# Do you make a point of seeing movies of books you have read? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies, books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [August 26, 2022, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395 "2022-08-26T14:11:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/1 "2022-08-26T14:11:28Z")
And if so, are you typically disappointed? ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/2 "2022-08-26T14:17:27Z")
I make a point of avoiding it because I am usually disappointed. The only exception has been the Lord of the Rings movies by Peter Jackson, and Howl’s Moving Castle by Hayao Miyazaki. ---
**Author:** ![HorribleMutantBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/258eb7/32.png) [@HorribleMutantBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HorribleMutantBoy)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/3 "2022-08-26T14:17:55Z")
Either that or the other way around (Watching the movie then reading the book). I can appreciate both for what they are. Books don’t entirely translate well into movies. Take Lord of The Rings for example, If we had a movie that was true to the book we’d have at least five 3 hour movies to watch. I think books have a much easier time in that they can sometimes get away with showing and not telling. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/4 "2022-08-26T14:20:50Z")
> [@HorribleMutantBoy](#): > > Either that or the other way around (Watching the movie then reading the book). I can appreciate both for what they are. > > **Books don’t entirely translate well into movies. Take Lord of The Rings for example** , If we had a movie that was true to the book we’d have at least five 3 hour movies to watch. I think books have a much easier time in that they can sometimes get away with showing and not telling. - Dune is even worse. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/5 "2022-08-26T14:22:15Z")
> [@Dendarii\_Dame](#): > > I make a point of avoiding it because I am usually disappointed. Me too. ---
**Author:** ![HorribleMutantBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/258eb7/32.png) [@HorribleMutantBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HorribleMutantBoy)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/6 "2022-08-26T14:25:23Z")
I think some do OK though. Take the Harry Potter series for example or Apocalypse Now being an (not literal) adaption of Heart of Darkness. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/7 "2022-08-26T14:27:06Z")
There have been some excellent ones like **The Lord of the Rings** Trilogy of movies. **To Kill a Mockingbird** which I read before I saw. Not so great book **Amityville Horror** was a satisfying translation to screen. **Jurassic Park** Movie was actually superior to the book. **Narnia** was well done. Most of the **Harry Potter** Books were made into worthy movies. **Shawshank Redemption** was a perfect movie, I had barely remembered the story. But with most Stephen King books I saw the movie first. I saw the movie first in the case of **Jaws** and **The Godfather**. In both cases the movies were superior to the book. In fact Jaws wasn’t a very good book. But most of time I’m disappointed. Like **The Hobbit** trilogy, very inferior to the book. **Percy Jackson** movies were not good. **Spiderwick** was a disappointing movie, not that the book was great. **Golden Compass** I didn’t love the book but hated the movie. **Wrinkle in Time** was really disappointing. * * * * * * Does **Good Omens** count? A limited series that was pretty much perfect from a very good book. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/8 "2022-08-26T14:31:21Z")
Many times I’ll read the book after seeing the movie. And then realizing how much the movie I just enjoyed actually sucked. I saw the Shining before reading the book (the one King book I hadn’t read at that point) and thought the movie was cool, then I read the book and saw why King was unhappy with the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/9 "2022-08-26T14:32:51Z")
I did the exact same thing with 2001 Space Odyssey. ---
**Author:** ![HorribleMutantBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/258eb7/32.png) [@HorribleMutantBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HorribleMutantBoy)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/10 "2022-08-26T14:39:08Z")
Haven’t read the book but I’ve heard about Forrest Gump being superior as a movie. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/11 "2022-08-26T14:41:24Z")
> [@Dendarii\_Dame](#): > > I make a point of avoiding it because I am usually disappointed. The only exception has been the Lord of the Rings movies by Peter Jackson, and Howl’s Moving Castle by Hayao Miyazaki. I was disappointed in Howl’s Moving Castle for one reason. I _loved_ where the black spot on the dial took Howl and what it meant. In the movie it was lame and had no resonance…with me, at least. Other than that I loved it. I remember seeing a documenatary about Pixar, and the CEO was raving about Miyazaki and how he thought Miyazaki was such a genius for having that dial in the house. I retorted: No! Diana Wynne Jones was the genius who came up with that idea. Harrumph. Off the top of my head, a movie I like much more than the book was _The Third Miracle._ ETA: All the Wrinkle in Time movies/series _sucked._ ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/12 "2022-08-26T14:44:41Z")
That is correct. The Gump book was forgettable, the movie was awesome. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/13 "2022-08-26T14:50:55Z")
I don’t make a specific point of it be I don’t them avoid either. I think Jaws and The Godfather were better as films. The Lord of the Rings was a great book and a really good film series, especially when you consider what an impossible tasks that was. Contact was perhaps better as a film as well but I enjoyed the book and film almost equally. The Silence of the Lambs stands out as an excellent book and excellent film. A lot of the Stephen King books stand out as much better books than films with perhaps the exception of “Misery” which worked well in either format. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/14 "2022-08-26T14:59:38Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > Contact was perhaps better as a film as well but I enjoyed the book and film almost equally. I forgot **Contact** , I recall liking the book more than the movie, but the movie was OK. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/15 "2022-08-26T15:00:11Z")
Nope. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/16 "2022-08-26T15:21:37Z")
If I’ve read a book (and particularly if it’s one I liked), I’ll watch a movie adaptation out of curiosity. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/17 "2022-08-26T16:00:38Z")
I wouldn’t say I make a point of it, but it does increase the likelihood. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/18 "2022-08-26T16:17:46Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > That is correct. The Gump book was forgettable, the movie was awesome. We’ve had threads before around “movies where the movie was better than the book.” It’s actually not the exception. It’s rather common. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/19 "2022-08-26T16:23:37Z")
That’s a weird one because it was written concurrently with the movie production and released afterwards. But there are still differences, and I remember reading it in the 70s and thinking it made the movie so much clearer. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395/20 "2022-08-26T16:46:54Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > We’ve had threads before around “movies where the movie was better than the book.” > > It’s actually not the exception. It’s rather common. It’s common for people to prefer the movie to the book. It’s far less common for “everyone” to prefer the movie to the book—for the general consensus to be that the movie was considerably better than the book. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-make-a-point-of-seeing-movies-of-books-you-have-read/970395.md?page=2)