Day 6: Film adaptation vs book

I am a very visual person and my first love is movies. As I got older, I noticed most of the movies I would watch were based off of novels or short stories.  My interest was piqued, and I would seek out to read the novel or short story the film was based on. It didn't matter when I chose to read said novel or short story, I was just interested in 'seeing' what the original author saw when he/she created his/her work of art.

I remember being slightly disappointed watching a movie that was based off of a book, because the director or screenwriter changed things that went against the original characterization established in the books.

And sometimes the reverse is also true, where the movie the novel or short story that its based on is actually better than the book *coughForrestGumpcough* (The overall premise of the book was used, but changed drastically to accomidate Hollywood and tell a better story. In my opinion, the film won out over the book, and to me that is the only time that has happened.)

Talking to some book purists, anytime Hollywood makes a film based on a favorite book something always falls short. And I think that is to be expected...film and books are two totally different mediums.

The Director has to take into consideration, besides telling a story, maintain the pacing of the story, keep characterization of characters consistant with the book (sometimes this doesn't always happen), decide whether the film needs an action sequence, more drama in a scene to gain the audience's sympathy, creating conflict to get a better resolution between characters, sacrifice certain subplots, and provide closure (or not, depending on if its meant to have a sequel).

The Author has to do all this too, but I think they have a bit more freedom as its their imagination out on the page telling the story. They still have to apply their skills to the task - tell an effective story, with the right pacing within a proper story arc. Create interesting characters that we care about, or despise (if they are the antagonist). Provide a back story for said characters, hopefully not in an "info-dump" style.

So which do I prefer, film adaption vs book? Overall I think it depends on how the film is made and how true to the original book it represents. But sometimes I like the fact that I can open a book an used my imagination instead of having it painted for me on a TV screen