Bookish Mentions (#3)

Bookish Mentions is my new weekly post where I'll be posting my thoughts on books I've read but not been able to review, upcoming books I'm looking forward to, general thoughts on genres or books I've encountered, thoughts on book-based movies, and the like. Enjoy!

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Books-to-Movies

There have been many debates on movie adaptations of books--while some believe that they do the books justice, other movies are put down for being unfaithful to the book. I know some people believe that the movie shouldn't be too faithful; that the movie should be the director's own interpretation, and I agree. We may all see the book differently, and in a way, watching a movie is seeing the director's take on the book. But where do you draw the line? When does it stray too far from the book?





Which movies do you find most faithful to the books (or plot or characters of the book) they were based on?

I thought Peter Jackson did a pretty good job with the Lord of the Rings trilogy in general! It was no easy feat to making all three of them into decent movies that didn't drag on for hours and hours. The effects were very good, characters were pretty good, and the plot was as faithful as it could've been in the time limit they had. I have to say the music was well composed and really helped create the moods in the movie! The Academy Awards the trilogy earned was well deserved, in my humble opinion.


Which one was most disappointing?

Personally, I thought the movie version of Blood and Chocolate was pretty disappointing. I'm a fan of the book, but the movie was it's own thing! It hardly followed the book's plot, it seemed kinda corny at times, and they changed so much--characters, plot, relationships, everything! I mean, they pretty much changed the biggest point in the plot, and switched around the family relations, not to mention rearranging the way of the pack. I know some of it was probably for theatrical effect, but it still seemed a far departure from the book :/
I was really disappointed, but if you were just to watch the movie, I suppose it isn't so bad. But if you compare it to the book, you'll wonder what happened.


Comics & Graphic Novels-to-Movies

Any comic book or graphic novel fans out there?
Did you like X-Men, Watchmen, Over the Hedge, V for Vendetta, Garfield, etc?
Any favorites? Any disappointments?

Personally, I love the Over the Hedge comics, and thought the movie was pretty amusing. Nice animations and pretty silly, so I got a good laugh. The comics are hilarious though, if you get a chance to check it out!
I also liked V for Vendetta, but I'll admit I didn't read the graphic novel that closely. Thought the movie was good, though.
Can't say I'm too thrilled with the Garfield movies though. I am a big Garfield fan, and have been since I've been a kid, so I guess my expectations were high.



With plenty of movies based on books coming out this year, which one are you looking forward to most?

I know my friend has become a die-hard Twilight fan and will watch New Moon--any other people waiting for New Moon?

I was pretty surprised when I found out they were making Fantastic Mr. Fox into a movie--I loved that book as a kid!
And despite some of the Harry Potter movies being rather disappointing, I think I'll still be watching Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince when it hits theaters in July.

I'd love to hear your thoughts!