Happy Tuesday!

I came across this book tag on The Book Nut’s blog and I really liked the discussion. Who doesn’t want to see their favorite books turned into movies or TV shows?! Unless of course, you are the type of reader who fears the worst when your beloved story falls into the hands of the clueless film producers. Let’s see! 

1. What is the last book adaptation movie you saw?

• Hmm, I haven’t really been watching movies lately (except I did watch the horror movie The Witch with some friends the other day and let me tell you, that movie is one of the best, most accurate depictions of historical life in 1630s New England that I have ever seen. Definitely worth a watch if you are a period film/history fan, even if horror is not usually your thing!). However, I did recently finish up Longmire on Netflix, which is based off the book series: The Walt Longmire Mysteries. It was very enjoyable.

2. What book movie are you most excited for?

• Well, it’s actually going to be a Hulu Original TV show, from what I hear, but I am most excited for Throne of Glass to be adapted. Can’t wait!

3. Which upcoming book movie will you definitely NOT see?

• Fifty Shades Freed. Just no.

4. Which book movie would you NEVER watch again?

• The Hobbit movie trilogy. And see how I said trilogy? Yeah, that’s already so many kinds of wrong. These movies were WAY too drawn out and ruined the essence of the book for me. What was with all that shitty CGI and those extra characters that had no point?! And for the record, it is extremely, extremely rare for elves to have red hair, so the fact that they threw random ass Tauriel in there with flaming red hair was SO STUPID. The story did not need a random female for a crappy love story!! I really couldn’t care less if I ever saw them again.

5. Is there a movie you saw that made you want to read the book, if you hadn’t yet?

• On the other hand, The Lord of the Rings movies inspired me to read the books, because they were so good. And as I found out, they were one of the best examples of a well-done book to movie adaptation. I don’t know what happened to Peter Jackson, cause he sure went from legit to shit from one trilogy to the other.

6. Conversely, is there a movie that made you never want to read the book?

• Well, I wouldn’t say that watching The Reader made me never want to read the book it was based on, but I kind of feel like I do not need to now. The movie was very well done and seemed like a true adaptation of the novel. The subject matter is just not something I feel the need to read now, as it is quite uncomfortable at times, and especially since I know what happens in the story already. So, I am content just having seen the movie once!

7. Name an adaptation that has almost nothing to do with the book it’s supposedly based on.

• I Am Legend. The movie, Will Smith version of the story changed so much about what made the book haunting and profound. They took every subtle, nuanced moment of the book and either trashed them or changed them. Instead, they turned it into a generic zombie action flick with no originality or feeling. Good job, assholes.

8. Have you ever left the theater during a movie adaptation because it was so bad?

• No, but I did get really angry at some parts of the Harry Potter movies when I was younger for being inaccurate. Especially Prisoner of Azkaban! I was not a fan of Gary Oldman’s portrayal of Sirius Black. And where the hell were their school uniforms?!

9. Do you prefer to watch the movie first or read the book first?

• Definitely read the book, if I can help it!

10. How do you feel about movie adaptations that age characters up (ex. characters that are in middle-school, but in the movies they’re all 18)?

• It would really depend on the story and the reason that the filmmakers decided to do it. It can go either way.

11. Do you get angry when the actors don’t look like you thought the characters looked?

• Yes! I think that movies should stay as true to the books as they possibly can. The only successful ones do this, unless they are improving upon crappy source material anyway.

12. Is there a movie you liked better than its book?

• The Notebook. Much of what was in the movie, especially the dialogue, was written for the film. Nicholas Sparks’ story was incredibly bland and unfeeling in comparison.

13. Name a book that you would love to see as a movie.

• I have always thought, ever since I first read them in middle school, that the Gemma Doyle books would make fantastic movies. A Great and Terrible Beauty starts a dark fantasy series that already has a huge fan base. The scenery is lush and the costumes, architecture of the time period would be beautiful. The atmosphere of the Gothic Victorian novels would be perfect for a movie!

 

Dang, this makes me want to watch more movies! No matter how good or bad the adaptation turns out to be, I know that I do still get excited when I hear a book I love is making it to the big screen. And, seeing as how Hollywood cannot come up with an original idea to save their arses these days, I am sure we have many more book to movie adaptations to look forward to!

Thanks for reading!