Book to film adaptation. Can "IT" work?

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John13

Active Member
Sep 25, 2016
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Writing and cinema are two completely different forms of art with different advantages and disadvantages. Can a book like "IT" transfer the reasons why its awesome to a different form of art? Here are two reasons why i believe it cannot

1)A writer can explain the motives and pcycology of the heros in a way the film cannot. In a film when someone attacks with a knife its just that. In the book though the writer can explain the motives and the thinking of the heros. This is important because the book is not about the clown but about the seven central characters. The clown plays a more peripheral role. In the movie no matter how good the actors are, in the end the children are not protagonists and its all about the clown. To say it otherwise the difference is between just seeing the highlights of the game and seeing all the game. Since a film cannot explain the pcycology of the characters we will focus on the parts the clown attacks the kids(the highlights of the film)

2)A book guides your imagination but a film controls it. A book might describe a house and everyone has his mind a different house(perhaps his own). A film cannot describe anything and you see the house the director had its in his mind. This is very important in a storyline like that because you have two paralel stories(the child and the adult). In the books i am 100% persuaded that child Ben and adult Ben are the same person. You are incapable of seeing him age but you can feel it and accept it naturally. One of the reasons why the adult part of the first film failed is because i never managed to convince myself that children and adults are the same persons becuase, you know, they werent. Different people, different ways of acting in the end i could never manage to convince myself that child Bev and adult Bev were the same person just because both actresses had red hair

In the end the movie might be better compared to the 1990 film but it will still fail to capture the best parts of the book
 

mal

content
Jun 23, 2007
4,714
27,243
61
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Howdy John13, I think this can be said for all movies. In the hands of a good director and crew, along with a well written screenplay, I believe that successful translation is possible. You can't get around subjective experiences while reading but I believe there is a central truth to it all. I cannot wait to see IT! All the best, mal.
 

doowopgirl

very avid fan
Aug 7, 2009
6,946
25,119
65
dublin ireland
Writing and cinema are two completely different forms of art with different advantages and disadvantages. Can a book like "IT" transfer the reasons why its awesome to a different form of art? Here are two reasons why i believe it cannot

1)A writer can explain the motives and pcycology of the heros in a way the film cannot. In a film when someone attacks with a knife its just that. In the book though the writer can explain the motives and the thinking of the heros. This is important because the book is not about the clown but about the seven central characters. The clown plays a more peripheral role. In the movie no matter how good the actors are, in the end the children are not protagonists and its all about the clown. To say it otherwise the difference is between just seeing the highlights of the game and seeing all the game. Since a film cannot explain the pcycology of the characters we will focus on the parts the clown attacks the kids(the highlights of the film)

2)A book guides your imagination but a film controls it. A book might describe a house and everyone has his mind a different house(perhaps his own). A film cannot describe anything and you see the house the director had its in his mind. This is very important in a storyline like that because you have two paralel stories(the child and the adult). In the books i am 100% persuaded that child Ben and adult Ben are the same person. You are incapable of seeing him age but you can feel it and accept it naturally. One of the reasons why the adult part of the first film failed is because i never managed to convince myself that children and adults are the same persons becuase, you know, they werent. Different people, different ways of acting in the end i could never manage to convince myself that child Bev and adult Bev were the same person just because both actresses had red hair

In the end the movie might be better compared to the 1990 film but it will still fail to capture the best parts of the book
While I see your point, there are films that capture the essence of a book. You haven't seen the film yet, so perhaps you should reserve your review until you've seen it.
 

GNTLGNT

The idiot is IN
Jun 15, 2007
87,651
358,754
62
Cambridge, Ohio
...Hi John, I welcome you....and I shall agree to disagree.....several films based on King's works truly captured this much bandied about and ballyhooed "essence.....Stand By Me, Misery, The Green Mile and Shawshank Redemption leap to mind....
 

Zone D Dad

Well-Known Member
Apr 17, 2017
359
1,829
Chicago Suburbs
I have very high hopes for this film, and I'm getting the impression that the people involved genuinely care about the project and are trying to maintain the spirit of the novel. In the end, I think that's all you can ask for. It doesn't have to be a completely faithful adaptation in order for it to be good. In fact, I'm hoping to be pleasantly surprised by the changes that have been made to the source material.
 

OldDarth

Well-Known Member
Jul 10, 2006
730
2,994
Canada
I have very high hopes for this film, and I'm getting the impression that the people involved genuinely care about the project and are trying to maintain the spirit of the novel. In the end, I think that's all you can ask for. It doesn't have to be a completely faithful adaptation in order for it to be good. In fact, I'm hoping to be pleasantly surprised by the changes that have been made to the source material.
....I think the movie was "warmer" if that makes any sense.....
Totally agree. And collapsing all the wardens in the short story to one in the movie makes the end pay off far more satisfying too.
 

Paddy C

All Hail The KING...
Sep 18, 2017
1,078
5,890
57
Drogheda, Ireland
If the great meandering behemoth that is Lord of the Rings can be wrestled into a great film, then the same can be done for any other book. It just needs the right creative team in charge.

I agree 100%, Steffen, and as it turned out I think the right creative team were in charge of this one. All I hope for now is that the same creative team do another great job on Chapter Two. I, for one, would love to see the concluding part of the story filmed in a similar vein without a cast of Hollywood A-listers. Just because the current movie made mega-bucks, I'd hate to see the next one made as a Hollywood epic.
Does that make sense?
 

Steffen

Well-Known Member
Aug 9, 2015
2,233
12,800
I agree 100%, Steffen, and as it turned out I think the right creative team were in charge of this one. All I hope for now is that the same creative team do another great job on Chapter Two. I, for one, would love to see the concluding part of the story filmed in a similar vein without a cast of Hollywood A-listers. Just because the current movie made mega-bucks, I'd hate to see the next one made as a Hollywood epic.
Does that make sense?

Perfect sense. I'm with you on this one.
 

TanyaS

painterly painter!
Nov 18, 2014
406
1,618
53
Auckland
Having recently seen the movie, I decided to re-read It for the first time in a long long time. It's so much better than I recall, very engrossing, I love the theme of rites of passage of childhood, (something the movie struggles to address, just my view). But you would need a very long movie to give full justice to this outstanding book. Such different mediums. I quite enjoyed the new film version of It, but in my opinion, because of the surface medium it is, it is only able to skim the depth of the source material. So much had to be left out. However, it is a well made and engrossing movie, I just happen to prefer the nuances and uncanny depth of the book. For me this is a very fine King novel, I haven't read many of his later works, the style became very different, I am a big fan of all the early books.
btw, New Zealand just held a general election, did this make the news anywhere in Maine...lol, just wondering...
 
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