Hello again everyone!

Blog # 5 is a little different from the others. It is more personal related, which I enjoy.

People who love reading are often disappointed by the movie versions of their favourite books. There have been many great films made from books, but usually movie versions of books never seem to satisfy the readers because it’s “just not the same.” We are all aware that Sara Gruen’s Water For Elephants is a very popular novel and film. Although I enjoyed the film, it was not nearly as good as the book, so i’m going to have to agree with the readers on this one! I find that this is the case with most novels that are turned into movies. For instance, I have read Twilight, and also watched the film. Although I am a big fan of the movie, I found the book was a lot more interesting.

I find that if you read the book first, you are presented to so many details, which broaden your imagination. Films leave little to viewers’ imaginations. When you read a book, what you’re really doing is you’re creating your own movie in your head and decide the most important parts like how the characters speak, what they look like, what their surroundings are like, etc. This process of imagining and visualizing as reader is a creative process significantly different from viewing a film. Books allow a narrative voice to carry the reader along or to fill in gaps in the readers knowledge. Movies also tend to cut out very important parts and sometimes even characters that the readers are probably looking forward to. For example, in Water for Elephants, the movie didn’t have Uncle Al, which was a main character in the novel. Instead, they kind of made August and him into one character. Although the acting in the movie was fantastic, it would have been interesting to see the two characters and how they interacted with each other.

Books also have a clearer and better explanation if or when there is a flashback moment. For instance, in Water for Elephants, whenever Jacob would flash back to his life in the nursing home, it would be clear that the setting changed from the moment you started reading. This is also another part that the movie left out, which made me a little disappointed. It would have been nice to see Jacob’s life in the old-age home, and his interactions with the different nurses, including Rosemary. Books also provide a better understanding of the history leading up to the main event. The movie started off a bit confusing. The audience didn’t know that he was a man in an old-age home until a couple minutes in when he explained himself, which also lasted only a couple minutes.

All and all, movies and books are always going to be different. People usually tend to like the book more, but I am open minded to both, meaning I won’t go into a movie automatically thinking it’s not going to be as good. I liked both the Twilight book and movie, but in this case, the book satisfied me more. Books seem to have more ideas for your imagination to work with. Don’t get me wrong, movies are also great for your imagination, but just not as much.

Anyway, hope you all have a good weekend and I look forward to reading your thoughts as well!

– Victoria M