“The book was better.” Any bookish person that has been to the movies has most likely said this at one point or another. But there’s a reason: because it’s true. Rarely does a movie have the ability to fully encapsulate all the characters, stories, and locations a book brings to the table. And the funny thing is that a picture is supposed to be worth a thousand words, yet make those pictures move and you lose half the book.
The reason why books seem truer than movies, is the connection that happens between the book and the reader. When the soul of the a story connections with the heart of the readers, trust is formed. The reader has to trust the story will be worth it, and the story has to trust the reader’s imagination can keep up. And so a new world is created, and the wonderful thing is each person creates their own version of the same world; no two are the same.
The wonder of a movie is the confirmation it gives you on whether you were right or not. On whether the story lead you well or steered you wrong. The chance of saying “that’s exactly what I thought they, or it, looked like. You get to see the pictures in your head come to life and know, for at least a couple hours, that it’s real.
But when you see the movie first, that magic is lost. You are pigeon holed into the description and understandings as others see them, leaving you no opportunity to experience that adventure yourself. After you see the movie, ever turn of a page brings back scenes and characters that others picked, and maybe did or did not pick well. The mystery of what happens in the end, the drive that gets you to flip one more page at 2 o’clock in the morning, and keep your eyes open for one more sentence, is gone. You know what happens, you’re in no hurry. The adventure of reading is gone and you wind up distracted by a new undiscovered story.
There are exceptions though.
There are movies that complement and expand the written words so well that you are compelled to give a story that you gave up on a second chance, and you wind up delighted all over again. There are movies that introduce you to a story you never knew existed, and does so well at crafting the reality of the book, the surprise isn’t spoiled, but sweetened. These are the movies you watch over and over because it lets you revisit a story quicker than reading just to give you a quick fix till you can read it again.
But what about you, do you always read the book first? Has a movie added or ruined a story for you?