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Which is best? Reading the book, before the film, or after?

May 29, 2008 at 1:28 pm jennhandy Leave a comment

With the continuing trend of turning bestselling books (even not-so-bestselling) into movies, is it still better to read the book before seeing the film, or should you wait to read the book until after seeing Hollywood’s adaptation (great movie, by the way!)?

I’ve always been the traditionalist, refusing to see a movie till after I’ve read the book. For the most part, I think this has served me well. True, I do get disappointed a fair amount of the time when favorite bits from a novel aren’t included in the screen narrative, but I also get to enjoy having some amazing prose brought to life, visually.

I’m not just talking the characters, either. I’m talking the lyricism of an author’s particular style of writing being faithfully and beautifully adapted to the screen. The example that springs to mind most easily is Michael Ondaatje’s English Patient, lovingly put on celluloid by Anthony Minghella. There were lots of instances where the two narratives didn’t match up, but it was like I was watching the language of the book translated into light.

But then, you’ve got series of books—Harry Potter, for example—where you read the first four volumes, as soon as they come out, go and see the first film when it premieres (which was much too juvenile a reflection of the first book), and from then on out, you are forced to see these young actors as the characters in the books, when before it was left to your imagination. So, read all the books before seeing any of the films?

On the other hand, if I could have waited to read The Golden Compass until after I saw the movie, maybe I wouldn’t have been so heart-wrenchingly disappointed with the adaptation. Granted, waiting to read the book wouldn’t have made it a better film, but maybe I wouldn’t have felt so betrayed.

I haven’t read The Hobbit yet, so maybe I’ll wait to read it until after seeing Guillermo del Toro’s two-movie adaptation of the book (and whatever story is supposed to follow). I trust del Toro as a filmmaker and storyteller (how great was Pan’s Labyrinth?!), and imagine he’ll do his best to faithfully adapt the narrative and the “feel” of the book, especially with Peter Jackson producing. I guess it’s a good book/movie combination to experiment with because, honestly, I can’t think of any examples, off-hand, where I’ve seen the movie first and read the book later. Unless I didn’t know there was a book to begin with …

So, what y’all think? Which is better? Read the book first, or see the movie first?

-Jenn

Entry filed under: Opinion, Reading & Writing. Tags: Anthony Minghella, Books, English Patient, films, Golden Compass, Guillermo del Toro, Harry Potter, Hobbit, Michael Ondaatje, movies, Pan's Labyrinth, Peter Jackson.