Question of the Day - Monday, January 20, 2025

MoochNNoodles

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I’ve been drained and trying to rest the last few days so I’ve been working my way through rewatching the Colin Firth miniseries version of Pride & Prejudice from the mid 90s. I don’t normally watch tv much; but I’ve needed that sort of distraction and I was able to download it to my kindle fire to watch in the car too. I’ve been enjoying it and picking up more details i missed when I watched it before.


Do you enjoy movie/tv adaptations of novels?


I think i have mixed opinions on this. Sometimes things just seem wrong. Like characters don’t look right or they miss details. But sometimes it help to see things acted out. I tried reading Jane Eyre several years ago and struggled! Watching a movie adaptation helped. (But man that was not my cup of tea either! :paperbag: ) Sometimes knowing whats going to happen can help me get through either a book or a movie im not enjoying.
 

neely

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Currently DH and I are engrossed in the tv adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small. I read the first book by James Herriot, DVM and still have it along with the sequels. We didn't know what to expect with the characters but the casting is wonderful and what could be better than a British tv show about animals?
 

SueLinda

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Definitely----anything by Nicolas Sparks turned into a movie....
Gone With The Wind (Rhett is named after Rhett Butler), Wizard of Oz, all the great classics......
 
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MoochNNoodles

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Currently DH and I are engrossed in the tv adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small. I read the first book by James Herriot, DVM and still have it along with the sequels. We didn't know what to expect with the characters but the casting is wonderful and what could be better than a British tv show about animals?
Oh you reminded me that I wanted to look into that one for my son. He usually likes nonfiction or historical novels but with his love of animals he might enjoy that set. If not; the tv version works im sure!
Definitely----anything by Nicolas Sparks turned into a movie....
Gone With The Wind (Rhett is named after Rhett Butler), Wizard of Oz, all the great classics......
Gone with the Wind was my grandma’s favorite movie. My cousin and I used to stay up late with her watching it during summer vacation. :redheartpump: I have a Rhett and Scarlet ornament on my tree for her.

I’m going to need to rewatch that and The Wizard of Oz! (Although I think the remastering of that for dvd kind of dulled the magic. You can see the difference in sets and props that weren’t noticeable when it was less clear.)
 
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Lari

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I will watch some adaptations, but 90% of the time fall into the book was better camp. I do think tv series tend to do better than movies for the most part, because of less time constraints (except for Game of Thrones which went so far off the rails idek).
 

Kris107

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I think it really depends! I liked the LOTR movies. There was a scene where it was exactly how I pictured it when I read the book. Another adaptation - Hunger Games - I saw the first movie then read the books. Of course I pictured the characters as they were cast in the first movie. The movies weren't as expansive as the books so I felt like I missed out on some things.
 

catloverfromwayback

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Depends. If it's a novel I adored, unlikely. (I loathe every picture I've seen from the LOTR films and nothing would persuade me to sit through them, or even the Hobbit films, and I didn't even like The Hobbit.) If it's one I mildly enjoyed, or the series/film is my first introduction to it, definitely. I'll always love the Barchester Chronicles series - Alan Rickman's first big TV role - much more than the books. Ditto the '95 P&P. I don't imagine I'll ever read Henry Fielding's great novel The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, but I love the series.
 

catloverfromwayback

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Currently DH and I are engrossed in the tv adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small. I read the first book by James Herriot, DVM and still have it along with the sequels. We didn't know what to expect with the characters but the casting is wonderful and what could be better than a British tv show about animals?
Which one are you watching, the '70s one with Christopher Timothy and Robert Hardy or the current one?
 

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I have seen the older version of ACGAS with Robert Hardy, whom I loved, and Peter Davison, who was Tristan. Couldn't stand the actor who played James. The new series is far superior IMO and I love the entire cast.

The answer to the question depends. If it is a mystery and I have read it, I won't watch it and if I have seen it, I won't read it. I agree that TV series can do much more justice than a film if the work is long.

Major works of literature I will watch even if I have read them but usually complain to anyone who will listen about how bad the adaptation was or how the producer took liberties with the text.
 

Margot Lane

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Well I thought Lawrence of Arabia (based on diaries), The Man Who Would be King (Kipling) and Treasure of the Sierra Madre (B. Traven) were all fantastic on the screen! But the joy of reading a book is such a difference experience than seeing a movie. I guess for me it all depends, and there is such an array of both! Everyone I meet seems to love “Les Mis“ the musical, but I don’t see how it could hold a candle to the novel by Victor Hugo.
 
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MoochNNoodles

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Depends. If it's a novel I adored, unlikely. (I loathe every picture I've seen from the LOTR films and nothing would persuade me to sit through them, or even the Hobbit films, and I didn't even like The Hobbit
DD is currently reading The Hobbit in Literature. I know DH has watched the LoTR movies with the kids so I’m curious how she will feel about the novel now. Neither appeal to me so I’m just trying to not let my preferences influence her experience. I’m just glad they are reading something more popular than most of what we had to read in high school. Still solid literature; but generally more liked as far as I can tell. I know she only did the Prince Caspian part of Narnia during a summer reading challenge back around 5th/6th grade or so.
 

maggiedemi

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Yes, I love movies based on books because they actually have a story behind them. I love true stories too.
 

KittyFriday

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I do think the book is usually better than the movie. But I like to see adaptations anyway. It's fun to see how it will portray on the screen, and to see the characters even if they're not quite what I've pictured.

A couple of my favorite series were previously in talks to become movies/books but I think they may have dropped off. Which is disappointing as I would have loved to see them.
 

cassiopea

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I'm similar on having mixed opinions about it, as someone said sometimes they can be great sometimes awful. I usually don't mind them and some changes are inevitable, but when it is so different I have a harder time with it. It is why I actually stopped watching Game of Thrones :lol: loved the books, and the show itself is pretty good (Aside from the infamous last season of course) but they started making way too many significant changes, even to the point of changing the characters, that I had a harder time getting lost in the story. I don't want to sound like I am some sort of purist but it was tricky.

Same thing has happened on occasion with some Agatha Christie adaptations. There also has been the rare case however where a show does better than in the book.
 
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