TV Show Review: Sharp Objects

Sharp Objects TV Show Review

(Beware this review contains spoilers)

If you didn’t like the book or movie Gone Girl, then this TV show probably isn’t for you. I read the novel version of Sharp Objects after reading Gone Girl when it was huge. I also read Gillian Flynn’s third novel Dark Places (the three are not a series). While all three were well written and had thrilling stories, Sharp Objects was by far my favourite.

Novel Overview:

Sharp Objects is about Camille Preaker; a journalist who moved herself from her home town of Wind Gap to Chicago to make something better of herself. At a young age Camille’s sister; Marian, died and Camille suffered years of her strict mother; Adora, being on her case as well as self-harm. After a recent trip to the hospital Camille returns to work and gets assigned to go back to her hometown to write about a recent murder of a young girl and another that is missing.

While in Wind Gap Camille reconnects with Adora, whom she had never had a great relationship with. Adora always preferred Camille’s sister Marian. Since Marian’s death, Amma was born who is the youngest daughter of the family. Amma is a spoiled preteen who tries to hide her drinking and drug use from her mother.

Over the time of Camille being in Wind Gap she becomes connecting to the Kansas City detective; Richard Willis, who is there investigating the potential of a serial killer. Their relationship becomes sexual however due to scarring on her body she does not want to show him her skin. Her last trip to the hospital was due to Camille carving many words all over her body because she was hallucinating them being on her skin.

Camille also becomes closer to Amma; after spending a night of partying, drinking, and doing drugs together Camille wakes to find that her mother; Adora, is taking care of her. However, Adora is giving her daughters pills that would make them sick in order to keep them sick. Realizing this Camille learns the secret that Marian’s illness was not exactly her own. That the illness came from Adora’s Munchausen syndrome by proxy (“caregiver creates the appearance of health problems in another person” (Wikipedia)). After this realization Camille believes her mother is at fault for the murders, Adora tries to poison her in order to take care of her however after Camille passes out and comes too Adora is being arrested.

Amma returns to Chicago with Camille but after a murder at the same girl’s school Amma attends Camille realizes that Amma is the murder. Adora killed the first girl however Amma killed the second and the one in Chicago due to jealously for Adora’s attention that she was giving the girls. At the end of the novel, Amma is arrested for the crimes.

TV Show Overview:

While of course the TV show was going to be slightly different the biggest difference is that the novel is from Camille’s point of view while the show can show different characters that Camille my not currently be with.

The show also expands the list of suspects to the murders while the novel focuses on the murdered girl’s father as the prime suspect. The show also shows a little more from when Camille is in the hospital while the novel it is only touched on lightly. The event in the TV show that happens at Adora’s house never happened in the novel. Camille’s boss; Frank Curry, comes to Camille’s recuse in the TV show at the end while in the novel he doesn’t get involved. Willis is much more of the jerk in the novel than in the TV show, is very judgmental towards Camille when he sees her scars. The overall murders, in the novel Flynn goes into depth about what happened and Amma tells her story of why and how while in the TV show only shows a flash of what happened and it’s in the end credits. And finally, in the novel it outlines what happens after; Camille starts cutting herself again and Curry help hers by taking her in to care for her. Camille finally starts to heal when Curry takes her in as she starts to feel like this is a real family.

My thoughts:

Personally, Sharp Objects was my favourite of Gillian Flynn’s novels. I enjoyed the mystery and twist ending with Amma being a murderer. I haven’t read the book for a few years and completely forgot what happened until watching the TV show. I did enjoy the TV show, I thought Amy Adams did a great job as Camille and with Gillian Flynn herself screenwriting the show she was able to make the small changes she did without changing the overall story and outcome. I liked that they were able to keep the twist ending a surprise, but I do with we were able to get a follow up scene seeing Amma in jail explaining why she did it, just to show how psychotic she is. I think even if they showed this in the end credits or an after-credit scene that would give a minute or two to show Camille how crazy her sister is.

 Overall, I did enjoy it. I liked the novel more as it went into depth on the murders and wrapped it up while the TV show gave you the final answer of Amma being the murderer but doesn’t go into detail.

I would suggest if you like mystery novels and TV shows give this one a try, the novel is shorter but it’s well written.

If you have another TV show, you’d like my thoughts on, let me know!