Random Thursday: Books to Movie

I *LOVE* this week's topic! As a self-proclaimed entertainment geek, I'm always excited when one of my favorite books is turned into a movie. In fact, I took a class in college that was EXACTLY about books turned into films. Every week, we had from Thursday until Tuesday to read a book. On Tuesday, we would watch the film. On Thursday, we would discuss the differences.

It was one of my favorite classes in my college career, lol.

Also, I'm pretty good about being able to separate the two. I'm ok with seeing the movie for what it is and not getting too bogged down with the details that they had to leave out. As long as the main point and major details are left in, I can handle some changes.

So..... My Top 3 Books Turned Into Movies (I'm also linking to the IMDB page)....

The Notebook

Seriously, this is one of my favorite books and one of my favorite movies, EVER. Love both.

 Here is the interesting thing..... There were several details changed. The main one being the length of time they were separated. 

Also, the WAY the story is told is completely different. In the movie, it goes back and forth between present time (old Noah and Allie) and the story of their past. We see all parts of their relationship from the time they meet until they get together forever. In the book, most of the story is told on the night they reconnect. Throughout their dinner, they touch upon moments in their past, but don't really delve into it as much as you would think. The movie actually shows MORE of their relationship than you read in the book. It's hard to explain, but I read the book several years prior to the movie coming out and then I read it again after. I was surprised by how different and how much the same the two were.

Why do I love these so much? Because, the differences don't really matter. When you are watching/reading one, it all sort of melds together. They compliment one another so well that experiencing the two gives you a better and richer view of the story and relationship.

The Godfather

'The Godfather' is another one of my favorite movies. A lot of people don't even realize that it was a book, first. The main reason is that the book isn't nearly as great as the film (usually, it's the other way around).

The book is ok.... I actually really liked it, but I have a weird obsession with all things Mafia. However, Mario Puzo wasn't exactly the greatest writer of all time. The story is more T&A than anything.

The film? Incredible. Yes, Puzo is listed as one of the screenwriters, but I have a feeling that Francis Ford Coppola did most of the clean-up. 

 Harry Potter Series

This one may be cheating, but I still claim it.

With the change in directors over the eight films, there are certainly some films that are better than others. And, there are LOADS of details changed, especially in a few films (um, 'Goblet of Fire' anyone?).

However, seven books turned into eight films.... all of which captured the world's interest... is amazing.

I *love* the books. I *love* the films. I even *love* the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal. All capture the magic and all of them (in their own ways) get the main point.

So, there are my top three books to movies! Just for fun, I'm going to go the opposite direction tomorrow. I have my Top Three WORST Film Adaptations.... so, check in tomorrow for those!