Another interesting question on Booking hrough Thursday, suggested by Superfastreader.
Books and films both tell stories, but what we want from a book can be different from what we want from a movie. Is this true for you? If so, what’s the difference between a book and a movie?
The best thing about books is that they give so much freedom to the readers to interpret the events and characters whichever way they want. Because so much is left to the imagination of the reader, we feel a lot more involved with the plot.
A movie adaptation, on the other hand, is other people's interpretation of the book -- the directors interpretation of the plot or the actors' interpretation of the characters. I often end up liking the movie adaptation even though I didn't like the book very much.
Take Pride and Prejudice, for instance. I didn't really like Austen's novel very much but enjoyed the 2005 movie. Sometimes the opposite is the case. You could call me a fan of both H G Wells and Steven Spielberg, but I hated Spielberg's interpretation of Wells' classic, The War of the Worlds. And on many occasions I have liked both the book and the movie even though the movie's plot was a little different from the book, like in Jurassic Park or The Bourne Identity.
For me, books and movies are two very different forms of storytelling, but what I'm looking for in both of them is the same -- that I be entertained for the duration for which I am reading the book or watching the movie.
6 comments:
agree.Enjoyed the Godfather series but not the novel which is wooden. Catch 22 a great book read several times but a lousy film since once. Rebecca a great book and a great film both read and seen several times. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (aka Bladerunner) a great film and a great story with little relationship to each other!
Well, I didn't know Jurassic Park and The Bourne Identity were books as well as films! I think you're right - I'm looking for entertainment too.
I agree with John about Rebecca - a great book and the film too.
I liked Jurassic Park. However, I have not read the book. Bourne Identity, I liked the book, not movie!
Here is my BTT post!
yes, that's basically the answer I came up with - to be entertained whilst watching or reading!
I liked the Bourne Trilogy movie series actually. But was afraid to even read the book because I felt it wouldn't be upto the standards. But usually for films tend to summarize the story and end up losing its charm.
I am also still waiting for a good film adaptation for War of the Worlds. My son and I read that together and it is so exciting! The Bourne books do not have the same action as the films but I loved them!
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