Where the Crawdads Sing

Several of my friends recommended Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens and I finally had the chance to read it during the lockdown (when I spent all of my free time reading).  I absolutely loved it so I was a bit worried when I heard about the upcoming adaptation because the movie is rarely as good as the book.  However, after watching a Thursday preview last night, I have to admit that I really enjoyed it.  Catherine "Kya" Clark (Jojo Regina) grows up in extreme poverty with an abusive father in a North Carolina marsh.  Eventually her mother, all of her siblings, and even her father abandon her leaving her to fend for herself.  Kya (now played by Daisy Edgar-Jones) grows up to be incredibly resourceful and intimately acquainted with the flora and fauna of the marsh but she is wary of outsiders who treat her with disdain.  Tate Walker (Taylor John Smith) is able to break through her reserve by giving her specimens from the marsh and they begin a romantic relationship.  When he leaves to go to college, she feels as if he has abandoned her like everyone else in her life.  She turns to a wealthy young man from town named Chase Andrews (Harris Dickinson) who woos her with promises of marriage but she soon realizes that he is just using her.  Things turn violent when she ends the relationship so, when his body is found at the base of a fire tower, she is the prime suspect.  The timeline alternates between the story of her life in the marsh and her murder trial with a big twist at the end.  The movie is very faithful to the book so if you enjoyed the story you will probably love this adaptation (and the reverse is also true so if you didn't like the book you should probably avoid this).  The beautiful cinematography brings the marsh to life and I was absolutely mesmerized by the images on the screen, particularly the scenes involving flights of birds against a vivid sunset.  Edgar-Jones gives an incredibly nuanced performance and she is exactly how I pictured Kya as I was reading.  I also really enjoyed David Strathairn as a kindly lawyer who comes out of retirement to defend Kya, although I will admit that the courtroom scenes are less compelling than the scenes in the marsh.  Both Smith and Dickinson are a bit bland as Kya's love interests but it almost doesn't matter because Edgar-Jones is so captivating in their scenes together.  My only real criticism of the movie is that the extreme poverty in the book is portrayed very unrealistically, especially in regards to her picture-perfect appearance and her stylishly appointed cabin.  I suspect that this will appeal to a very specific demographic because my audience was packed with enthusiastic middle-aged book club types.  As a member of said demographic, I recommend it!