The plot in the film has more differences regarding to the story than the characters had.
Similarly is the admission scene, when McMurphy arrives at the hospital and introduces himself to the patients on his own, very remarkable way. He is wearing dirty jeans and t-shirt, a leather jacket over his arm and a cap. The first meeting on the other hand is created different, because in the original Dr. Spivey takes part in it, but in the movie he and McMurphy have a nearly familiar conversation about why McMurphy is on the ward and in this moment they find out that they attended the same school. So after this scene the relationship between the both is more like friends in the film, while they have a normal patient-doctor relationship in the story. Like in the first meeting Dr. Spivey never takes part in such events in the screen play like it’s described in the novel. Other examples for such changes by the regieseur are the basketball scenes. While they always take place on the ward in the original, they are always outside in the film. The fishing scene is also very different. Similar is that in the narrative likewise as in the screen play McMurphy organizes the whole trip and when they reach the harbor they steal a boat. Totally different is the journey to the harbor: In the original McMurphy passes Candy Starr and a girlfriend of hers, both prostitutes, off as his aunts, who would take care of the men. The trip is well prepared and they even have permission from the nurse for their fieldtrip even when she doesn’t like to see the men leaving with McMurphy. She tried the whole time to influence the men and therefore told them that the sea is very stormy and that they could die, but this tactic fails. At the end Candy’s girlfriend doesn’t show up and instead of her Dr. Spivey attends the trip. Other characters, which also only take part in this scene in the book, are George, the former seaman and Bromden. The journey itself is considerably longer, because there are long descriptions of the rest on a gas station and of a situation on the harbor, which excellent show how low the self-confidence of the men is before the trip. Unfortunately these parts are not in the film in all probability because of the time factor. In the movie the trip is not planed. It’s a spontaneous idea of McMurphy, when he steals the bus with the patients in it. That’s the reason, why Dr. Spivey and George can’t attend the trip and nurse Ratchard couldn’t try to scare the men.
The rest of the trip as well as the rest of the whole screen play is very similar to the original. Also in the end, when McMurphy arranges a party, for the night he wants to flee from the ward and go to Canada together with Candy. In both the book and the film Candy and her girlfriend stealthy enter the ward at night through a window and bring much alcohol with them. The night takes place in the same way, but after the nurse entered the ward on the next day and Billy Bibbit committed suicide he rips off Ms Ratchards clothe and strangles her in the original, but in the movie he just jumps on her body and strangles her. This action is the reason why he is send to disturbed where he has to undergo an operation. The night when he comes back to the ward is represented very different. In the original we don’t get to know how McMurphy dies. Bromden was just waiting for him the whole time, to escape together with, but when he sees him now, living like in a single, long daydream, he goes to the tub room and flees by toughing a big wash basin trough the window. Conversely in the movie, when he recognizes what happened, he gives him a hug and then kills him by pushing a pillow on his face before he escapes. All in all, the plot is very similar presented in the movie, like it’s described in the book also when the regiseur left out some scenes. But this procedure is necessary, because of the time factor. Nobody cares how long a book is. The author can nearly write as much as he likes, but the film would be too long with all the scenes that are described.
The point of view in the motion picture is totally different from the point of view in the book. In the story Bromden is the narrator, a first person narrator. That’s the reason why he has to take part in all events Kesey wants us to know about. Otherwise there would be no way we would get this information. This point of view is good, because we see and feel with Bromden, who is a very important character. But on the other hand we never know, what the others are thinking, except Bromden would talk to them. That’s why an omniscient narrator, like the camera represents it in the movie, is very useful, because it can watch into everybody and shows their feelings.
