Name an instance of a story where you liked the book, but you loved the movie more.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

For me, it would be Cloud Atlas.

In full disclosure, I saw the movie first before reading--or even hearing anything about--the book. I immediately fell in love with it.

I then read the David Mitchell book.

It was well-written but I still preferred the movie. I enjoyed the whiplash styled transitions between the stories of the movie more than the more structured components of the book. And the book occasionally goes off on tangents that make the stories a little pointless (namely in the Sonmi story).

Not sure whether or not my opinion on book vs. movie would have been different if I had read the book first.

[Zoonart]

1. IN honor of Tom Wolfe

I loved the book, but I adore this movie. THE RIGHT STUFF.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

2. Yep, that one actually inspired me to write the post.

The book was great. The movie was divine.

[Zoonart]

4. We're sharing' a brain, Tom.

I can't help but tear up every time I watch this. I am so very sad at what this nation has lost.

[Va Lefty]

3. Shawshank Redemption

Read the Stephen King novella "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" and thought it was very good. I like most of his stuff. Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman knocked it out of the park! Should have won Best picture

[Zoonart]

5. This is a great choice too.

Great movie.

[forgotmylogin]

6. Similarly - Stephen King's "The Mist"

The story was barely an episode, but the movie brought across dread in a creature flick where "humans are the scariest monster" with a shocking, ironic, and sad finale - which Stephen King praised as being better than the ending he wrote.

[ExciteBike66]

8. I had the audiobook as a kid

scared the crap out of me.

[Midwestern Democrat]

33. The 1983 film adaptation of Stephen King's "The Dead Zone" is also better than the book. NT

[forgotmylogin]

34. Agreed.

I also probably would have to say the same about Pet Sematary which ends abruptly and ironically like an episode of the Twilight Zone - which was disappointing and frustrating after spending so much time reading a novel but made much more sense content-wise in the quicker length format of a movie.

More concisely: The Mist was better as a movie because it was longer, Pet Sematary was better as a movie because it was shorter!

[lame54]

14. that's ironic because...

It lost to Forrest Gump - A movie which was also better than it's book

[ExciteBike66]

7. Kind of on topic: Peter Dinklage's character on Game of Thrones

I have read the books, and I also have heard some of the audiobook. The audiobook voice guy makes Tyrion sounds like an elderly leprechaun (no offense to elderly leprechauns).

Peter Dinklage makes the Tyrion character so much less buffoonish in my mind.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

18. that's because

Peter Dinklage drinks and knows things. Regrettably, I feel like his character has been kind of sidelined with less to do since seasons 4-5 but I agree that his GOT version of his character has been much better than his book character (at least through A Clash of Kings).

[Ron Obvious]

9. Blade Runner

To be fair, I saw the movie first and the book is so completely different, it's essentially a different story altogether.

Can't think of any other examples. No matter which order I experienced them, I always preferred the book.

[dixiegrrrrl]

10. 2 books....

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe .....by Fannie Flag

and The Color Purple......by Alice Walker

[sagetea]

11. "What Dreams May Come"

by Richard Matheson. The book was extraordinary, the movie, for me, was awesome! Robin Williams did and incredible, believable, passionate, and compassionate portraying the main character.

[backtoblue]

40. Love that movie!

I never read the book, but that was a good movie.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

12. The Bible

I stayed awake for the whole movie.

[lame54]

13. Terms of Endearment

[Pharlo]

15. Two times I can think of where I liked the movie better than the book.

1. Portrait of Dorian Gray
2. A Time to Kill

[backtoblue]

16. The Color Purple, Intensity

[forgotmylogin]

36. Intensity by Dean Koontz?

I caught that in the middle randomly and was fascinated and surprised when I saw his name on the commercial bumper. I can usually take or leave Koontz in book form.

Phantoms was a rare book that made me put it down for a bit cause it gave me the willies - the opening was so good. Strangers was like "anything going to happen in this chapter? No? SnnnzzzzZZzzzz..."

[backtoblue]

39. Yes

I read Koontz and King mostly mostly as a teenager. His books are hit and miss. I really liked "Doorway to December" and "The Bad Place" .

"The Darkest Evening of the Year" was really boring.

[MicaelS]

17. One time the movie was MUCH better..

Than the book, is Ben Hur. The 1956 William Wyler version was magnificent (there was an early silent version). The book is awful. The writing is florid and practically unreadable. It was a written as an explicit tract for Christianity. The WW movie was not.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

19. I do a lot of this backwards

I usually see the movie BEFORE I read the book, so I generally treat the movie as a "cliff notes" version of the story and go back and read the book to help understand some things better. I think that, in general, the Lord of the Rings movies were more exciting and interesting than the books, which were a lot slower and packed with a lot of superfluous side characters and plot lines.

[Exotica]

20. A Clockwork Orange

Plus the whole genre of Clockwork UK punk it spawned

[Wolf Frankula]

21. 2001 a Space Odyssey

Great book Wonderful movie.

Wolf

[cemaphonic]

22. Kubrick in general

"Clockwork Orange" and "The Shining" for sure. "Lolita" would be the major exception here.

[forgotmylogin]

37. The Shining film is SO different from the book.

They're both good, and I think Kubrick is a genius that he remade that story to work visually as a beautiful film of an unfilmable book made up mostly of interior monologue.

[sweetloukillbot]

29. The book was an adaptation of the screenplay I think

The movie came first - Clarke wrote the screenplay them adapted it into the movie, drawing ideas from some of his earlier work, mostly The Sentinel and Childhoods End, IIRC.

[Initech]

23. Fight Club

It was the first instance where the book was better than the movie.

[Glorfindel]

24. "Stand By Me" - the movie was a masterpiece

The Stephen King novella on which it was based, "The Body," was excellent, but the movie was MUCH better. Thanks for posing an interesting question!

[blue neen]

25. Cold Mountain

That movie was so well done. I read the book first, so I cried through both!

[Heartstrings]

26. "The Green Mile"....Stephen King

Although the complete story released in 6 paperbacks, was a unique twist to the norm, the movie was exceptional in bringing them all together in one sitting. Great casting, too!

[Rustynaerduwell]

28. That's one I was going to cite.

You beat me to it. Coincidentally, I had this discussion earlier tonight. Two books came to mind. This, and my choice below.

[Rustynaerduwell]

27. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

The soundtrack and the final scene are transcendent.

[Heartstrings]

31. Great choice!

Phenomenal casting as well!

[Laffy Kat]

30. "Beloved"

They did a great job with that movie and I don't think it got it's due.

[Number9Dream]

32. "Midnight In the Garden of Good and Evil"

The movie flowed as a story-line, while the book was episodic and choppy.

[mia]

35. Like Water for Chocolate

Loved reading the book when it first came out, complete with recipes. The movie was magical. Just saw it again on Netflix.

&t=13s

[UTUSN]

38. Reflections in a Golden Eye. Carson McCULLERS.

[yellowdogintexas]

41. not a movie but a BBC series: "Reilly, Ace of Spies"

with Sam Neill....


fabulous TV series
book was dull as dishwater

[TexasBushwhacker]

42. Hud

In the book, Horseman Pass By, Hud is really bad, start to finish. He actually rapes the maid and she had absolutely no interest in him. Unlike Patricia Neal, the maid in the book is black. Hud in the film is still a bad guy, but the character is more complex; gray instead of black or white.