Introduction Fight Club (1999) has received excellent reviews from critics and is highly relevant in pop culture. However, it is not common knowledge that the movie was adapted from Chuck Palahniuk’s novel written three years prior. While the book was also praised for its creative plot and relevant themes, it has not received nearly enough attention as the consequent movie adaptation. Several critics note that the film was more successful due to significant narrative alterations and additions. Therefore, the current essay attempts to discuss the crucial differences between the book and the movie and examine the response of the critics concerning the film adaptation. Differences and Alterations While the narrative of the movie generally follows the plot of the book, there are several minor and major differences between the two works. The slight alterations concern the first meeting of the Narrator and Tyler Durden, Marla’s behavior during the support group gatherings, and some practical nuances (Peeke par. 10). For instance, the Narrator gets his cheek severely injured in one of the fights, which leaves a hole present for the rest of the book (Peeke par. 12). Nevertheless, it would have been highly inconvenient to represent the wound for the entirety of the movie, so the direction team excluded this moment from the narrative. Overall, most of the minor differences between the book and movie adaptation are implied by the practical nuisances and the director’s decisions. However, the most significant alteration of the plot concerns the finale of the movie. The iconic scene of the Narrator holding hands with Marla Singer and the quote “you’ve met me at a very strange time in my life” have never occurred in the novel ( Fight Club ). The book concludes with the protagonist undergoing treatment in a mental institution while the rest of the team awaits his return (Peeke par. 23). Furthermore, in the novel, the plan of Tyler Durden was more radical, and he intended to stay in the skyscraper as it explodes to commit suicide (Peeke par. 21). However, the direction team has decided to take a different approach, which resulted in one of the most distinguished scenes in the history of filmmaking. Ultimately, the vast difference in the finale scenes has pressured Chuck Palahniuk to continue the work on the novel and produce several sequels to the story. However, the success of the movie has never been overshadowed by these literary works. Criticism and Discussion As mentioned briefly before, the movie adaptation of Fight Club is generally considered to be a cult film that reveals a large number of socially relevant issues and defines the generation. Nevertheless, initially, the movie failed at the box office and could hardly cover the expenses of the production (Fight Club). Over the course of 444 days, the film has earned approximately $100 000 000 with a budget of $63 000 000, which are modest results for a movie of such prominence (Fight Club). The controversy concerning the socially sensitive areas and the promotion of violence was one of the reasons for the initial rejection of the movie. Nevertheless, Fight Club has received a second wave of attention with its DVD release and has been accepted with vastly positive reviews. Ultimately, despite the initial failure at the box office and certain alterations in the movie adaptation, Fight Club has deservedly b