# movie better than the book? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 12, 2009, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915 "2009-01-12T15:40:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![discodancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9c0ed/32.png) [@discodancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/discodancer)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/41 "2009-01-12T19:18:23Z")
The movie Ghost World is better than the comic book it’s based on. ---
**Author:** ![Eureka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/74df32/32.png) [@Eureka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eureka)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/42 "2009-01-12T19:26:01Z")
**The Jane Austen Book Club** Movie is a pleasant (not great) chick flick where everyone gets some sort of happy ending, featuring the members of a book club–half a dozen women and one man. Book struck me as more of a journal style thing-y. Lacked much of the charm of the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/43 "2009-01-12T19:33:44Z")
Well it has already been said, but: The Princess Bride. Definitely. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/44 "2009-01-12T19:34:37Z")
**The Color Purple** –While the book was fantastic, Speilberg’s movie was perfection. And he still didn’t get an Oscar nomination, while was an outrage. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/45 "2009-01-12T19:42:23Z")
johnspartan writes: \> It’s chic to go to or watch a film based on a book and say the requisite “Well \> the book was MUCH better. I mean, there were whole parts of the book left out \> of the movie! Well I guess they have to do that for time, or whatever”. It’s chic where? In my experience, it’s clearly more common for people to prefer the movie than the book it’s based on. That’s true on the SDMB also. I think most people today are more movie-oriented than book-oriented, so they tend to prefer the movie for that reason. It takes a lot of reading to become used to the tropes of literature, and it takes a lot of watching to become used to the tropes of cinema. I think that it’s not generally useful to compare the experiences of reading and watching. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/46 "2009-01-12T20:27:31Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > **The Color Purple** –While the book was fantastic, Speilberg’s movie was perfection. And he still didn’t get an Oscar nomination, while was an outrage. :eek: I didn’t know that! I’d probably call the book and movie a draw, but that movie is one of the most spectacular films ever created, and on my list of favorite movies it’s head and shoulders above the rest. My nomination is _Stardust_. I saw the movie first and loved it. I’d read _Good Omens_ (jointly written by Gaiman and Pratchett) and was utterly convinced this work would be comparable in brilliance. Not so. It was incredibly tedious and very dull. Big disappointment. I have since found a lot of Gaiman’s books quite boring. ETA: According to wiki _TCP_ got eleven Oscar nominations but not a single win. Wow. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/47 "2009-01-12T20:34:34Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > :eek: I didn’t know that! I’d probably call the book and movie a draw, but that movie is one of the most spectacular films ever created, and on my list of favorite movies it’s head and shoulders above the rest. > \ > ETA: According to wiki _TCP_ got eleven Oscar nominations but not a single win. Wow. How does a movie that gets 11 nominations not get one for Best Director? Did the Academy think Speilberg had nothing to do with it? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/48 "2009-01-12T20:48:56Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > My nomination is _Stardust_. I saw the movie first and loved it. I’d read _Good Omens_ (jointly written by Gaiman and Pratchett) and was utterly convinced this work would be comparable in brilliance. Not so. It was incredibly tedious and very dull. Big disappointment. I have since found a lot of Gaiman’s books quite boring. **Stardust** is not only better than its book, but is a really overlooked movie by a lot of people. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/49 "2009-01-12T21:07:22Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > My nomination is _Stardust_. I saw the movie first and loved it. I’d read _Good Omens_ (jointly written by Gaiman and Pratchett) and was utterly convinced this work would be comparable in brilliance. Not so. It was incredibly tedious and very dull. Big disappointment. I have since found a lot of Gaiman’s books quite boring. Good one. Gaiman is a much better storyteller in a visual medium. Stardust-the-movie worked really well with the ghost brothers. And in the movie there was much less moral ambiguity which, oddly, made for a much better story. ---
**Author:** ![Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ian_D.Bergkamp)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/50 "2009-01-12T21:27:27Z")
**The Commitments** and **Angel Heart** , both directed by Alan Parker, are better than the books on which they were based. The book version of the Commitments, by Roddy Doyle, is very short, and the movie actually helps to flesh out the characters a bit and adds scenes not present in the book (like the classic “what are your influences” audition scene). Since it’s a story about a band, it also helps to be able hear the music. The film version of Angel Heart (based on Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg) benefits primarily from a standout performance from Mickey Rourke in the lead role. But the movie also has a better overall atmosphere than the book achieves. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/51 "2009-01-12T22:02:14Z")
Almost any movie of _The Phantom of the Opera_. The original book is a muddle. I think David Lean’s _Dr. Zhivago_ was better than the book. He cut out large chunks and concentrated on Yuri & Lara’s love story. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/52 "2009-01-12T22:09:12Z")
I am actually surprised at the amount of people who came to say what I came in here to say; _Silence of the Lambs_. The thing about that book being made into the movie is, they’re the EXACT SAME. I read the book before seeing the movie, then saw the movie literally the next day. The movie has the same lines the verbatim to what they are in the book. And not important “Luke I am your father” type lines, but small seemingly insignificant ones. Maybe I will call this one a wash, but I’d prefer the movie simply because of the visuals. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/53 "2009-01-12T22:13:24Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > **The Color Purple** –While the book was fantastic, Speilberg’s movie was perfection. And he still didn’t get an Oscar nomination, while was an outrage. I hate disagreeing with folks in these kinds of threads, because obviously it is your own opinion. But I can’t believe you feel this way! It just breaks my heart, because I love that book so much, I assumed everyone agreed the movie was awesome but the book was _better_. The relationship between Shug and Ceilie, especially. ---
**Author:** ![Junior\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Junior\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Junior_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/54 "2009-01-12T22:13:29Z")
I can’t believe three other people have said ‘Stardust’ - I was sure I’d be run out of town on a rail for suggesting that. I saw the movie first (actually, many many times), and then read the book, and was crushed. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/55 "2009-01-12T22:15:15Z")
I was going to say _Iron Giant_. The book it’s inspired by is just weird nonsense, but then again, that’s kinda what makes it good, so I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/56 "2009-01-13T01:12:11Z")
> [@Junior\_Spaceman](#): > > I can’t believe three other people have said ‘Stardust’ - I was sure I’d be run out of town on a rail for suggesting that. I saw the movie first (actually, many many times), and then read the book, and was crushed. Welcome to the true beauty of the internet, where like-minded perverts connect. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/57 "2009-01-13T01:26:33Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > I hate disagreeing with folks in these kinds of threads, because obviously it is your own opinion. But I can’t believe you feel this way! It just breaks my heart, because I love that book so much, I assumed everyone agreed the movie was awesome but the book was _better_. > > The relationship between Shug and Ceilie, especially. They are both lovely works of art. I can’t bring myself to say one is better than the other. They both succeed astonishingly well at being what they are – an amazing book, and an amazing movie. Walker wrote a beautiful and heart-wrenching story; Spielberg and a cast of excellent actors turned it into something altogether different – not better, not worse-- just different. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/58 "2009-01-13T02:05:31Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > They are both lovely works of art. I can’t bring myself to say one is better than the other. They both succeed astonishingly well at being what they are – an amazing book, and an amazing movie. Walker wrote a beautiful and heart-wrenching story; Spielberg and a cast of excellent actors turned it into something altogether different – not better, not worse-- just different. I guess you are right, marchy. The truth is, that book has some sentimental value for me. It is one of very few works of fiction from black authors that I truly love, and I believe it is for sentimental reasons mostly that I prefer the book to the outstanding film. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/59 "2009-01-13T07:46:58Z")
**Practical Magic** and **Night of The Twisters** are both better than the books they’re based on. NOTT gets a pass because it’s a kids’ book; not even a young adult book considering I read it in the 5th grade. There’s no excuse for Hoffman’s lame novel, though. ---
**Author:** ![Kizarvexius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Kizarvexius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kizarvexius)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915/60 "2009-01-13T15:46:12Z")
> [@RikWriter](#): > > Jaws. The affair between Hooper and Brody’s wife in the book is ludicrous and by the end I was hoping everyone in the book would be eaten by the shark. Hoo boy. Exactly what I came in to say. One of the worst novels I’ve ever had the pleasure of throwing across the room. Most of the Tom Clancy novels made better films than novels because they removed the endless clutter about technical details. So many characters, so many subplots, and some of them never seemed to link together. I recall reading a scene near the end of one book where a character goes out jogging and throws himself in front of a bus. This was supposed to be a big shocking climax, and yet I had to flip back several chapters in order to figure out who the guy was in the first place. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-better-than-the-book/480915.md?page=4)