Which was better? The book or the movie?

[Rev. Rowan Redbeard]

Any book that was made into a movie. Or any movie that was made into a book.



WARNING: SPOILERS MAY APPEAR BEYOND THIS POINT!


Please be kind and don't spoil the big stuff.

[Rainswept]

Silence of the Lambs was almost exactly like the book, which is a big part of the reason it made such a fantastic movie.

My vote for worst adaptation of a decent book goes to Battlefield Earth.

[Zankou 2.0]

Eragon. Don't even bother with the movie..

[EarthRise]

Lord of the Rings? Pretty good, but considering the standard set by the book, any movie is destined to fail against it.

[guy_incognito]

Dune.

The book was good, the film had great effects and tried hard, but there is too much to fit into a 2 hour film.

[Rainswept]

Lord of the Rings? Pretty good, but considering the standard set by the book, any movie is destined to fail against it.

I don't entirely agree with that, actually. As good as those books are, a huge portion of their brilliance comes from the innovation and originality they brought, the story itself wouldn't be considered nearly as brilliant if it were written today. That doesn't take anything away from how unique and special the books are, because probably 95% or more of fantasy novels & movies both are influenced at least indirectly by LoTR. They also have the insane level of detail especially with the languages, that might never be duplicated by a single author.

The movies were not only visual masterpieces, but were far more accessible than the books will ever be. Those books are very long-winded and slow moving and they aren't going to suck in mainstream readers in the way the movies do. The movies also did a pretty damn good job with casting, and even had some moments of good acting.

While the movies can't compare with the legend, the decades of cult fanaticism, and the incalculable influence in creating the entire genre, I think they do a pretty damn good job of bringing the most important aspects of the story together, illustrating it magnificently, and achieving the most important thing, which is making the story fun to watch.

[Rainswept]

Dune.

The book was good, the film had great effects and tried hard, but there is too much to fit into a 2 hour film.

I liked the later remake of Dune better than the original. It stayed much closer to the book, and didn't have Patrick Stewart in a mullet.

[Zoidberg]

Children of Men, it's the only movie adaption I've seen that's actually better than the book.

[The Black Spot]

Jaws. Rotten book.

I would have included "Duel", but that was a short story so it doesn't really count.

[Zankou 2.0]

The Princess Bride is a hard one to call. The movie was brilliant, but the book was equally brilliant.

But, I liked the book better than the movie, if only by the slightest margin.

[EarthRise]

Jackass didn't represent its book very well.

I mean, On the Origin of Species says the most unfit should be dying out, not running around like chickens lacking heads.

[Rainswept]

That's why there's the second adaptation of it. The Darwin Awards.

[black bart]

Watership Down...Crap Book and a Crap film...bein a bit harsh, I enjoyed it when I was about 11...it's a good attempt at making rabbits exciting.

[Calena]

I actually liked Watership Down, read it not so long ago.
As a kid a saw the film, the big black rabbit gave me nightmares. My parents thought it was a nice cute bunny film for kids, but turned out, it wasn't. So reading the book as an adult and working off my trauma probably saved me from needing therapy.

[Rainswept]

Bridge to Terabithia was a better book than either of the movies made about it, but the latest movie was advertised in a completely misleading way, which sucked.

They made it look like it was a fantasy film like Harry Potter, but not as good. IMO, this actually made fewer people see the movie because people who liked the book assumed they screwed up the movie and didn't go (why I waited for the DVD), people who never read the book assumed it was a crappy fantasy and didn't go, or went, realized it wasn't a fantasy at all, and left mad.