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Film Adaptations

Film Adaptations

Date: Jul 08 2009

Themes: Hobbies

Grammar: Gerunds vs. Infinitives

Intro

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2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

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Have you ever read a book and thought, “That would make a great movie!”? Novels and stories are often used as the jumping-off point for films. And if you think about it, turning a bestseller into a movie is a pretty wise investment, since most of the people who read the book will be curious to see it on the big screen.

But film adaptations can also be risky. If a book is really popular, then fans might get upset if the movie is too different from the original. Plus, books usually include a lot more detail than can be included in a film, so the filmmakers have to decide which parts to keep and which parts to cut. And then there are all the tough decisions to be made about which actors should play which characters. Bad casting can ruin a great adaptation. You wouldn’t want to see Harry Potter played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, would you?

Listen to Marni and Ella talk about movies that started out as books.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Ella

Ella

Marni

Marni

Ella:  So Marni, what do you think of adaptations of movies from books?

Marni:  You know, sometimes I really enjoy them. You know, generally, as a rule, I think that books are generally better. And it’s hard oftentimes for the screenwriter to capture the essence…

Ella:  Well, Lord of the Rings, that was fantastic.

Marni:  That was a really good example I think of bringing the books to life. I mean Peter Jackson did an incredible job. But…there’s been some pretty good ones. I’ve been pretty happy with the Harry Potter series. I think they did a good job.

Ella:  What’d you think about The Da Vinci Code?

Marni:  I actually kind of liked that book. I was not crazy about the film. I didn’t think they did all that great of a job. It was hard for me to get behind Tom Hanks as that character. He just did not embody that character at all to me. But I’m kinda curious about Angels and Demons. I’ll definitely go see that.

Ella:  Do you ever think it’s important to read the book before you go see the movie or…

Marni:  I’m a big fan of that because then I’m really excited to go see the film.

Ella:  Yeah. I guess it’s all about how you interpret the characters. ‘Cause I know for me like when you have an idea of a character in your head, and then they showed up portrayed by someone else, it kind of ruins it. You’re like, “No I can’t finish this movie!”

 

Grammar Point

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Discussion

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Marni says that when a movie version is made of a book, she usually likes the book better. But she and Ella agree that there are some really good adaptations. They mention the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter series as examples of good adaptations.

Marni enjoyed the book The Da Vinci Code, but she didn’t like the movie. She thought Tom Hanks was a poor choice to play the main character. He was too different from the person she’d imagined when she was reading the book. So it was hard for her to enjoy the film. However, she still wants to see the movie version of Angels and Demons, the sequel to The Da Vinci Code.

Have you seen any good movie adaptations of books? What do you think makes a good adaptation?

 

Comments

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maitrang88

maitrang88

Viet Nam

I am among those who love the movies, find the original book to read and end up loving the books much more. I was mesmerized by the movie "Let the right one in" and now my nose is glued to the book! Dark and awesome!

03:42 AM Jul 12 2009 |

boddi

China

Yeah,a great movie is from a marvelous adaptation,It's really difficult for an actor to show the character of the role.A lot of actors are pretty good and the scene of the film are very gorgeous.I am also a big fan of the mythology movies. such as The Lord of The Rings and Harry Potter. 

06:17 AM Jul 11 2009 |

ciberd7

ciberd7

Brazil

I´m crazy about Twilight series, but I haven´t read the book yet. Twilight has won lots of awards and it´s stunning to see how important is to make good adaptations of books, because there´s more interesting in reading the book after watching a movie.

 What makes a good adaptation is to look for the actors that really embody the spirit of the book, I mean, It´s hard to get right when you´re a screenwriter, but you gotta interpret the real feelings and to follow the storyline as it really is, what makes harder to become a blockbuster.

09:29 PM Jul 10 2009 |

juelstrad

Nicaragua

well, Hi everyone! my name is julio, I'm from Nicaragua. I have been reading angels an demons and I think is a great book, I haven't see the movie yet , but I'm exited to see it …. mmm I have the same problem as marni, I think tom hanks was'nt the correct actor to play the role of the main character in the davinci code. hi is too old for that character

06:46 AM Jul 10 2009 |

luosijie203

Taiwan

Actually, I prefer reading a book  to watching a film, a book can be more detail. while u are reading a book, it can inspire your imagination, however while u are watch a film, those plot of the story of the film become framed and there's only one thing you can do is to follow the story, of course film ruin our imagination. that's my own opinion, there's no correct answer, and there're many films that deserve our watch.

06:21 AM Jul 10 2009 |

dinhquyen87@yahoo.com

Viet Nam

hi all friends, i love u so much, hihj

02:45 AM Jul 09 2009 |

dinhquyen87@yahoo.com

Viet Nam

hi all, im Quyen, m/22, from VietNam, yeah.I really like to read the books that after its tranfered film. have u ever read a book talk about Huyndai.(great korean).that film with name" age of hero".its talk about a person built country by hishand.he try hisbest. when he was young, he sneck out many times, he goes to city where he think he can do what he want. his parent try to find him and took him to return home. but he don't want. and the lasttimes he succed, and now he found huyndai group with many field. a lot of building, constructure, road sytem…..i love he so much. hope want day i same him, hijhj.u know, im a activeboy. so i really like to go out and do anything i like.

02:43 AM Jul 09 2009 |

Ukrainec

Ukraine

I very like to read the boks and I think that books is more interesting then films. But sometimes you dont have much time to read it. As for me, I like to see films from books after I read it to see how somebody imagine this book.

08:01 PM Jul 08 2009 |

Marcelolic

Marcelolic

Brazil

I love the special effects these film adaptations,are pretty cool ;)

07:48 PM Jul 08 2009 |

Marcelolic

Marcelolic

Brazil

So,I think people should relax about that,in the other words,not expect much of productions based on books,just goes to the movie and enjoy it ;)

Like me,I never go to the movie to watch a movie based on book expecting much thing,because I can frustrate me! a book story it is always more detailed then a movie,so just have fun!

I watched all these movies,Lord of the Rings,Harry Potter, Da Vince Code and the last,Angels and Demons,pretty cool all of them!

So Marni,don't be boring! See these movies and enjoy your action parties,because the book doen't discribe it ;)

07:46 PM Jul 08 2009 |

ahmad133

ahmad133

Yemen

To be honest with you , I prefer to watch the movie more than read it because it makes me excited on the movie in a short period, while a reading a book takes too much time sometimes for many days…

Cool

06:05 PM Jul 08 2009 |

spike_dsl

spike_dsl

Philippines

I honestly say, I dont read books even they say that novel is amazing or the author is fantastic. I rather go and see a movie by myself or with friends. I am very appreciative on  the story, movie effects, sounds etc. Definitely I will watch Harry Potter. and besides their accent is interesting.

05:41 PM Jul 08 2009 |

rosendo

rosendo

Mexico

neither do i :(

i rather whatch the movie insted of read the book. but it depends bcs if u want to know more details about the film is better to read the book than watch the movie.

nice day!!!!!!

02:42 PM Jul 08 2009 |

larrychen

larrychen

China

frankly, i don't like reading novels or stories very much, but i am crazy with movies. most of my spare time is spent on films instead of books, so i have no idea about movie adaptations from books~

02:29 PM Jul 08 2009 |

hedil

Western Sahara

in my opinion read the books is much better than see it on tv because it’s give you more details

02:29 PM Jul 08 2009 |

hedil

Western Sahara

in my opinion read the books is much better than see it on tv because it’s give you more details

02:29 PM Jul 08 2009 |

freewilly87

Germany

The movie adaption of the perfum the story of a murder was a really good one. I was crazy about to see the movie and in my opinion the movie was better than the book.

A good adaptation does not cut important parts of a book and engage actors who can enbody the chraracters in a good way

01:30 PM Jul 08 2009 |

freewilly87

Germany

The movie adaption of the perfum the story of a murder was a really good one. I was crazy about to see the movie and in my opinion the movie was better than the book.

A good adaptation does not cut important parts of a books and engage actors who can enbody the chraracters in a good way

01:30 PM Jul 08 2009 |

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