I don't think I need to explain that I'm a bookworm, I think I've made that one pretty clear (I hope) but something bothers me about the book vs film debate. Yes, I have been one of those people so devout to a book that the idea of someone deciding to watch the film first just seemed ridiculous and appalling. But I recently decided to take the plunge and watch The Book Thief before I read the book. Admittedly I was struggling to get into it and have picked it up and put it down numerous times. But watching the film has inspired me to pick up the book once more and give it a go.
Surely if the film inspires you to read the book and vise-versa then it's not that bad? I was thinking about it and surely it's not as bad as we can all make it out to be. Admit it you know someone or are the person that audibly gasps when people have said that they've watched the film but not read the book? Say that you've not read the books but love the films to any Harry Potter fan and they will fall to the ground in horror, sobbing as they quietly and repeatedly whisper "muggle" under their breath.
You think I'm being dramatic? Afraid not.
I love books and films pretty much equally and to me they inspire my creativity in different ways. Books make me want to sit down and type out my inner most thoughts where as films makes me want to get up and go out with my camera and see what I can do. I'm sure i'm not the only one that get's the same sort of buzz from books and films but any way of sparking people's interest, enthusiasm and creativity should be praised and not shunned because they "haven't read the book" or "seen the film". Not everyone can read, we're not all lucky enough to have an education that has taught us to understand the majority of words that we are reading. It's the same with films, not everyone is able to witness the beauty of a film with sound and be able to get the same feeling from the musical pieces in the background or feel moved by a speech, but then they can pick up a book and read that speech for themselves. We're not all lucky enough to be able to enjoy both films and books.
I get very protective when my favourite books are made into films. I had read The Fault in Our Stars EIGHT times before I saw the film and before that I had countless sleepless nights that my little world in my head wouldn't reach the same expectations on screen (it did however and I love the film!). It suddenly didn't feel like "mine" anymore and appeared to feel like a corporate job. I hated the thought of people who hadn't read the book going and seeing the film to the point where I actually had a breakdown over it. But looking back I was so stupid to think that, because surely my little secret, my favourite book has become popular with a whole new audience.
I love the difference that films and books have, before you say "duh" at me, I know, but let me explain. Books make us work a little harder to create a world and a story inside our heads. We have to imagine how each character looks by the extensive vocabulary of the authors. This means that each book, regardless to how many times it has been read globally, is unique to each individual reader, because each one of us will imagine what the story looks like completely differently. Films however have the use of lighting, sound, mise-en-scene (fancy word for hair and make up, props, etc.) and editing. Film makers can create the world that we are thrown in to, and their talent on doing so decides whether or not we are truly immersed in the world. Of course we can all view these differently too as not all of us like the same films, you'd never be able to get me into a horror movie but on the other hand I might not get you to sit and watch The Fault In Our Stars with me.
I know that people can fall in love with books so devoutly that watching the film first could be considered a sin. But surely if the film inspires the viewer to go and read the book after, that's not so bad, is it? I can list numerous films I saw before reading their books (The Perks of Being a Wallflower, ALL THE HARRY POTTER FILMS *audible gasp*, The Book Thief...) and I have rushed instantly to the book shelf and dived into the words on the page. So it's not really about what's considered right or wrong, but surely the love that we have for either the book, film or both.
Lots of Love,
Rebecca
xxx
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