detailed look at Molly's career in poker.

Which brings me to Player X. Although Sorkin said that there is no real-life counterpart to him, it's more than clear to anyone who has read the book that Michael Cera's Player X is Tobey Maguire. Despite the fact that Cera does a great job, I didn't find his character as despicable and menacing as I did while reading the book. The film still showcases how important he was to the game: while in the film, he is bringing heavy hitters and Molly needs his approval, in the book, Bloom says that Maguire even lent her his card shuffling machine --and asked for money.

Both book and movie give us a look at her private life. While in the book, Bloom talks about a couple of important relationships she had, one in Los Angeles, one in New York, which helps show her human side, her frailty, the film focuses on the father and daughter relationship, one of Sorkin's typical elements. This addition/difference is both good and bad for the film. Good because it helps us understand Bloom and her motives --she loves her father and yet she loathes him for cheating on her mother and destroying the family, which is why she has trust issues and wants to control powerful men-- and we didn't really get it from the book. Bad because we have to sit through that park bench scene that not only is corny as hell but also feels out of place and not in line with the movie.

Another of Sorkin's additions is Bloom's defense attorney Charlie Jaffey, played by Idris Elba. Although Bloom did hire lawyers, the character of Charlie Jaffey is fictional, some sort of stand-in for Sorkin himself as he uses the character to ask the questions he asked Molly in real life and to show off all of Bloom's virtues. Through a long monologue beautifully delivered by Elba, Jaffey explains to us why Bloom is a great person. It shouldn't work but it does because it shows us how much their relationship has grown and tells us, just in case we haven't realized yet, that she is a real-life heroine. In the beginning, Jaffey sees her just as the Poker Princess, someone who cares only about the money (and fame), but at the end, he knows the real Molly, he knows what a noble person she is.

At last, there is Jessica Chastain's performance. She beautifully brings to the screen the smart, driven, charming and sexy woman who used her intellect to thrive, become powerful in a field dominated by men. She delivers her strength, humanity and emotional turmoil in a way that makes the character feel real. I look at her and I see the Molly Bloom I met in the book.

Have you read the novel? If so, what do you think of Sorkin's adaptation?