Books and Movie "Adaptations"

This may be a touchy subject for some. Book movies, or movie adaptations of books. I'm going to talk about them. This might get interesting.

The reason I'm bringing this up is because recently (actually about three weeks ago), I went to go see Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters. In 3D! Long story short, it was a great movie. It still isn't the epicness that the book was, but it wasn't a complete embarrassment like The Lightning Thief. Seriously, TLT wasn't just a bad adaptation of a book, it was a bad movie in itself. Sea of Monsters, however, was better. Like I said, it didn't live up to the book, but then, when does any movie do that?

All in all, I recommend going to see it. I have some other things to say about it, but I'm going to (try) to put it in a "spoiler" (it means you can choose to show or hide the text) in case you haven't read the book or seen the movie.

More SoM Stuff:

- As far as I can remember, it was never explained why Percy resented Tyson. A lot of the campers were teasing him about it, but I don’t think there was anything about him being embarrassed by his father, stuff like that.
- The part where Movie Annabeth said, “Was that Ethan Nakamura, Chris Rodriguez, and Silena Beauregard?” I almost screamed. Just no. No no no no no no.
- It would’ve been nice to see some development in the relationship between Annabeth and Percy. Right now, it seems a lot like, “Oh, a quest? Since you’re so stupid, I’ll come along to keep you in line.” Not like, “Well we’re friends, and friends look out for each other (plusIkindofhaveacrushonyou)”
If they had included the part with the Sirens (Annabeth listens to the Sirens and almost drowns/gets killed somehow, then tells Percy about her fatal flaw) that might’ve helped. I mean, Percy saves her life! Or the part on Circe’s island where Percy turns into a Guinea pig (I would’ve loved to see that). There, Annabeth saves him. And let’s not forget that she hugs him after that.
- Finally, Tyson. If you watch(ed) the movie, you’ll know what I mean.

Otherwise, click the jump to read more about books and movies, because I'm not just going to talk about Percy Jackson.
-------------------------------------------------

Okay, we've all been disappointed by the movie adaptations of our favorite books. Characters vanish, new ones appear, appearances change, et cetera. There are some good, solid reasons for some of that, actually. The other day I picked up a book about the movie Alex Rider: Stormbreaker. As you can probably guess, it was based on the book Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz. The movie was made years ago, but the book was still very interesting. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff like how portions of the movie were filmed.

Alex Pettyfer as Alex Rider in Stormbreaker

Near the beginning of the book, there's a short interview with Horowitz. In it, he talks about why the movie differs a lot from the book even though he was the one who wrote the screenplay. In short, a lot of what works in a book doesn't work in a movie. For example, the book opens with Ian Rider's funeral. In the movie, however, the first scene is a car chase which leads up to the death of Ian Rider. When asked to explain, Horowitz said:

"I wanted the movie to open with a bang - I didn't want to start with a funeral, which would have been slow and depressing. It was an was an excuse to have a really exciting car chase... and one with a difference. This time, the hero doesn't get away. Also, it helps us understand how Alex feels about the death of his uncle if we get to see the two of them talking together, even if it's only for a moment."

Think about it for a minute. If you were prepared to watch an action movie, would you rather see a sad funeral scene or an fast-paced car chase? It's like when you're writing. You need a hook to draw people into the movie. A car chase? Oh yes. Funeral, not so much.

Another big thing people have to consider is the budget, with both time and money. A movie can only be so long before people start getting bored. Also, everything costs money. Some things just aren't worth it in the end. In the book Stormbreaker, the main antagonist flew a cargo plane. On the other hand, in the movie, he flies a helicopter. Why? Because how in the world do you afford a cargo plane and still pay for the rest of the movie?!

This is unacceptable.

Now, these are the things there are things screenwriters and producers can get away with. Things you can't get away with: giving a character the wrong hair color (We're looking at you, Alexandra Daddario). All it takes is some hair dye. Also, getting a character's personality all wrong is just... no.

Oh yeah, I wanted to say this: more often than not, authors don't have control over the movie adaptation. Rick Riordan has stated many times that he had nothing to do with TLT movie, and that he's never even seen it. I understand that some authors make sure they know what's going on. One thing that really mattered to Anthony Horowitz was that he got to write the screenplay. Not all authors have an opportunity like that. Just thought I'd throw it out there.

Finally, there's nothing that can substitute for a good book. Sure, a movie shows you the action, but there's nothing better than your own imagination. I know it sounds corny, but it's true.

Anyway, I'm done now. School starts Monday, so I might not be blogging very much (not that I've been blogging that often). I am going to try to post something new every Friday though. If you've got an opinion on all of this movie stuff though, don't be afraid to write to me in the comments! I'd love to hear what you have to say.

Until next time!