Ever like the Movie Better than the Book?

[Darla]

JZ - I completely agree... I was so dissapointed in The Golden Compass as a movie. I thought it was very well casted and the special effects were all there.... but then.... They completely left off the ending of the first book... It is a deeply disturbing and very important part in the series... I couldn't believe it. All I can think is that they may somehow work it into the beginning of the next film, seeing as that book is the smallest in the series.

[Jeane]

Many people didn't like the golden compass. I liked it but like you said Darla, the end..... My boyfriend said it was so obvious that they made the end like that so they could easily do a sequel.

[Jackie]

I just saw The Golden Compass this weekend for the first time. I thought it was okay. I liked the special effects, but like many here I didn't care for the ending. I think the movie is a good supplement to the book, because I understood things a little better. But I think if I would have seen the movie without reading the book I would have been a bit lost.

[Esther]

I read The Princess Bride because an online genre forum kept telling how great it was.
I didn't find the narrator annoying like many people do and I didn't even mind the interruptions but I just don't like fairytales.

Then I saw the film - Brilliant! It is so much fun.



Julianne wrote: "So, I just finished the Princess Bride, and I've got to be honest.....

As a general rule I always like the book better than the movie. Until now. I LOVE the movie, Like the book. I don't feel li..."

[Esther]

I think the LotR films are great for people like me who loved The Hobbit but found LotR too hard going.


Maureen wrote: "I much preferred The Lord of the Rings' trilogy movies over the books. *ducks as Tolkein fans throw their copies of the Symarillion at my head* I know, I know - I really *wanted* to love the book..."

[Darla]

Fiona... I'm not one of those crazy picky people when it comes to books being made into movies, probably because I understand that it has to be ridiculously hard to fit a book containing 300 to upwards of 700 pages of information into screenplay that at best is probably only 140 pages long. That being said...

I re-read the entire series in the week before the movie came out, just as a refresher course. In hind site, that may not have been the best idea in the world. It made it that much easier for me to pick out the fact that the entire thing was patched together in the wrong order and that there were quite a few discrepancies. I probably wouldn't have minded the minor things, or even the fact that everything was out of order, but the fact that they cut off the ending scene is what put me over the edge.

**********SPOILER ALERT**********

The scene is pivotal because:
**It's a great betrayal that has been foretold, and that helps to shape Lyra into what she will need to become for her future adventures.
**We need to know that Roger dies and that Lyra feels that she is entirely to blame for leading him into a trap, specifically, because a large part of her final mission is to set his soul free.

**********END OF SPOILER**********

Anywho... I think (besides what I said above) what probably upset me the most was my own exuberance over seeing the movie. I got myself way too excited to see it and it made the missing ending a bigger disappointment to me.

I think I'll probably end up owning it...eventually.

I did the same thing with Les Miserables. I know the storyline front and back, and then the movie comes out and it's missing a key character to the storyline. At the time, I hated it. Now, I own it and have watched it several times. I guess after the initial shock of the let down, I try to see if I can look at the movie as it's own entity. If I can separate the story from the book, then I try to look at it as a supplement to the book. Almost like video Cliff's Notes.... :)

[Esther]

Agree with comments on The Notebook the film was romantic, the plot line flowed and the photography was poetic. I thought Ryan Gosling was a great actor after The Believer but with a beard... Oh Lordy!
The book was such a disappointment, badly written and cliche with a clunky plot.
I couldn't throw the book against the wall because it was from the library but I yelled at it several times.

[Kandice]

Okay, it was a children's book, but SHREK was not at all charming, and the the movie really was!
ELLA ENCHANTED is another one for me, where I loved the movie, then was disapointed in the book. I'm sure it's because I always wxpect a book to blow the doors off a move, and when that doesn't happen...
Strange that both of mine are children's book, hmmmm....

[Esther]

The Bridges of MAdison Country:
I found the book trite and uninspired but Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood brought it down to earth and gave it some emotional power.

[Nicole]

The stardust movie was way better than the book...however i watched the Stardust movie before reading the book.

[Natasha]

Actually I think the Harry Potter books I was torn between liking the Movie better then the book, but it could be partially because I have biase towards the author, some of her comments have made me not like her very much and I thought her last book was overblown.

Other then that there was Eragon, loved the movie but couldn`t get into the book.

[Nicole]

Kandice wrote: "Okay, it was a children's book, but SHREK was not at all charming, and the the movie really was!
ELLA ENCHANTED is another one for me, where I loved the movie, then was disapointed in the book. I'..."

i loved the book "Ella Enchanted". Although the movie was good, I thought the book was way better. (I also love Anne Hathaway)

[Nicole]

Esther wrote: "I think the LotR films are great for people like me who loved The Hobbit but found LotR too hard going.


Maureen wrote: "I much preferred The Lord of the Rings' trilogy movies over the books. *du..."

I recently tried to read the books, but I found them very boring. So I understand where you are coming from.

[Alyssa]

Nik wrote: "The stardust movie was way better than the book...however i watched the Stardust movie before reading the book. "

Ditto. same situation too...i think i like the movie better because it has more action. plus i LOVE robert de niro's character in the movie and he wasn't really fleshed out in the book

[Vincent]

I have to say I was torn between "The Shawshank Redemption" movie, and "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" by Stephen King (a novella in "Different Seasons"). Frank Darabont, the director of the movie, did an excellent job with the adaptation--adding key voiceovers and plot twists.
But Stephen King still created the story, and his attention to detail (the life inside Shawshank) was fantastic.

I guess I'd say this one is a tie.

-Vince
(http://www.constellationchronicles.com)

[Kandice]

Vincent wrote: "I have to say I was torn between "The Shawshank Redemption" movie, and "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" by Stephen King (a novella in "Different Seasons"). Frank Darabont, the director ..."


I agree, and wasn't sure if I should add that one. I feel the same way about "Stand By Me" and "The Body".

[Jane]

It's funny I didn't like the first Lord of the Ring Movie - I loved the book and was disappointed at the things they changed. But after several years -- and the other ones came out I decided Peter Jackson did a pretty good job with the whole thing afterall. I just wish he wouldn't have "added" things that weren't in the book - taking stuff out is fine - but adding new stuff - why? I mean there is already too much to take in.

Jane.

[Jeane]

Kathy, the movie was wonderful, wasn't it? When I read the book afterwards, I was a bit confised with the end.

[Robin]

Vincent wrote: "I have to say I was torn between "The Shawshank Redemption" movie, and "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" by Stephen King (a novella in "Different Seasons"). Frank Darabont, the director ..."

I'm in complete agreement - both were WONDERFUL!!

Wife of GR author: Michael J. Sullivan | The Crown Conspiracy (10/08) | Avempartha (04/09)

[Emily]

I definitely liked The Thin Man movie much more than the book.

[Vincent]

I agree with you Kandice on The Body and Stand by Me. It was an excellent book as well as a fantastic movie.

I think it's another tie for Different Seasons.

[Ez]

Julianne wrote: "So, I just finished the Princess Bride, and I've got to be honest.....

As a general rule I always like the book better than the movie. Until now. I LOVE the movie, Like the book. I don't feel li..."


I agree about "The Princess Bride." Also, I much preferred the film version of "The Last of the Mohicans" (with Daniel Day-Lewis) to the book.

[Kandice]

Maybe this is a pattern with King movies, but my husband was watching the Green Mile, last night, and that's a bit of a toss up too! I can't say I like either better.

[Jeane]

I think when I finish Stardust I will say that one but I like the book too. The movie was jsut really powerfull.

[Vincent]

Kandice wrote: "Maybe this is a pattern with King movies, but my husband was watching the Green Mile, last night, and that's a bit of a toss up too! I can't say I like either better."

For the Green Mile, I saw the movie and read the book and screenplay. I was moved by all three.

[Jeane]

Fione, the green mile is the only book I read by stephne kIng and don't want to read anything else by him anymore. The book is good, but I absolutely don't want to see the movie.

[Kandice]

Fiona wrote: "Aw no you should read The Stand at least. That doesn't have a disturbing scene in it like that.

I kind of want to read it as after The Stand I have decided I am a fan... but I felt so awful after..."

I know Coffee was incredibly tragic, but didn't you find any of it uplifting? He was such a good, gentle soul. I was so close to tears a few times during the reading of that series. When I read it the first time, it was being released in 6 parts, I think 6 weeks apart. It was soooo hard to wait!

Jeane- I'm sure you wouldn't find everything King writes that disturbing! He writes such a variety, I think there is something for everyone! His style is what I love, even in his books I don't particulary enjoy, he always makes me FEEL SOMETHING!!!!!

[Jeane]

I know Kandice, but after reading the grreen mile, I jsut don't feel like reading anything from him anymore. It wasn't disturbing, very strong and so. I think it is just a feeling I have now towards his books, but without real reason.

[Vincent]

I found the Green Mile riveting, but I can certainly understand how others might be turned off by such a subject.

I once wrote a non-fiction article on the five methods of execution, delving into all the details of capital punishment.

Talk about grisly reading...

I think I must have been on some serious medication when I came up with that idea.

-Vince
Constellation Chronicles: The Lost Civilization of Aries

[Kandice]

Oh! Delacroix! The thing about his character, was that you could still pity him. What he did was horrid, but still... I could, anyway, on a certain level. That's what I love about King. Even if I don't want to be feeling it, he always makes me feel SOMETHING!!!!

[Kandice]

Seriously, in all his books. Well, Randall Flagg, The Walkin' Dude, whatever you call him, is a recurring villain in King's work. He has NO redeeming qualities, but pretty much all of his other bad guys... he makes you see no one is ALL bad, ALL the time. I like that. I don't want it to be easy to hate someone!

[Robin]

For the Green Mile, I saw the movie and read the book and screenplay. I was moved by all three.

I find it really interesting you read the screenplay. I have a RL friend who is in the movie business - she works as an assistant to various directors and screenwriters so she is always reading scripts. I've never read one maybe I should steal a few of hers to see what they are like.

[Robin]

Fiona wrote: "I don't really want to read The Green Mile after seeing the movie. I don't like that electrocution scene... it made me feel really sick and really disturbed for a long time. I just couldn't stop th..."

Ya that was a hard scene to take - but I LOVE the character of Coffey (Like the drink byt spelled differently). I think King does a great job with characters like this - He reminds me alot of Tom Cullen who I loved greatly. And the guy with the mouse....What another great character. Just as I cold "take" the ending of the Stand because of so much greatness throughout the book .... I can take that scene for the same reason.

[Robin]

Vincent wrote: "I agree with you Kandice on The Body and Stand by Me. It was an excellent book as well as a fantastic movie. I think it's another tie for Different Seasons."

Isn't it interesting how the best King movies are the ones from short stories - Shawshank and the Body?

I think that is because the length of a novella can be easily transferred to a 2 hour movie where a full length book just has too much that needs to be cut.

But here is my pet peeve..I dont mind them cutting things - but not overly a fan when they "add" stuff that wasn't there in the first place.

[Robin]

Okay one last point - then I'll move on...

Is it only me that noticed how TERRIBLE Early King movies were and how much better they got when he had more clout to have a bigger say over them? I really do not like what Kubrick did to "The Shinning" and most all of the "early" king movies were not that great but by the time you get to things like Shawshank, Greenmile, Stand by Me, etc they are so wonderful (IMHO).

[Vincent]

Robin wrote: "Okay one last point - then I'll move on...

Is it only me that noticed how TERRIBLE Early King movies were and how much better they got when he had more clout to have a bigger say over them? I r..."

Yeah, King wasn't happy about those earlier features either. He now requires to see the final draft of the screenplay before giving the green light on the shooting. I know this because some of my roots come from writing and reading scripts, and meeting people in the film industry. I live in Los Angeles. I guess it's probably impossible to be a writer in this town without having picked up a script or two.

-Vince
Constellation Chronicles: The Lost Civilization of Aries

[Jeane]

tiger lilly, going to start Girl with a pearl earring in a couple of days.

[Jeane]

I liked a lot the movie...so hopefully also the book.

[Susanna - Censored by GoodReads]

Oh, I don't know, not all the early King movies are bad - I quite enjoyed Carrie.

[Robin]

Susanna wrote: "Oh, I don't know, not all the early King movies are bad - I quite enjoyed Carrie."

At the time it came out I did as well - but have you seen it recently? It's almost laughable. But many movies are that way. The original Terminator was one of my favorites - but again to watch it now -- the 80's hair and music - the really bad special effects it just doesn't stand the test of time.

[Bevbookgroup]

We were just talking about this concept in our book group (I think? or some other group of people I was talking with lol), and I totally agree that while it's rare, it does happen, and when it happens it REALLY happens. I know I had a few examples but the only one I can think of right now is The Prestige. The movie changed the plot of the book entirely and made it SO MUCH BETTER. I have also caused a lot of controversy by stating that the 6th Harry Potter movie is the only one that actually lives up to the book, partly BECAUSE parts of it are different. I am a huge HP book fan, and I'm sorry, but I really don't think creating a word-for-word carbon copy of a book makes for a good movie, ever. Especially if I'm very familiar with the book, I want new things to be in the movie so it's more entertaining for me (but only if it's a genuinely well-done movie in its own right, which for me is the most important thing).

On the other hand, apparently unlike most people, I do like The Princess Bride at least as much as the movie, even though it's one of my favorite movies of all time (probably the only movie I can recite word for word) and I have been watching it since I was a little girl. I first read the book much later in life, but I still love it and think it's at least as good as the movie.

[Kelly]

I really enjoyed the movie of Stardust much more than the book. The ending the book, to me, was a big let down but I thought the movie gave it the oomph it needed.

I have to disagree about the HP movies. I loved the books and must have reread the 3-6 book at least 10 times (not a fan of the 7th book) and the movies always upset me. I think the main thing that really bothers me about them is the way they have portrayed Dumbledoor. In the first movie, the man who played him I thought totally hit the mark but the man who took his place after he died makes Dumbledoor seem week and not the great and powerful man he was and I definately never took from the scene at the end of the 5th movie that Voldemort had any fear of Dumbledoor as it explaines in the book. Oh well...

I agree about Carrie. The movie held up pretty close to the book and wasn't really a let down (it is a hilarious movie to watch now though) but the Shining was so different. Sometimes it's hard to understand why the movies change so much of the book.

Have you guys heard that they are planning on making a Hunger Games movie. I think that would be a major mistake especially since they will gear it to the young adults. I think the movie will take away a lot of the violence and the political views of the book.

[Tracey]

I preferred Full Monty in movie version. I found the book hard going!

[Eve]

Bevbookgroup wrote: "...I am a huge HP book fan, and I'm sorry, but I really don't think creating a word-for-word carbon copy of a book makes for a good movie, ever. ..."

I agree and I think this applies to any book to movie adaptations. I don't want to see a 10 hour movie. I like adaptations that capture the essence of a book. If the deviations make sense and are true to the spirit of the book then I am forgiving - as long as it's a good movie. I am able to separate the movie from the book and like each for its own merits separately.

[Alisha Marie]

I have to say that I liked the Practical Magic movie way more than the book. I just felt that the movie was more sweet and had more sparkle, whimsy. The book just did nothing for me. Another one was Girl, Interrupted. Loved the movie, was just meh about the book. Maybe it's because in both these instances, I saw the movie and then read the book.

The Jane Austen book club was another one in where I liked the movie way better than the book. The book was kind of crap and I didn't want to see the movie at all, but decided to anyway (I'm an Emily Blunt fan), and absolutely loved it.

[Dionisia]

Bevbookgroup wrote: "I know I had a few examples but the only one I can think of right now is The Prestige. The movie changed the plot of the book entirely and made it SO MUCH BETTER...."

I totally agree! The book was just ok, but I LOVED the movie. They picked the perfect actors to bring the characters to life. I'm so glad they made major changes to the plot when the book was adapted to film.

[Dionisia]

Kelly wrote: "Have you guys heard that they are planning on making a Hunger Games movie. I think that would be a major mistake especially since they will gear it to the young adults. I think the movie will take away..."

Oh noooooooooooooo! They are going to ruin it. I actually think that, like Darkly Dreaming Dexter and Dead Until Dark, it would make a great cable series. I can only imagine the hack job that would be done to make it suitable for yound audiences as a film adaption. Please no!

[Rachel Lee]

Eragon is one where I enjoyed the movie, but could never finish the book (I think I have tried at least 3-4 times)

[jessi]

Fight Club? You guys must be kidding me. While I think the casting was excellent, the book was still so much better. First of all, it's so obvious in the book about him and Tyler. Additionally, the ending was SO much better.

SPOILERS!

I'm sorry, but you do not survive a gunshot wound like that. I know it happens, but you don't just stand around after the fact, bleeding to death. And what is all this it's-going-to-be-okay nonsense! That is so far away from the message of the story.

[Tess]

It's not a movie, but the HBO series "True Blood". I've stopped reading the books because the TV series is SO much better. Alan Ball & the cast really are brilliant. I was disappointed with Charlaine Harris' books.

Right now, nothing else comes to mind. I won't usually see a movie unless I've read the book first, since the books are 99.99% better than the movie & I'd hate to spoil the book for myself.