Fiction to Film--Is the film ever better?

[MJMBECKY]

Hi! I'm new to Book Blogs, but I can't think of a better group to pose this question to! My name is Becky, and I blog about books and films over at "One Literature Nut" -- mjmbecky(dot)blogspot(dot)com. I also teach AP Literature & Composition. As I'm preparing my students to take the AP exam, one thing we've discussed is fiction to film, as well as fan fiction that is created to extend or replace the original story. I've warned my students about a pointed bias, creative license, etc. that might each lead them away from what the original piece meant (or ways that might confuse them). However, the other day a student came in and was talking to me about how watching the film then helped her understand the context of the story.

This then leads me to my question. What films did you feel were better than the original book, or at least helped you to understand the novel in a way you didn't before?

For me, Dr. Zhivago, the film, was a big help in understanding and getting through all the Russian history that the book covered. What about you?

[Lynn]

I wanted to comment on your blog, but nothing is happening when I click on "Post a Comment"; I'm not sure why. I've found that when I read a book and watch a movie, it is just about inevitable that I will be disappointed with one of the two, usually the one that I viewed second. So, I've generally stopped doing that. I haven't done much movie watching in the last couple of years. I was impressed with the adaptation with the first Harry Potter novel/movie, but I wouldn't say it helped me to understand the book more. Two movies off the top of my head might qualify. First, when I was in high school, our English teacher gathered various film versions of Hamlet. We would read a Hamlet passage, and then watch the scene played out in different movies and discuss the differences, how the actor chose to play Hamlet, different aspects of the play that were emphasized in one movie version or another (Hamlet's love for his mother, for instance). I thought it was a great technique, evidenced by the fact that I remember it years later. The other, more recent, example is the movie Whale Rider. I watched the movie first and absolutely LOVED it. When I read the book, it wasn't nearly as evocative for me. Did the movie help me understand the story? Hard to say since I saw the movie first, but I do think seeing the sweeping landscapes of New Zealand, hearing the Maori language, seeing the community, all contributed immensely to the story. In the book, the talking whales near the end seemed a bit Disneyish (all apologies to the author, because it was/is an amazing book), but in the movie, the Maori legends were given just enough weight and context to piece it all together beautifully. Can you tell I love that movie? My husband is from New Zealand, and we've spent a lot of time there, so I'm a bit biased.
Wonderful topic; I look forward to seeing people's responses!

-Lynn at Chronicle of an Infant Bibliophile
http://infantbibliophile.blogspot.com

[Susan Kelley]

I look at this question in two different ways. A film can't be exactly true to a book in content unless it's a very long film. Sometimes films are vastly intertaining and enjoyable though no one could ever say they were better thant the book such as 'The Lord of the Rings' but the movie I hope inspired many people to read the book. The movie 'Last of the Mohicans' again was vastly entertaining and beautifully shot, but nothing like the book. But again, hopefully, it inspired people to read. Movie producers are strickly movtivated by monetary concerns and do everything to make a money including bastardizing a novel and even the message within the book. I guess a few movies are better than the book for two or three hours, but a book is better forever.

[Jenny]

I found the LOTR films really great. When I read LOTR the details and amount of descriptions were massive and when trying to picture everything, it was a little overwhelming. So LOTR films really helped me visualize them.

[MJMBECKY]

Thanks for responding. I really have thought a lot about the power of film on fiction. We already know how amazing the books are, and I would never say the film is a replacement, but I found it interesting how much more connected my students were to the novel Tess of the D'Urbervilles after I had a night showing (at the school) of the new BBC version. I really need to just keep a list of decent films versus films that RUIN the book, and we all know those exist all over the place! Besides, you can never replace the film sets in our own minds. :)

[Angie]

I enjoyed the film The Hours more than the book (although I liked the book as well).

[C.S. Bhagya]

Films are a wonderful way to attract readers to the book, but never a replacement to the book. You can connect with and understand the characters of a book more intimately than in a film.
The Lord of the Rings movies were one of the few movies which actually did full justice to the books. I loved watching them as much as I loved reading the books.
The movie P.S. I love You based on the novel by the same name by Cecilia Ahern was way better than the book. The book was one of the most terribly plotted novels I've ever read, and also diminished it's already feeble features with shallow , stupid and completely unlikeable characters. And the prose is not worth wasting breath over.

[Tricia]

I agree totally with your sentiments about P.S. I Love You. The book was a huge disappointment, but I really liked the movie.

[Jamie]

I've seen movies that were better than books, but they weren't better in a way that they were more understandable than the book. For me, it was more like I preferred the movie version over the book version, but this happens very rarely. I admit, movies are entertaining to watch, but compared to their written counterparts, I've always found something lacking in the former. Directors change versions a lot, and when a book is too long they cut it. They leave out parts that add nuance to the story.

[Patricia Ramirez]

That is actually a really interesting question. I have never seen a film that I thought was as good as or better than the book it portrayed. But then, I am a reader. I know a lot of people who do not regularly read for entertainment who prefer the movie version of stories to books. I think it is ultimately a matter of personal preference. And it is true that some films can enrich and enhance studies by providing a visual aid, but then you are left with the task of determining which aspects of the film are true to the original book (or real life in the case of historical films) and which aspects are fictionalized dramatizations. That can add to the confusion rather than lessen it in some cases (Amadeus, anyone.)
Finally, and this is just my opinion, but I find few things as annoying as when a book is turned into a movie and basic things like the physical descriptions of the characters are changed. It can really mess with your perception of the film.

[Laura de Leon]

I felt that the movie of Inkheart was much better than the book. I realize this is a fluffier book/movie than you were thinking of.

In general, I prefer to see the movie first, so I can be happy with all of the new things I discover when reading the book. If I go at it the other way, I'm often disappointed with what is left out of the movie, and I can't appreciate the movie on its own terms.

With Inkheart, the movie was much tighter than the novel, and the book felt repetitive after having seen it. I felt the book really dragged, as did others I discussed it with who read it after seeing it. Interestingly, those I talked to that read the book without seeing the movie first (including my 10 year old daughter) had no issues with the pacing of the book, and really enjoyed it.

Another movie I thought was better than the book (even though I went in the "wrong" order, book then movie) was The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler. I enjoyed the book, but loved the movie. Again, the movie tightened up the book. In this case, it allowed the characters and the parallels to the Jane Austen novels to shine.

Thanks for introducing this topic!