Germinal

Having just finished the book, I would like the review the accuracy of this film.

1. In the book, Etienne and Chaval are two young men around 18-22 years of age. In the film, they look 50. Etienne is almost the same age as Maheu. All three look similar, hence I had difficulty distinguishing them. This was annoying.

2. Many characters like Jeanlin, Bébert, Lydie and La Mouquette and their stories are not depicted in the film.

3. In the book, after the pay cut is heard, miners still continue to work and the strike is triggered after an accident. In the film, no accident takes place and strike begins as soon as the pay cut is heard.

4. In the film, Etienne and Chaval's fight with the knife is portrayed very early and takes place in the street. However, in the book, the fight takes place in Rasseneur's bar.

5. In the book, Souvarin goes down the mine for sabotage the day before the miners resume work and gets out without being harmed. In the film, he goes down the mine at the same time as the miners and is struck by rushing water and falls down the pit. This was the most obvious deviation from the book.

6. The scene where Cécile is strangled by Bonnemort through the ending does not appear in the film.

7. The tragedy of Etienne and Catherine after the mine collapse is much more dreadful than is portrayed in the film.

8. The explicit parts like how they bathe and sleep are not depicted. The brutal killing scene of the shopowner and the following torture are not depicted at all.

These are the main points I could figure out. It is quite a long film for its time. Depicting everything in the book might require twice longer runtime. Still, it is a very nice adaptation and presents a delightful watch.