Movies vs. Books

Last night as I was finishing up a book, my husband was teasing me about staying up so late to read.  I quickly replied, "Well why do you stay up late watching movies?" He hates to read.  In fact, in the twelve years we have been together, not once has he read a book.  There are a few books he read in school, but he hasn't read since.  Give him a good movie though, or a few, and he has no problem staying up late on the couch while I sleep in our bed.  I, on the other hand, rarely stay up late watching movies.  Occasionally, on a weekend, I might.  However, give me a good book, and I can't bear to to put it down.  That's the reason I've been running on very little sleep the last few days.  I finally had the opportunity to finish the Hunger Games series thanks to a wonderful friend who let me borrow Catching Fire and Mockingjay.  Even though I have to get up at 5am for work, I stayed up until midnight on Sunday, eleven on Monday (because that's what time it was when I finished Catching Fire), and midnight last night, which is when I finished Mockingjay.  Because my husband hates to read, he doesn't get my obsession with books.  He doesn't mind, though; he just likes to tease me.

It's not that I hate movies.  That couldn't be further from the truth.  My husband and I love watching movies together.  I just prefer books.  And if for the rest of my life I could only read books or only watch movies, I don't even have to think about which option I would choose.

And that brings me to my next point.  Books are always better than their movie counterparts.  I understand there are time constraints and budget issues when it comes to making a movie, but I hate when a movie greatly differs from the book.  And that's why I'm a bit scared of watching the Hunger Games.  After reading the first book in the series, I knew right away I would not watch the movie in the theater.  I enjoyed the book too much and didn't want to spend money on a movie that vastly differs.  And that is despite the fact that it has gotten great reviews and was number one at the box office for several weeks.  I'm scared I'll be mad after watching it.  Not just mad.  Livid.  That's happened before.  I am a huge Chronicles of Narnia fan.  When Prince Caspian came out in the theater, I was excited to go see it.  I was livid for months afterward.  The character personalities were so incredibly different, I couldn't think about the movie without seething.  I don't want to feel that way about Hunger Games. 

Eventually I got over it.  I even bought Prince Caspian and watch it frequently.  However, I still turn my head away or close my eyes while cringing during some scenes; they're just so wrong compared to the book.  The great thing is I can always go back to the book.  I'll probably watch Hunger Games once it's out on DVD.  And even if it ticks me off, I'll get over it in time.  I'll get to a point where I can enjoy it, but it will never be as good as the book.

Movies never are.

Twilight Series and Hunger Games

As was the case with the Twilight series, I've jumped on Hunger Games a little late.  The books have frequented the bookshelves for several years now, but I was never interested in reading them.  Even though I am trying to be more open to what I read, I'm still persuaded by book covers and titles.  And Hunger Games just didn't seem appealing.  But last week, as the movie was about to be released, I became curious by all the hype.  I read a summary for the entire trilogy and thought it sounded sort of interesting, even though I hate the idea of kids having to kill kids.  But that aside, the previews for the movie didn't seem bad either.  So on a whim, I purchased the first book of the trilogy.

*Minor spoiler below*

And it was actually pretty good.  I wanted to slap some sense into Katniss several times (for her ignorance about Peeta's love for her), but other than that I enjoyed the story enough that I definitely want to read the others.  And yes, even knowing how the relationship between Katniss and Peeta turn out by the end of the trilogy, I still wanted to slap Katniss.  I figure the author was probably trying to show the reader that Katniss wasn't sure of her feelings, or maybe was unwilling to really acknowledge them, but I was still annoyed.  I hate when a character comes off as stupid.  However, if I consider her to be stupid, it's just in the area of love. 

After reading the Twilight series and now Hunger Games, I can definitely say I'm being more open to what I read since neither of them piqued my interest initially.  At the same time, I realize my love for romance will never diminish.  It was the dynamics between Bella and Jacob (in Twilight) and Katniss and Peeta (in Hunger Games) that kept me intrigued.  And it is because at the moment I am mad at Katniss (because Hunger Games ended without her acknowledging how she feels about Peeta) that I will continue reading the trilogy.