Hello again folks! The Hunger Games are upon us. I bought my tickets early for the midnight showing. If you know what movie you want to see and what time it is going to show, you should buy your tickets early. Beat the lines you know and get on that concession stand line earlier!
A question that usually pops up in my mind regarding movies and other types of media that are based off of books, is whether or not I should read the book prior or after...or should I even read it at all. If you do not enjoy reading, you are obviously not thinking about this question at all! But if you do enjoy reading, what should you do? I have thought deeply about this and I have come up with a few pros and cons.
Here are a few pros and cons for watching a movie before reading the book. Let's start with the pros! Your expectations will be low. You will not be as demanding. Right now, the people who are hyped up for The Hunger Games are the people who actually read the book. Honestly, the trailer does not look that great to me, I would have merely watched it just to see why people are so hyped. So by having those lowered expectations, you may be able to enjoy the film more. So now you have watched the film and are interested enough to pick up the book. While reading you now have a better idea of how the characters look and how the setting looks. You may also get more information that allows you to enhance your interest in the story the film showed you. So the pro here is that the book will be easier to read and may divulge more information to you. But then there is another side to that. The picture I have above is for the film known as Shutter Island. The film is based on a novel of the same name. I absolutely loved the ending to that film. I then later found out that the ending is not the same in the novel. Its not that it was altered but it simply was shorter than the film. So watching the movie may just provide you with a better story.
Now for the cons. Twilight...Yes, I did go see this movie. It was a mess. If I had read the book first, I would have known not to watch this movie(although the following movies of the saga are actually leaps and bounds better than the first one). Then there is always the bad film you see and afterword you hear people say how much better the book is. Then you feel you should have just read the book in the first place. I don't know about you but I hate when that happens...
Now why can it be a good idea to read the book before watching the film? Obviously so you can be snobbish when you see people buying the book after the movie came out and be like "pfffft why you so lame I read book early than you heh heh heh"...No, don't be like that! But really, reading the book first can make you hyped. Then you go into the film with knowledge about the book in your mind. The film may answer some questions that were lingering in your head. The film may also enhance scenes in the book. So it may be nice to see your favorite scenes get the extra attention. Reading the book may also allow you to have a better understanding of what is going on. Where one may be lost, you will be content.
Now a con would be for movies like Shutter Island. If you read the book before the film, you ruin the twist for yourself hence killing the suspense and mystery of the film altogether. Another con, closely related to the last, is when a book has a great ending. Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter has such an awesome ending that I know will look awesome in theaters. But now I have spoiled that ending by reading the book and I will be expecting nothing short of excellence. I think that's about all I can say for watching films after reading the books.
Well those are just my thoughts. It kind of depends on how you feel. Honestly I only know whether or not I made the right choice after I already made the choice. For example, I don't mind that I read The Hunger Games as much as I do for Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter. That's the way the cookie crumbles! Well see you all next time.
Yo Pro tip: to save money, buy movie vouchers if you can't make the matinee showing!
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