Why it is so hard to make a great book into a great movie? (Part 2)

Why it is so hard to make a great book into a great movie? (Part 2)

Another area of frustration is in casting.  Let’s face it, as readers we often quickly mentally cast our favorite characters.  I will admit it… I love seeing YouTube videos of ideal fan casts.  It is interesting to see what fans come up with and how other people see the characters.  Sometimes the film cast will match what fans envision, but most times it does not.

Let’s look at some real life examples…  I remember a lot of readers were really upset with the casting of Robert Pattinson as Edward in Twilight… but I think most of them got over that fast.  And as much as like Josh Hutcherson as an actor, I would not have cast him as Peeta with Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss simply because he is about two inches shorter than her.  Little bit of an issue for me… Now, after seeing the Hunger Games, I think the casting worked, but still not my choice…  I would not have cast Toby Maguire as Spiderman either, but I think he did a great job.  I also would not have Heath Ledger as the Joker in Dark Knight, but he was phenomenal. 

So who ultimately makes the final casting choices in films?  Most people think the Casting Director has that job.  While that is a good guess (I mean it makes sense with the name and everything), they’d be wrong.  What the Casting Director really does is weed out and suggest the top people from auditions.  What you may not have known is that, in most cases, the Director ultimately has the final say in who makes the cast.  So if you don’t like the cast, blame the Director, not the Casting Director!

Now, while we may be angry over these choices from time to time, let’s give the guys a break.  They are just interpreting words on a page (like we are) and trying to bring them to life.  For no matter how descriptive the writer may be with characters, we’re all going to see something different.  Only the writer knows what they really mean and what they see when they create their stories.

However, I would say that usually casting turns out well.  Directors know what they’re doing.  But I think that the best way to ensure the best cast would be to include the author in the casting process.  Just throwing it out there!

Let me know any of your thoughts!

Why it is so hard to make a great book into a great movie?

I have often heard the phrase, "the book was so much better than the movie."  In fact, I am not sure I have ever heard anyone say that they enjoyed the movie better than the book from which it was made. 

Do you ever wonder why that might be?

I started writing screenplays before novels and it took me a few years to adjust to the more narrative and descriptive form of literary books and be able to switch easily between the two forms (this was not easy).  So as a writer of both films and novels, I would like to help those interested to better understand the world of creative writing and movie making.

It usually starts with the book  

You have fallen in love with the story and emotionally connected to the characters over the course of 300-500+ pages.  You have laughed with them, cried with them and watched them grow throughout the course of the story.  In 300 + pages you had time to do that.

When writing screenplays, 1 page equals about 1 minute of screen time. That means a 120-page script is a two-hour movie.  Now, I love the Lord of the Rings films, but I still struggle to sit down for 3 - 3.5 hours to watch the extended editions, which would equal about 180 - 210 pages of script (well short of the 300 - 450 page books).  

So when adapting a book into a movie everything has to be shortened.  A screenplay writer has to look at the story as a whole and quickly decide what is important, what can be taken out and not missed.  I understand this can be infuriating for die-hard book fans, but I would argue that is why we have the book in the first place.

I would also like to note that movie theaters are businesses.  One of the biggest reasons longer movies do not get made is because they cannot show them as many times as day and end up losing money.  Not to mention most audience members do not have very long attention spans.  It is very difficult to keep someone entertained for over two hours, thus not boding well for good reviews and word of mouth to spread about the film.

Therefore, with the simple logistics of business and time constraints, there is not nearly enough time to connect with the characters on the movie screen, as you would have in the book.  Their journey is shortened.  Often times minor characters deleted, whole chapters and scenes forgotten.   

Welcome, book fan to the movie business.

More to come soon! I would love to hear your thoughts as well any films adaptions you like and would recommend.