I am, first and foremost, a woman; I love discovering new stories about how far women have come, all we’ve had to work for, and all we’ve been able to accomplish. Hence, a large part of my summer was occupied by Bonnie Garmus’s 2022 masterpiece, Lessons in Chemistry, a recommendation from my mom and one of the best books I’ve read in recent years.
Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for the Apple adaptation, which diverts a lot from the book with moderate success.
Lessons in Chemistry follows the story of Elizabeth Zott, a female chemist in the 1950s, hoping to move her way up in the male-dominated field. The journey takes several turns involving romance, loss, family, faith, a cooking show, and perseverance through the typical 50s misogyny we all know and love.
I’ll get the good stuff out of the way first; this is one of the more accurately casted adaptations I’ve seen. I can’t imagine anyone better to capture Elizabeth’s blunt and calculated manner quite like Brie Larson. Alice Halsey also delivers my favorite child performance in anything ever as Elizabeth’s precocious child, Mad.
Additionally, I’d like to single out Lewis Pullman — a name that will pop up in my articles a lot this semester — as Calvin Evans, Elizabeth’s romantic partner. He was the perfect mix of nerdy and adorable that had me kicking and giggling any time he was on screen.
The show also has a really good aesthetic. I’m a sucker for vintage clothes and furniture, so watching a show that looks adorable and colorful like this one made for a pleasant and homey viewing. Part of the accuracy this project achieves is due to Bonnie Garmus being one of the executive producers on the show, which always helps.
However, deviations from the book still exist, and one of the worst is the character of Harriet Sloane, Elizabeth’s neighbor. She goes from being a fairly humorous character who was there to offer her advice to a woman who was way too involved in the lives of the leads. While what she was doing was valid during the time period, it just takes away from the show’s primary focus, which is Elizabeth and her life.
The biggest issue I have, though, is how the show treats Calvin. This is a tricky feat to accomplish since, to avoid spoilers, Calvin is only in the book for a short amount of time, yet he leaves a big impact. The show initially does a good job with this, giving Calvin and Elizabeth one whole episode dedicated to their fleeting romance, including some really cute scenes that weren’t in the book (particularly this dance scene).
A small part of this book is discovering Calvin’s past. But it is revealed to us before Elizabeth knows it, so we are spared her reaction to this information, as well as the time it takes her to find this out. Despite being the main character, Elizabeth somehow gets lost in the show towards the end as the plot focuses on figuring out Calvin’s backstory. Not only does it distract from the main cooking show storyline, but it diminishes Elizabeth as a character, as she’s always thinking about Calvin and the work she’s doing is to make him proud.
Overall, I’d say the show, without having read the book, is pretty good; enjoyable, well-made, and well-acted. But if you’re a fan of the book, like me, you’re gonna have a hard time with this one.
Read the book, watch the show, and let me know what you think!
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