Most people who like books have at one time had the experience of reading a book, and then seeing the movie, and being profoundly disappointed; or reading the book after seeing the movie and feeling, equally, that something has been lost. Avid book readers truly know the struggle of waiting for their favorite novel to be adapted into a movie, but then end up getting frustrated about all the little details that were left out.
Even Harry Potter fans can't still move on from the exclusion of the character Peeves in the movies, even if they were already great enough for the whole world to dive into. And don't forget the Percy Jackson movies that totally skipped around two to three books and merged the whole general plot into just two movies—and for long-term PJO fans, it was a nightmare to watch, but nevertheless, they were great movies if you just don't associate them with the books.
There are some exceptions, however, when people prefer the movie adaptations over books. You might think this is a rare instance, but you would be surprised at the number of books that have movies that not only gave the story and the characters justice but surpassed the expectations of readers and viewers as well.
That being said, people on Reddit shared the films they think are better than the books. Check out the best responses below and let us know if you agree!
1. Matilda (1996)
“The title character was just a hell of a lot more likable in the film than in the book.," said Bethlizardbreath.
2. Shawshank Redemption (1994)
“It was part of a four-part novella released by Stephen King. The story was very short, but very well-written. I just feel like the movie really captured the spirit of the story better and gave some depth to the characters. Plus, the acting was great," said jonny_walkman.
3. The Godfather (1972)
“I like the book, but the film is phenomenal,” said TerryGAdkinson.
4. Children of Men (2006)
“The movie was a million times better. The book had no scope,” said garglebum.
5. American Psycho (2000)
“The movie did a fine job of portraying how insane he was without going overboard. There were passages in the book that almost made me put it down and stop reading — it just got to be too much. Pure shock value,” said xArbilx.
6. Big Fish (2003)
“The movie explores the wondrous world of the father’s outrageous stories, whereas the book lacks all that lavish imagination. Instead, it’s just a bitter retelling from a spoiled child who thought his daddy didn’t love him enough,” said cavaliereternally.
7. Holes (2003)
“I don’t know if it was truly better, but damn, that movie did the book justice. One of my favorite childhood books and movies,” said FBI_ICE_CREAM_TRUCK.
8. Jurassic Park (1993)
“The movie created more suspense than I think was possible in the book. The build-up to the first time we see the T-Rex just wasn’t as intense on the page as it was on the screen,” said The_mightiest_pean.
9. The Notebook (2004)
“Rachel McAdams brought flair and charisma to her character that just wasn’t in the book,” said cleo1844.
10. Shrek (2001)
“They took a 36-page book children’s book and turned it into one of the greatest movies of all time,” said krakrocks.
11. Jaws (1975)
“Everyone in the novel is a terrible person. Also, a lot of the tension in the film is removed in the book because the guys hunting the shark get to go home every night whereas, in the film, they’re on the boat the whole time,” said MysteryGirlWhite.
12. Fifty Shades of Grey (2015)
“Listen — while they were both utterly atrocious — I have to say the film was better than the book because you didn’t have to listen to her awful inner monologue,” said Sarcastic-Me.
13. Arrival (2016)
“And this is coming from someone who really liked the short story. The movie was just better at telling that story overall,” said GreatTragedy.
14. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
“It was incredibly drawn out at times, and they were right to cut a lot of it out of the movie. The author also feels the need to describe the hell out of everything, and it gets tedious to read,” said dcbluestar.
15. Blade Runner (1982)
“The novel was good, but the movie perfected the tone and — quite honestly — I thought Deckard was written better in the film,” said mindfeces.
16. Fight Club (1999)
“The book had a better ending, in my opinion, but it was written in such a bizarre style that it was a chore to read. Also, it’s a short book,” said Driver_goon.
17. Jojo Rabbit (2019)
“It was WAY better than Caging Skies. The book was so goddamn bleak that it probably wouldn’t have been adapted otherwise,” said THACC-.
It definitely takes a lot of work and talent for people to prefer the movie to the book, and it's definitely even more amazing that an actor makes a character a lot more likable in the movie than they are in the novel! Let's just hope that future film producers and directors would follow through with this recipe because we can't keep disappointing the bookworms out there!
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