Guide to The Giver

The Giver Movie (2014): Cast, Taylor Swift and Changes from the Book

Jeff Bridges waited almost twenty years to make it; here is what changed on the way

By Tori BooksUpdated November 20266 min readMild spoilers

Lois Lowry

The Giver cast

A passion project for Jeff Bridges

Jeff Bridges first tried to film the book in the 1990s, originally planning to direct it with his father, Lloyd Bridges, in the title role. The project spent years in development before it finally reached the screen, with Bridges producing and playing the Giver himself. Lois Lowry visited the set and worked with the filmmakers, and she has spoken warmly about the result.

Who does Taylor Swift play?

Taylor Swift plays Rosemary, the young woman chosen as the Receiver of Memory ten years before Jonas. In the film she appears in memories, most memorably playing the piano, which introduces Jonas to music. Her role is small, but she was heavily featured in the marketing. Rosemary's story, and what she chose when the memories became too painful, is one of the saddest parts of both the book and the film.

The biggest changes from the book

Jonas, Fiona and Asher are aged up from twelve to about sixteen, which turns Jonas's shy feelings for Fiona into a real romance. The Chief Elder, a minor figure in the book, becomes the main villain, a role written up for Meryl Streep. The community sits on a high plateau above the clouds and is watched by drones, and Asher becomes a drone pilot sent to hunt Jonas down.

The film adds a physical border, the Boundary of Memory: once Jonas crosses it, the memories return to everyone in the community. In the book the effect is the same, but it happens simply because he has gone far enough away.

How does the film show color?

One change that most readers liked is visual. The film begins in black and white, the way Jonas sees the world, and color seeps in gradually as he starts to see beyond, first a red apple, then Fiona's hair. It is a simple way to put on screen something that the book can only describe.

Is the film's ending different?

Yes, it is more definite. In the book the ending is famously open: Jonas and the baby Gabriel ride a sled down a snowy hill toward lights and music, and readers are left unsure whether they survive. The film shows them reaching a warm house where people are singing, while back in the community the memories flood in. Lowry later answered the question in her own way in the companion books.

More about The Giver

Books Like The Giver

MessengerLois LowryGathering BlueLois LowrySonLois LowryThe Hunger GamesSuzanne CollinsThe Maze RunnerJames DashnerInsurgentVeronica RothThe Death CureJames DashnerDivergentVeronica Roth

This guide discusses the whole plot, including the ending.