The Film's Better Than The Book

Pross
Pross Posts: 43,547
edited September 2013 in The cake stop
Following on from the Godfather thread, has anyone ever seen a film that was better than the book? I can't recall it happening and I'm not convinced it can happen just because of the amount that ends up getting cut to keep the length manageable. TV seems to do a far better job as the story can run in full over several days and with there being some big budgets in TV land these days maybe a few classic novels can get filmed to do them justice.
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Comments

  • PerformingMonkey
    PerformingMonkey Posts: 218
    A thread I thought I would never reply to....

    The Hobbit. Found the book a bit too childish and the narrator quite patronising. Admittedly the film has taken a few liberties and tried in a few places a little too hard to shoe horn in references to the LOTR trilogy but I'd much rather sit through the film again that tackle the book.
  • bompington
    bompington Posts: 7,674
    PerformingMonkey wrote:
    The Hobbit. Found the book a bit too childish
    A serious fault in a children's book, for sure.
  • PerformingMonkey
    PerformingMonkey Posts: 218
    Naively I was expecting another LOTR
  • TheStone
    TheStone Posts: 2,291
    Most of Stephen King's stuff is better as a film.
    Shawshank and The Running Man to name a couple.
    exercise.png
  • arran77
    arran77 Posts: 9,260
    TheStone wrote:
    Most of Stephen King's stuff is better as a film.
    Shawshank and The Running Man to name a couple.

    The Green Mile is another.
    "Arran, you are like the Tony Benn of smut. You have never diluted your depravity and always stand by your beliefs. You have my respect sir and your wife my pity" :lol:

    seanoconn
  • mrfpb
    mrfpb Posts: 4,569
    TheStone wrote:
    Most of Stephen King's stuff is better as a film.
    Shawshank and The Running Man to name a couple.

    Misery, Stand by Me, The Shining. However for every gem there are half a dozen straight to video/made for tv stinkers.
  • mrfpb
    mrfpb Posts: 4,569
    The Muppet's Christmas Carol
  • daviesee
    daviesee Posts: 6,386
    Debbie Does.... ?
    None of the above should be taken seriously, and certainly not personally.
  • badgerbeaver
    badgerbeaver Posts: 102
    E.T.

    though in fairness I think the book was written after the film

    Also;

    Cold Mountain

    Jaws

    A Room with a View
  • arran77
    arran77 Posts: 9,260
    daviesee wrote:
    Debbie Does.... ?

    Definitely, I borrowed the book and the feckin pages were all stuck together :shock:

    I mean, who uses glue when reading a book anyway :wink:
    "Arran, you are like the Tony Benn of smut. You have never diluted your depravity and always stand by your beliefs. You have my respect sir and your wife my pity" :lol:

    seanoconn
  • simonhead
    simonhead Posts: 1,399
    Trainspotting
    Life isnt like a box of chocolates, its like a bag of pic n mix.
  • daviesee
    daviesee Posts: 6,386
    BadgerBeaver wrote:
    E.T.

    though in fairness I think the book was written after the film

    Also;

    Cold Mountain

    Jaws

    A Room with a View
    Nonsense. The book has much more detail and therefore makes much more sense than the film.
    Still one of my favourite films though. :wink:
    None of the above should be taken seriously, and certainly not personally.
  • team47b
    team47b Posts: 6,425
    High Fidelity.

    Was so much better as a film, the ending is better and makes more sense than the book, also translates well from UK in the book to USA in the film.
    my isetta is a 300cc bike
  • diamonddog
    diamonddog Posts: 3,426
    Rocky :shock:
  • ballysmate
    ballysmate Posts: 15,996
    The 39 Steps, either the Donat or More version. The Robert Powell version is total bilge though.
  • seanoconn
    seanoconn Posts: 11,726
    Ballysmate wrote:
    The 39 Steps, either the Donat or More version. The Robert Powell version is total bilge though.
    Oi! Where have you been you shirker?
    Pinno, מלך אידיוט וחרא מכונאי
  • ballysmate
    ballysmate Posts: 15,996
    seanoconn wrote:
    Ballysmate wrote:
    The 39 Steps, either the Donat or More version. The Robert Powell version is total bilge though.
    Oi! Where have you been you shirker?

    To quote another film, 'There and back again' :D
  • john_kline
    john_kline Posts: 2,151
    A Clockwork Orange
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,547
    John Kline wrote:
    A Clockwork Orange

    No, surely not? That was one of the things that triggered this thread!
  • cornerblock
    cornerblock Posts: 3,228
    Life Of Brian. The New Testament does tend to go on a bit, and is nowhere near as funny.
  • simonhead
    simonhead Posts: 1,399
    Cornerblock wrote:
    Life Of Brian. The New Testament does tend to go on a bit, and is nowhere near as funny.

    I concur, that said i think I would prefer to read the New Testament to watching passion of the christ.
    Life isnt like a box of chocolates, its like a bag of pic n mix.
  • john_kline
    john_kline Posts: 2,151
    Pross wrote:
    John Kline wrote:
    A Clockwork Orange

    No, surely not? That was one of the things that triggered this thread!


    I think the film stylistically was outstanding although by todays standards not that violent. Also the use of the Ludwig Van/Walter Carlos music score was inspired. You didn't get that from the book.
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,547
    Maybe, I agree on the score but style wise it looked like I was expecting from the book. That said, I had seen posters etc. of the film before reading the book so maybe they helped with image forming. I might watch it again to refresh my memory. I was a bit surprised at how relatively tame it was considering it got banned for 20 odd / 30 years whatever it was. It would probably be a 15 certificate these days!
  • john_kline
    john_kline Posts: 2,151
    You know i was just thinking exactly the same thing, that if it came out today it would probably only be rated a 15. I did enjoy the book but to be honest I haven't read it since the mid 70's, but i think the film sets such as the Korova Milk Bar or the derelict casino where they fight Billy Boy's gang are really impressive, and you don't get that from the book.
  • meursault
    meursault Posts: 1,433
    Cornerblock wrote:
    Life Of Brian. The New Testament does tend to go on a bit, and is nowhere near as funny.

    Pure class.

    The player

    MV5BMTM3NjIyMjU1N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMzQ5Mzk4._V1_SY317_CR7,0,214,317_.jpg

    Godfather again.
    Superstition sets the whole world in flames; philosophy quenches them.

    Voltaire
  • Stevo_666
    Stevo_666 Posts: 61,743
    Any porn film.
    "I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]
  • mr_goo
    mr_goo Posts: 3,770
    Headhunters - Scandinavian produced film that really does justice to the book by Jo Nesbo. Can really recommend either format. Just hope that Hollywood don't do a remake and hash things up like they did with Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
    Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.
  • Mikey23
    Mikey23 Posts: 5,306
    Salmon fishing in the Yemen... The book kind of rambled to a rather unsatisfactory conclusion. Film rounded it off rather nicely.
    Blade runner... Awesome film based on rather ordinary Philip dick short story do androids dream of electric sheep
  • Mikey23
    Mikey23 Posts: 5,306
    Thought Hollywood and Swedish version of GwTDT were better than the book in that they cut out a lot of the crap ... Read all three Larson books and they are rather long winded
  • crispybug2
    crispybug2 Posts: 2,915
    I've never seen a film that was better than the book, closet goes to 'The Day Of The Jackal*



    * The Edward Fox version, not the Bruce Willis abomination!

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