Movies versus Books

This is a question a lot of people ask. The answer is, of course, whichever you prefer. Some people can't read long periods without falling asleep, some people have difficulties reading, period. You get a lot more information from books the movies have no real way of portraying to the viewer, and that's one reason I personally prefer reading. Movies are good for multitasking, if you use it for background noise while reading, writing, doing any sort of working. Of course, you'll miss details, so I only do that if I've seen the movie before, so I can fill in the blanks.

Now, movie portrayals of books are another matter for me. Generally, I'm not big on them. They'll change major plot points to suit their needs or desires, and often change the book in such a way you wonder how it's supposed to even be related to the book of the same title. Ella Enchanted, Eragon, I Am Number Four, you name it, most of them don't do well and I refuse to watch their movies ever again. There are good ones though, if you look hard enough. One of my favorites, both as a book and as a movie is Howl's Moving Castle, a Ghibli masterpiece (in my humble opinion) that changed plot points in such a way as to make it an alternate story, I feel, but was true enough to most aspects of the book that I recognized the original British novel. The author enjoyed the movie as well. I have all three of what I have dubbed the Howl Trilogy. Howl's Moving Castle, Castle in the Air, and House of Many Ways, chronologically in that order, and I enjoyed them all. I enjoy looking for the original stories of any movie or show I enjoy watching, and making comparisons. I may be alone in that aspect, but if that's the case, so be it.

I'm not going to say that all movies based on books are bad, and that people who prefer movies over books are lazy. Not in the slightest. Like I said, it's your opinion, whatever you prefer. This is merely me, putting my thoughts out there for anyone who chooses to read. I respect the opinions of others, and I expect them to do the same for me.