The book is always better, right? Right. But sometimes, when a movie is coming out and I really want to see it, I'm tempted to see it before reading the book because I don't have time to read it first. So I want to know, when is it okay to see the movie first? Is it ever okay? Or will just make the book lose its magic when you finally get around to reading it? OR...will it make the movie better if you don't read the book first?
I recently read Game of Thrones. Yay! But I've already watched the show. So I knew everything that was going to happen. I still loved the book and flew through all 807 pages of it in just four days! But I find myself wondering how my reading experience would have been different had I not seen the show first. Would I have been confused. Would I have been a bit more emotional when all the crazy things were going down? Would I have taken more time with the book? Sometimes, I feel like I was skimming a bit since I already knew what was going to happen. I sit here, thinking about all this, and I really wish that I would have read the books first. *sigh* But now that I have watched the show, I almost don't want to catch up. Because then that will spoil the show... I'm so torn on this. Any advice?
There are also a couple movies that I really wanted to see when they came out like Great Gatsby and Les Miserables that I wanted to see, but didn't because I wanted to read the books first. And Gayle Forman's If I Stay is being turned into a movie and I really want to see it, but I haven't read the book yet. Don't know if I'll have time to read it before it comes out either. So what should I do? Do I see the movie and potentially ruin the book for myself? Or do I wait, read the book, and then rent the movie when it comes out? The thing is, I want to support the movie by going to see it in theaters. Because that's how we get more of our favorite books made into movies. But I don't want to spoil my reading experience.
On the other hand, it might make the movie better if I see it before I read the book. Because like I said earlier, the book is always better. Maybe I would enjoy the movie more if I saw it before reading the book and therefore, had nothing to compare it to. But knowing myself, I won't be able to do that. Because let's be honest, books win every time for me. And I will always choose the book over the movie.
What do you guys think? Is it ever okay to see the movie first? Do you think you would enjoy the movie/show better had you not read the book? How do you think watching the movie first changes your reading experience? Does it change it in a good way or a bad way?
I have this thing where I usually want to read the book beforehand. Just because a lot of book to movie adaptations are disappointing. but there have been movies that i've enjoyed way more than the books - main example I'm thinking of is the lord of the rings trilogy. (loved the books but tehy were SO drawn out). So... basically i'm no help because I think it depends. Haha. Also, i've never read les mis but have seen the play multiple times and also the movie. that book is just SO long...
ReplyDeleteAlso I had the exact opposite experience as you with game of thrones. I read the first book and hten watched the first season and while the show was SO good, I didn't enjoy it as much I felt like because it followed it so closely and I had JUST finished the book that I was just expecting everything. I've since read the 2nd and 3rd and part of the 4th book (but stopped, i'll pick it up one day) but haven't seen the show. That was about a year ago. So now I feel like I've forgotten some of the details so I'm going to binge watch the rest of the seasons and I feel like it'll make it more enjoyable and at the same time refresh my memory before I finish the 4th book. Haha.
Also, I think you should read If I stay before the movie. Mainly because I loved the book but also it's a reaaally really quick read. I cried. A lot.
Yeah. I pretty much always want to read the book beforehand and for the most part I do. Game of Thrones is really the only exception. I guess and Lord of the Rings. I feel like I may have read those books after the movies? I'm actually not sure though. It was a long time ago.
DeleteBut I'm pretty adamant about it. I have avoided the Harry Potter movies like the plague since I haven't read the books yet. I definitely want to read before seeing. Les Mis I might just watch the movie because that book is a chunker and it scares me. Lol.
Yes to binge watching GOT!!! I am obsessed with that show.
I think I will definitely read If I Stay before I go see the movie. I just need to buy it now. Oh boy. I'll bring my tissues.
I'm actually a watch the movie first person. There has been a few times where I have wanted to read the book first but more often then not I would rather see the movie then read the book.
ReplyDeleteI think it's because I have so frequently been disappointed by the movie adaptation of a beloved book. They always change things and take huge sections out, which I understand because it's a different medium. If I see the movie first and then read the book I am less likely to be annoyed with how they changed things. Usually after then reading the book I understand things a lot more. A Game of Thrones is a perfect example for that. I saw the first three seasons before reading the books and then when I did read them I loved the early books for their increased explanation but found the later books wordy. And now that I'm ahead of the show, while watching this season I focused more on the changes to the plot than the actual plot.
But I also I may like to watch movies first because I am the kind of person who doesn't mind spoilers. I think it makes me read more critically. Instead of anxiously worried about what happens next I am looking for foreshadowing and the steps that lead to the climax rather than suspecting every possible solution. I kind of like knowing what happens.
The one movie adaptation that I'm torn about whether I should read the book first is Gone Girl. I've been wanting to read it and the movie's coming out soon. I would normally not care but the author is supposed to have rewritten the ending! Talk about changing things for a movie!
Great discussion! You've actually given me the idea to do a post about why I like spoilers!
Cassi @ My Thoughts Literally
Really?? That's true. I definitely feel like I would like the movie a lot better if I saw it before reading the book. I do agree about understanding things better. Part of me wants to catch up with the show and part of me doesn't. I don't want to get the show spoiled for me and I really wonder if I would enjoy the books as much or if they would be confusing.
DeleteI definitely do not like spoilers. I hate being spoiled which is why I tend to like to read the book first. Ironically though, with GOT I don't want the show to be spoiled. I guess it depends on what I do first?
I haven't read Gone Girl so unfortunately I can't give any advice there. That's crazy that the author rewrote the ending!
Thanks, can't wait to read it!
For me, it always comes down to what book/movie/show it is. I wanted to reread Divergent before I saw the movie (because it had been a few years, so I basically forgot 95% of it), but I really didn't have time, so I just went ahead and saw it. Typically, I do like to read the book (or reread it) first, because I like comparing the film to it. It's much easier for me to do the book first, so I can think 'ok, the film changed this...' versus reading it after and saying, 'ok, the book doesn't have this...'. When it comes to TV shows, I'm usually a lot more laid back on which I do first, because I feel like TV shows change things more than movies do (in my experience anyway), so I'm fine if anything gets spoiled. Plus, TV shows stretch out for several seasons, or at least one, so I would have time to squeeze a book read of it in between episodes if I needed to.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!!
That's a great point about TV shows. Like Gossip Girl. Nothing like the books, but equally good on its own. I actually ended up liking the show better than the books. But I agree. I do like to reread books before movies if possible, although it isn't always. I like to have the story fresh in my mind. But maybe that's just hurting my movie going experience? I feel like maybe if I was a bit vague on the details, I would enjoy the movie more?
DeleteI watched The Princess Bride before reading the book, and it made reading the book a much better experience. I think that's the only one that I watched before reading the book though?
ReplyDeleteYeah, I definitely haven't watched many where I haven't read the book. I'm pretty adamant about my "read the book first" rule. I haven't read the Princess Bride actually. Only saw the movie. I should read it soon!
DeleteThis is definitely something bookish people debate. For me, I try not to let it matter if I've seen the book or movie first. I've never been overly picky about book to movie adaptations because I like to appreciate them as something entirely separate from the book. It's an adaptation, so when I first saw the Harry Potter movies I was annoyed because my favorite scene in this movie had been left out or cut from here, but realistically, what I imagine as I'm reading the book isn't what I'll see when I go to the movie. And I'm ok with that, because it's a different experience entirely. Sure, seeing the movie or tv show first could lead to some spoilers. But a lot of the popular television shows and movies that are adaptations won't be completely spoiler-y for two reasons to me. One, if they're already that popular I've probably already been spoiled through twitter, tumblr when I'd used it, or just talking with people. And secondly, adaptations like Game of Thrones are similar to the books, I know for the first one especially, but gradually differ and take a different direction.
ReplyDeleteFor example, the Pretty Little Liars tv show. The books unfolded in a completely different way from the tv show, so that people could enjoy both but the concept is the same with the four girls in Rosewood and A. So, as the show developed, it wasn't very spoiler-y for the books because it became two different creations- the book and the adaptation.
So, in general, I've had to come to terms with being spoiled on tv shows and books. I know what happens in Game of Thrones even though I've yet to finish the first book or start the tv show. But in a way, because it's so popular, I've seen and been a part of the fandom just from knowing what's going on and discussing it with friends. I would say if the movie or tv show is coming out soon and you really want to see it, go for it and then read and appreciate the book. There's definitely no perfect solution, because then there's the whole idea of 'the imagined versions of the characters you've created throughout the book and the portrayal of them in the tv show or movie'.
This is yet another awesome and thought provoking discussion post- love it!
Yeah, I'm nitpicky when it comes to adaptations. I wish I could be more like you though. I would maybe enjoy more adaptations then. I would actually prefer if the show/movie went completely down a different path then the books rather than being close but changing some important (to me) things.
DeleteTake Gossip Girl for instance. That show went in a completely different direction from the books, but I ended up liking the show more. I wasn't mad about the changes because they were so drastically different that it honestly didn't really feel like the same thing anymore.
I am not about spoilers though. I HATE being spoiled and I will avoid Twitter/tumblr like the plague the day after a new GOT episode airs until I can watch it. And if someone spoils me, I pretty much murder them with my eyes and then tell them we can't be friends anymore. Lol.
I've come to accept the fact that there are too many books out there to read them all. So, if I've always wanted to read the book and a movie comes out, I'll read the book first. But if I had never heard of the book then I'll probably just watch the movie. For example, I haven't read much Stephen King and had never heard of Under the Dome. So when I heard of the mini-series The Dome, I decided I'd rather just watch it and not read the book. I don't really feel guilty about it!
ReplyDeleteTruth. That's a really good way of looking at it. I might just see Les Mis and Great Gatsby w/o reading them first because I want to read them, but they're not a major priority for me so I feel like it's okay to see the movie first.
DeleteI almost always read the book before seeing the movie/TV show. As you know, I think I didn't enjoy Game of Thrones as much because I knew what was going to happen. I just didn't feel the same compulsion to read to find out, etc. But I agree, I think I might have been confused a bit, with all of the characters and names, it might have been hard to keep it straight.
ReplyDeleteWhen I've read the book first, it's just different seeing the characters come to life with the actors, visually seeing the places, etc. So I am going to try and read the book first from now on, if I want to read the book. But there are times when I'm not that interested in reading the book and a movie or TV show comes along so I'm not going to not watch just because it's based on a book and I haven't read it. I just started watching The Leftovers and I have read Tom Perotta, but I just don't feel like reading the book right now so I'm watching it first. Great post! ~Pam
Yeah, I definitely agree about that. I do wonder if I would have enjoyed the book even more if I hadn't already seen the show. Are you planning on catching up? Because part of me wants to and the other part really doesn't....
DeleteI agree. If I'm even remotely interested in reading the book, I'm going to read it first. But if I'm not interested, I'll probably see the movie.