I got this advice from a coworker when I was working at Barnes and Nobles. At first I was taken aback by the advice, the book is almost always better! But that is the point.
Have you ever had a book you love turned into a terrible movie or tv show? You hate watch because you love the book but come away disappointed. Now imagine if you did it in reverse. You watch an okayish/passable movie or show and then you get to enjoy a great book.
Doing it this way you almost always end up with a deeper understanding of the story/characters, get more plot and more detail.
Is there a chance for spoilers? Absolutely, and if that’s not your bag then this advice isn’t for you. However, I feel that spoilers can actually improve the experience. You’re more attuned to foreshadowing and know what to pay attention to.
Then there is also the chance that the adaption is just a fun movie with the same characters but no real connection to the original plot (looking at you Count of Monte Cristo).
Tl;dr: if you read a book then watch the movie you’ll probably be disappointed, but, if you watch the movie and then read the book you’ll probably have a deeper appreciation for how good the book is.
by Justadabwilldo
9 Comments
Yep, I love doing it this way! Sorry you’re getting downvoted, because I think it’s adds dimension and joy to stories.
This is terrible advice, as you will immediately put the actors into the book, and it will be that way forever
Read the book first, so you form your own vision of the world and characters.
Yessss. Save yourself the heartache. Watch the adaptation. Wait a year. Read the book
Problem with this is that your own fantasy gets replaced with whatever the movie version offers. For example, instead of imagining what a character looks like, you’ll just see the actor.
Or just read the book and never watch the movie/show. Problem solved.
No it’s book first so you can shit talk the movie.
I love this exercise for reading classics. The language is often so different to modern day and I get tripped up easily, so I’ll watch the film adaptation and or/listen to the audiobook before reading the physical book. I don’t do this like, all in one weekend but revisit the story over years. However sometimes it’s nice to read the book first and get super excited about a great actor fulfilling the part wonderfully (Carey Mulligan in Far From the Madding Crowd 😍)
Skipping the movie/tv show completly seems to be the best option of them all. It resolves every issue at hand.
I do the reverse? I read the book imagine the settings and characters. Then if I watch the show or movie when I think back my brain seems to fill in the good parts of the format together. Good example would be the bugs from Starship Troopers far exceeded my imagination when on the big screen and the suits from the TV series were more in tune with the intent of the book.