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Lolita (1962): Film vs Book
Film · 1962 · Directed by Stanley Kubrick · Starring James Mason, Sue Lyon
About the film
A dark comedy about a professor's obsession with a young girl.
How close is it to the book?
Loosely based on the bookCensorship of the time forced many changes, so the film hints where the book is direct. The tone is more satirical.
Read or watch first?
Read the novel to see the full, difficult narrator in his own words.
What the book gives you
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Dazzling language and a voice that makes you think hard about how stories are told.
Who will like it: Readers of challenging classics who appreciate brilliant, daring prose.