Opinions Matter

c/book-to-screen-talk

0

nathan193•1d ago

Can we talk about how The Witcher season 3 butchered the books?

I spent $60 on all three Witcher game books to compare with the Netflix show. The show skipped whole plot lines from Blood of Elves and made up random stuff. I feel like I wasted my money on the books because the show barely follows them. Anyone else feel like the writers just ignored the source material?

13

lucasking•1d ago

Appreciation post: Bookshop in Portland had the best adaptation nook

I visited Powell's Books last weekend and they had a whole shelf dedicated to books that were turned into movies, with little notes comparing the two. Saw the Dune display had like 15 different editions. Has anyone else found a spot that does this sort of thing well?

12

blake_cooper•2d ago

Rolled my eyes when my buddy hyped up The Expanse show over the books

I was dead set that the books were better, but he made me watch the first three episodes last week. The way they handled the belter accents and the ship physics actually made the story click for me in a way the text never did. Anyone else have a show fix a problem you had with the book version?

7

patp79•3d ago

That moment I realized I'd been skipping the best part of the book in every adaptation

I was rewatching the Harry Potter movies last month and my roommate pointed out that I always fast forward through the Quidditch scenes. She asked why and I said 'cause it's boring and nothing like the book anyway. Then she made me actually watch one and I realized the movie version is totally different from what I remembered. I think I've been judging adaptations based on how I imagined the book scenes looking instead of what's actually on screen. Has anyone else caught themselves doing this with a specific book to movie change?

21

dylanh97•4d ago

Rant: Spent 18 bucks on the Kindle version of a book that got turned into a Netflix show

The movie left out the entire middle third of the plot and now I'm the annoying friend at dinner explaining what actually happened, has anyone else had a streaming adaptation butcher a book you paid for?

8

hugo_craig•5d ago

My buddy pointed out why Margaery Tyrell is so different in the books vs the show

We were debating Game of Thrones while grabbing coffee last week and he said the show made her too nice just so people would feel bad when she died. That hit me because in the books she's way more calculating and political, she even smiles at Sansa after Renly dies. Has anyone else noticed a character getting softened up for the screen?

12

the_susan•6d ago

Hot take: The 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie is better than the book

I know, I know, the book is a classic. But I rewatched the Keira Knightley version last week at my sister's place and something clicked. The way they did the proposal scene in the rain just hits different than the book version. The added tension and the way Elizabeth stands her ground felt more real to me. Anyone else find that movie adaptations can actually improve on the source material?

23

jennyh55•8d ago

Just learned the Harry Potter movies cut over 40% of the book's content

Ngl I was scrolling through a fan wiki last night and found out the first Harry Potter movie only includes about 60% of what's in the book. That's like 90 pages of stuff they left out including Peeves the poltergeist and the whole backstory about the mirror of Erised. I mean I knew they cut stuff but that number surprised me. Has anyone else looked up the actual percentage for their favorite book adaptation and been shocked?

24

quinn_king16•9d ago

Watching the Witcher without reading the books first ruined S1 for me

I was at a friend's house in Chicago last month and they put on episode 1 of The Witcher without any context. I had no clue what was happening with the timelines until I read the books after and it all clicked. Has anyone else made that mistake and wished they read the source material first?

2

white.seth•9d ago

Showerthought: The Dark Tower movie was a total flop compared to the books

I finally watched the Dark Tower movie after reading all 8 books and man it was like they took the names and nothing else. The books had this whole layered world and the movie just smashed it into a 90 minute action flick that missed everything important. Did anyone else feel like they completely wasted a good adaptation opportunity?

5

jones.angela•9d ago

Saw a book-to-series adaptation fail hard and it changed how I read

I was at a friend's place in Portland last month and she put on the new adaptation of a fantasy series I'd just finished. The show got so much wrong with character details and skipped two huge subplots. After that I started keeping a little notes doc while I read, just tracking 3-4 key scenes I'd be mad if they cut. Now when I hear about an adaptation I check the showrunner's past work first. Has anyone else had a book adaptation ruin your trust in a studio's choices?

11

riley_coleman8•10d ago

My book club roasted me for picking The Girl on the Train over Gone Girl

I thought The Girl on the Train movie was awesome and told my book club it was better than Gone Girl haha. One member literally pulled up her phone and showed me how the book had way more depth in the character backstories. Now I always read the source material before watching the adaptation, just so I don't look dumb again. Has anyone else gotten schooled on a book vs movie opinion?

1

thomas.cameron•11d ago

Used to only watch the movie first then complain about the book later

Honestly I used to just watch the movie adaptation and get mad at my friends who said the book was better without ever reading it. Last year I finally picked up The Martian after seeing the movie and realized how much more detail the book had about the science stuff that got cut. Now I always read the book first for anything with hype and compare scene by scene. Has anyone else flipped their order around and found it changed their opinion?

20

claireo67•11d ago

Saw the movie version of The Martian and it made me mad about a potato farming scene

I watched The Martian movie last week after reading the book back in 2015. The book spent like 50 pages on Mark Watney growing potatoes on Mars with all this technical soil drama. In the movie they glossed over it in maybe 5 minutes with a quick montage. I was sitting there yelling at my TV because the whole point was how hard it was to make dirt not kill him. My buddy who never read the book thought I was crazy for getting so worked up. But honestly the book wins for me because you feel the struggle way more. Has anyone else had a book adaptation cut out a key detail that made you mad?

11

iris_jones89•13d ago

The moment I realized I had been skipping book-to-screen showdowns all wrong

I used to always watch the movie or show first, then read the book after. I thought it was fine because I could see the story visually before digging deeper. But last month I did a 'Dune' rewatch with a friend who had read the books first. He kept pointing out scenes where the movie left out huge chunks of the plot or changed character motivations entirely. I felt like I was missing half the story. Now I'm reading the book first for everything. Has anyone else flipped their order and noticed a big difference in how they enjoy it?

14

jasonc50•15d ago

TIL the Dune movie actually fixed a detail from the book that never made sense to me

I always thought everyone saying the movie ruined the book was wrong. Turns out in the original novel, the stillsuits recapture 100% of water, but Frank Herbert later admitted that's physically impossible. David Lynch's version actually got it right by showing moisture loss. Has anyone else found a movie fix that improves on the source material?

9

abbychen•16d ago

Realized I was reading the movie tie-in cover versions all wrong

I spent years grabbing the mass market paperback with the movie poster on it thinking it was the same as the original, but last month I bought the old cover of The Martian for $2 at a library sale and found an entire chapter that the movie version cut out. The text was actually different in a few spots, like the publisher trimmed stuff to match the film script. Has anyone else noticed missing scenes in those tie-in editions?

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dylan_thompson•16d ago

That $35 audiobook that made me hate a good movie

I dropped $35 on the audiobook for Dark Matter by Blake Crouch before the Apple TV show came out. Figured I'd compare them like I always do. Turns out the book is so much better at explaining the multiverse stuff that the show just felt confusing and hollow to me after. Anyone else ever spent money on a book version and ended up liking it way more than the screen adaptation?

7

cameron_webb•17d ago

A book club critique changed how I watch adaptations

I always said the movie was better than the book. Then my book club told me I was just skimming the pages. They pointed out I missed the inner thoughts in The Godfather that make the film's choices hit harder. Now I read the book first, then watch the movie. Anyone else get called out for missing details in a book?

21

elizabeth_ramirez•19d ago

I used to hate the Harry Potter movies until someone pointed out the casting

My friend told me I was being too harsh comparing every scene to the books and that the actors really brought the characters to life... especially Maggie Smith as McGonagall. Now I watch them separately from the books and enjoy them way more. Has anyone else separated the two in their head like that?

6

spencer_perry77•19d ago

Finally saw why people hate the Dark Tower movie so much

I read The Gunslinger series over the summer and just watched the 2017 movie last night. The casting was fine but they crammed like 4 books worth of plot into 90 minutes and it made zero sense. I get that they had to cut stuff but why even call it The Dark Tower if you're barely following the source material? Anyone else feel like they should have done a show instead of a movie for that one?

15

the_drew•21d ago

Am I the only one who thinks the Hunger Games movies actually improved the books?

I reread the original trilogy last month and then rewatched the movies, and I was surprised how much extra depth the films added to characters like Effie and Haymitch compared to the first-person narration. The books felt so locked into Katniss's limited perspective that I missed a lot of the Capitol's political maneuvering that the movies showed visually. Has anyone else felt that a film version actually made the story richer instead of just cutting stuff out?

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gray_roberts•21d ago

Just hit the 30th book adaptation I watched this year and it cracked something for me

Ive been keeping track of book to screen stuff for 2024 and I hit 30 adaptations watched last week. It surprised me because I didnt even plan to count them at first. I noticed a pattern though. The ones where they completely change the ending always get the worst reviews from fans. But I actually liked a few of those changed endings better than the book version. Like that one thriller where the movie gave the villain a different fate. The book ending was too safe in my opinion. Has anyone else noticed their personal count of adaptations watched and seen a trend like this in their own list?

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ryanj60•22d ago

That guy at the library who said 'the movie was better' about Dune

Was browsing the sci-fi section at my local library in St. Paul last Tuesday, and some older guy just walks up and says out of nowhere that the 1984 Dune movie is better than the book. I asked him if he was joking, and he doubled down, said the book was 'too dense' and the movie had Sting in it. I wanted to argue but he had this smug look like he'd won something. Has anyone else run into someone with a truly baffling hot take like that?

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gonzalez.vera•24d ago

The time the movie version of Eragon broke my heart on page 47

I was sitting in my living room back in 2007, just finished the book for the third time. The movie came on and I was all excited. Then they skipped the whole prologue with Arya escaping. I paused it, rewound, thought maybe I missed it. Nope. They just cut it entirely. I sat there with my popcorn and felt like someone stole my favorite scene. I tried to power through but when they messed up the magic system and made it all flashy instead of the careful words from the book I just turned it off. I still haven't watched the whole thing. Is that normal? Has anyone else just given up on a movie adaptation halfway through because they changed too much? Which adaptation made you walk out or turn off the screen? Cause I need to know I'm not the only one who got mad at Eragon.