It’s Friday, and today it means Blog Chain! Today’s topic was brought to us by Michelle. She asks:
“There are so many book-to-movie adaptations out there. Which are your favorites? Which are your least favorites? Why? Do you make sure you’ve read a book before you go see the movie adaptation, or do you prefer to read it after, or not at all?”
When I hear of a book I like being made into a movie, my first emotion is excitement. Here is a book I feel intimately and now I get to see it play out on screen! Awesome! Then, I crash back down to reality. I have seen many book-t0-movie adaptations, and I think there are maybe three that I felt did the book justice. The rest slaughtered the story and characters. Many times I’ve thought, “Well, if I had never read the book this movie would have probably been decent.” But, I DID read the book, so….
Who do I think did it well? THE JOY LUCK CLUB. I adored that book, and got invested in the plot and characters. The movie did not leave out one important scene, and was so true to the book. Many times a director or author will say they are happy with the adaptation because while the movie strays from the book (in some instances A LOT), it stays true to the emotions. What does that mean?? Just because a movie keeps the darkness of an eerie novel doesn’t mean that saves the film. It’s like reading a book about cats but in the movie the main characters are dogs. Uh, I guess it works because it stays true to the animal motif??
Another that does it well is TWILIGHT. I did not like the first movie one bit because characters got meshed together into one and Edward looked nothing like I expected so it was very hard to get into the flick with this initial shock. However, part 2 did it right. In fact, I liked the movie more than the book. The movie fleshed out the characters and Bella’s visions of Edward in ways the book could not. And Jacob misplacing his shirt didn’t hurt…
I’m sure there were one or two more I thought did the adaptation well, but my brain can’t conjure these right now. I’ll edit if I think of more. The bad book-t0-movie adaptations, though, are dying to be written about. Maeve Binchy’s CIRCLE OF FRIENDS was a terrific book. In fact, I love all of her books. This book tackled friendship and betrayal, and when I heard there was going to be a movie, I was psyched. And, it had Chris O’Donnell, so win-win, right? WRONG. WRONG. WRONG. Not only was the storyline meh, but the movie changed the ending. Changed the ending!! In the book, the ending showed the heroine becoming stronger and standing her ground and walking away from the guy who broke her heart. In the movie, she takes him back. Just forgives him and calls it a day. What the heck?? I guess Hollywood wants submissive heroines? Blech.
Another book-t0-movie adaptation that stunk was The Firm. I had seen this movie a long time ago, and I do not remember much about it now, but I do remember that it had Tom Cruise and he was a lawyer, and he was running from bad guys. Other than that, the book and movie had no similarities. They should have just called it “The Scared Lawyer” or something. Another yukky adaptation? HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN and HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE. Both were confusing without having read the book, and I had to explain important parts to my husband. He’s a smart guy but there were little bits that were left out that maybe on their own would be no big deal but deleting all of them made me see the plot and go “huh?” Further, neither of the movies made us feel anything for Sirius or really understand his importance and bond with Harry. As a huge fan of Sirius, I felt gypped and felt bad for moviegoers who wouldn’t get to experience that relationship between Harry and Sirius on the same level as me.
This brings me to another huge, recent blockbuster: THE HUNGER GAMES. I admit that I was late getting aboard the Katniss train, but once I jumped onto that car, I was hooked. I read all three books in one weekend and finished them about a week after the movie came out. I heard amazing things about the movie from those who read the book and I was pumped. I do believe Katniss’s essence was captured and Peeta grew on me. I also loved seeing Cilla’s designs and President Snow and how they incorporated the ending with the berries and the games master. But I wanted more of Rue and her death. The eyes of the dogs at the end that were supposed to be the eyes of the dead contestants (at least in Katniss’s eyes) did not come through at all. I guess for me it’s the little things. And, like I said, I think I just got too attached. When the second movie comes out, more time will have passed between book and movie and I will probably enjoy the movie more.
There are also many books I’ve read and adored, and while part of me wants to see the movies, another part is scared. THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE and LOVELY BONES are on that list, and I’ll probably never rent those now. But, I loved THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES and will probably give the movie a shot.
How about you? What’s your take on book-t0-movie adaptations? Yay or Nay? To see if any of your top picks are on this blog chain, start with Kate and then keep on reading. 🙂