no one should ever try to adapt a tom robbins book for screen . while the movie be fine and the performance be good and the dialogue and which work well read it and be crap when spoken . or and to put it another way and no one would be likely to suggest that hear someone else name be like see it write in radium on a pearl . overall and the movie feel like a badly adapt cliff note to the book most of the part have be hack down to a fifth of their size in the book and in term of backstory and current story and and the end be wildly ( and unpleasantly ) different from that of the book . most of the plot from the book have get lose and include the one that make everything make sense at the end and and there more than one reference that make sense in the book that make the viewer say huh . not a worthy effort and unfortunately the script should have be read and compare to the book and burn and and all the actor send off to do something far well . i admire gus van sant tremendously and but not even someone of his calibre could have make a decent movie of such a complex book without make a miniseries .