Current Events > What movie/s are better than the book?

(+) Yeah! (+)

jasten posted...

LotR and Fight Club spring immediately to mind.

Yes, that was my immediate reaction.
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The Shining is an adaptation that comes across as not really understanding the book and does its own thing. Its well made from a cinematography point of view but the comparison is apples and oranges.

The Princess Bride is fantastic in both forms. I wouldnt say either one is better.

Shawshank (Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemotion) and Stand By Me (The Body) were short stories in Different Seasons, not actually books.

How to Train Your Dragon, Neverending Story and JAWS come to mind. Dragon isn't a bad book series or anything, it's just that the movie was really wonderful.

Steffenfield posted...

Silence of the Lambs

The book was horrible.

Red Dragon is the gold medal of that series.

Fight Club, Kick-Ass, Kingsman: The Secret Service

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory > Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (book) > Depp's version

Avirosb posted...

I'm just going to assume Jurassic Park

You would be wrong (especially when it comes to The Lost World)

Not that the movies arent great but the books are definitely better

Ninjaluver posted...

The Last Kingdom

I remember liking that. I like Benards Cromwell Sharpe books/films/show. So it was on my radar. I never got around to the Last kingdom books. I watched the first 2 seasons and liked it. The move to Netflix lost me as a watcher

Nosferatu_Zodd posted...

Anyone who says The Shining should be banned

What about, the Shinning?

The Passion of Christ

Jurassic Park book blows the movie out of the water and it isn't close.

Southernfatman posted...

Gandalf, of course, can be that way too.

"I shall go, unless they chain me up. There must be someone with intelligence in the party."
"Then you certainly will not be chosen, Peregrin Took!"

What are you going to do then? asked Pippin, undaunted by the wizards bristling brows.

Knock on the doors with your head, Peregrin Took, said Gandalf. But if that does not shatter them, and I am allowed a little peace from foolish questions, I will seek for the opening words.

And

Fool of a Took! he growled. This is a serious journey, not a hobbit walking-party. Throw
yourself in next time, and then you will be no further nuisance. Now be quiet!

Yes, obviously his anger turned out to be justified in that last bit, but the rest of the time he just seemed to have it out for the poor guy.

BamaDon posted...

Field of Dreams (book "Shoeless Joe")

Oooooh, this one... I might get around to finishing it some day, but I just got a few chapters in the last time I tried to read it. My impression was that it was the author's own stalker fantasy of kidnapping J. D. Salinger, something that was only reinforced by him giving the main character a name so close to his own.

But yeah, the movie's a very different cup of tea, especially since the author the character hounds in that is a fictional character and not a real living person (at the time of publication anyway) who never gave permission to be used in a story in this way.

R1masher posted...

since you dont have to read a movie, all movies are better

Aw, bless your heart *pats on head*

The Exorcist is a better movie than a book. Most Phantom of the Opera adaptations are better than the book too.

Casino Royale

Not so much a Book or Movie per say, but Hunter X Hunter 2011. The manga has parts that are better than the anime, but the people who made the anime actually took the time to make it look consistently good, and its just consistently good.

Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix. Its still the worst movie just like its the worst book, but at least the movie is a little more enjoyable than the book.

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This is my interpretation of the ending:
Decker accepts his empathy for the mechanical frog despite knowing it is not "real". The frog is an important animal and symbol in the religion of Mercerism, much as the lamb is in Christianity. Seeing one is a divine experience for Decker, and the experience does not wane after he realizes the frog is fake. Decker accepting the frog is an allegory to him accepting his empathy for the Andies while knowing they only appear and behave like humans. And this extends to all of humanity, who still have faith in the teachings of Mercerism and its emphasis on love for all living beings even though the Andies prove the story of Mercer to be false. Being indistinguishable from something and being that something is not very different, nor important for that matter. The danger to humanity is suppressing our empathy because that is what makes us human. Denying this makes us no different than the Andies. The truly human thing to do would be to stop hunting Andies because it feels wrong.

Anyway, I would have to say "The Boys" even though it's a streamed series based on a graphic novel.

greenjeans posted...

Stardust

Agreed. Perhaps if I read it before seeing the movie I might not think that, but Stardust is one of my favorite films and I did not like the book at all.

BurmesePenguin posted...

Shut the fuck up.

??? Maybe we just visit different corners of the internet, but my experience has been that most people really enjoyed the show adaptation. Don't get me wrong, I really like the books too, but the show worked so well.

vycebrand2 posted...

I remember liking that. I like Benards Cromwell Sharpe books/films/show. So it was on my radar. I never got around to the Last kingdom books. I watched the first 2 seasons and liked it. The move to Netflix lost me as a watcher

You're missing out. The last 3 seasons are good too. The movie they just released....not so much. Was pretty meh.

The books are definitley solid though, and I'd recommend them to any fantasy fan.

In everything but the gore factor, the Jurassic Park movie was a systematic improvement over the novel. I will concede that the Lost World novel is still better than its film counterpart though.

The Thing (1982)

My biggest memories of the Jurassic Park book is a scene of the T-rex standing beneath a waterfall with open mouth waiting for Grant and the kids to just drop over on their raft like sort of cartoon monster, the completely unnecessary and dumb final act where they try to blow up the raptor nests with napalm or something and Hammond basically being a soviet caricature of a capitalist tycoon.

A man called Ove

It seems people prefer the movies when they distill a book down to its basic action.

Both the book and the film of Jaws are excellent, but the first is really about small town politics, while the second is basically a serial killer thriller with a shark as the antagonist.

LA Confidential is a great film, but even then it doesn't get near the complexity and scope of the the novel.

There are things books can do that movies can't.

FunWithAFryPan posted...

Ive never seen the movie, but this reminded me of American Psycho. I think the movies better.

Fight Club is my go-to answer for this query. I dont dislike the book but the movie is really good and has a better ending.

Brett Easton Ellis has some interesting ideas but isn't much of a writer, IMO. YMMV.

brestugo posted...

Brett Easton Ellis has some interesting ideas but isn't much of a writer, IMO. YMMV.

I tend to agree. I really liked him when I was 19 or 20, but Im a bit more critical of his writing today. He has some not-so-nice things to say about my favorite author after his death, so Im not happy about that either.

FunWithAFryPan posted...

I tend to agree. I really liked him when I was 19 or 20, but Im a bit more critical of his writing today. He has some not-so-nice things to say about my favorite author after his death, so Im not happy about that either.

Same. He's evolved as a person - which is fine - but I'm not sure I like who he's become.

Stand by Me
Shawshank
Misery
The Mist
Jurassic Park
Perks of Being a Wallflower
Jaws
In the Time of the Butterflies
Princess Bride
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (the book is way too long for what it does)
Hunger Games 1
Macbeth (2011 - the Patrick Stewart one)

The TV series for Altered Carbon had a lot more character development. The book is basically a smut porn action movie. The series tried to build a character arc with the abducted little girl and also created a link between the protagonist/antagonist.