I have a love/hate relationship with movies that are based on books. On one hand, if I've read a book that I really love, it's exciting to see that book come alive on the big screen. Especially if it's a book that I'm having a hard time letting go, then it's really exciting to know that I'm going to have the opportunity of experiencing that book "for the first time" again - only on film the next time.
However, there is also the part about casting and the movie maybe not living up to the book. When I read a book I actually don't have a clear image of the characters in my head, so most times casting for the movie is not an issue for me. But it bothers me if a guy has been described as really good looking in the book and then in the movie he's not. I get that casters can't always get model looking guys to play the characters, because chemistry between actors and stuff like that is more important than looks. But you know, if you've been crushing on a guy while reading, and then he is not attractive in the movie, it throws me off a bit.
However, to me the most important thing is whether the actor matches the character's personality or not, because that is the only thing I truly get an understanding of when I'm reading. I'm not really seeing faces and places when I'm reading, I'm seeing souls. So when an actor is portraying a character from a book, and not being true to that character's essence and soul, it bothers me a lot! An example is Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan in Twilight. I won't go into details about why I didn't like her as Bella Swan, just that I didn't feel like she was being true to the character. An example of an actor who did a really great job of capturing the character's essence, in my opinion, is Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games.
There is also always the problem of movies leaving out parts of the books, which of course they have to, because books are like 500 pages and movies are only 2 hours long. So something has to get cut, and here the art is to cut the right parts. I hate when I watch a book to movie adaptation and I'm just waiting for my favorite scenes and my favorite lines, but they never come. But of course the directors and producers can't please everybody.
However, I don't think I'm very critical of this aspect. When I watch a "book" movie I do so without many expectations - of course I know which characters are supposed to be there, and where the plot is going etc. but I try not to judge the movie by its book. I try to judge the movie without including my knowledge of the book - I'm not always successful, but I try.
Then there is the question of whether to read the book before or after watching the movie. What do you prefer? In many cases, I've actually read the book long before I even knew it was going to become a movie, so of course I often read the book before I watch the movie. And even if I know there is a film adaptation of a book, I tend to read the book before I watch the movie. Which is kind of weird, considering I try not to judge the movie by its book, and reading the book AFTER watching the movie would definitely make that easier. And now that I think about it, the movies I watch before I read the book are the film adaptations I like best. An example is The Host by Stephenie Meyer. I watched the movie before I read the book, so now I love the movie and the book equally much. But Divergent by Veronica Roth I read before I watched the movie, and now I like the movie, but I love the book. Hmm, maybe I should begin to always read the book after watching the movie.
I've watched a lot of movies that are based on books, and some of my favorites are The Vampire Diaries (I actually like the TV series better than the books *gasp*), The Notebook, A Walk to Remember (love the movie, do not like the book), The Host, P.S. I Love You and The Hunger Games.
Others I've both read and watched are City of Bones, True Blood aka. the Sookie Stackhouse series, Romeo + Juliet, Divergent, the Twilight Saga, Harry Potter, Speak (book by Laurie Halse Anderson), Wuthering Heights, The Golden Compass, Dear John, The Fault in Our Stars, Vampire Academy .. just to mention a few. Some I liked, some I didn't like and others I loved.
What is your opinion on movies based on books? Are you critical of film adaptations of books or not? And do you read the book before or after watching the movie?
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