Let’s talk about book to movie adaptations. As an avid reader, I’m of the opinion that the book is always better - you can better understand a character's thoughts, you have more creative freedom with the way you visualize the story occurring, and the descriptions are so much deeper and more vivid.
I always get super excited when I learn that a book I’ve read is going to get turned into a movie, and then proceed to watch the trailer obsessively. And when the movie actually comes out, I’ll say “It’s not like that in the book…” at least ten times while watching it and then come to the opinion that the book was better. I’m well aware of this pattern, and I know that it isn’t entirely fair.
I read an MCAT passage once (you’d be surprised by how many times I reference the MCAT reading passages in daily conversation) that was discussing the paradox of book to movie adaptations. According to the passage, viewers have contradictory desires when it comes to book to movie adaptations. On one hand, viewers want the movie to maintain the essence and plot of the book and get frustrated if the movie deviates too much from the original story. Yet, viewers also want to see some creative variation in the movie that slightly differentiates it from the book it’s based on, because they appreciate seeing a new twist that adds an element of unpredictability to an already-known story.
So I guess when you look at it this way, book to movie adaptations are already in a difficult position of having to cater to two very different demands of their audience.
As my sister has told me multiple times, the book and the movie are two entirely different forms of media that are trying to explain the same story. It’s hard to expect them to be exactly the same - for example, I believe that it can be easier to develop complex characters and backstory in a novel, yet movies can provide vivid imagery and soundtracks to create more suspense and drama. I will admit - there are a few movie adaptations that I view on equal caliber with the book (or in some cases, even better than the book!) but they’re always outweighed by the other mediocre adaptations that leave me missing my favorite elements of the book.
But enough of that for now - let’s get to my thoughts on some movie adaptations of my favorite books!