Which is better, book or film?

[tinkerdan]

I read the book first long ago and when I saw the movie I had to pretty much say, "What?"

So I reread the book just in case; because memory can be pretty dicey at times. Still had to say, "What?"

I like the movie a lot so it didn't destroy the book for me because it was like apples and oranges.

They bore some similarities and one claimed to be based on the other; I'll let you fight that one out.

Anyway: I would agree that they are both good in their own right and if we were to judge the movie as to how well it represented the book I would have to fail it; but I don't think I have to do that because they really would have made a pretty crappy movie if they made it faithful to the book.

 

[BAYLOR]

Tough to decide.

 

[the_evil_ted]

I'm a simpleton and didn't understand the book. Or at least the end of the book. Is this the one with the frog?
The opening, with his wife? I can't believe how shockingly bad my memory is at the moment - she had the mood changer at the side of the bed. Felt the need to be sad that morning and pressed the button. Something much later, a goat being thrown from a roof? Am I remembering this correct?

I liked the game though. That had Runciters in it.

The film, I asked for when I was around ten because I saw a trailer for it and the spinner blew my mind. I opened up Highlander and Lost Boys that Christmas. Both awesome films. I can't blame my mum, I pointed at the tv and said, "I want." I didn't know what it was. I wasn't paying attention, neither was she as it turned out..

I forgot about that cool looking advert, until I was in HMV when the special edition came out on tape. I bought that sucker and watched it that night, then the next morning and again that afternoon. I did't even know at that point there was a voice over in the original. In fact, I had to wait until I purchased the big steel box with all the versions to see it. Yes, I've watched everything on every disk.

 

[RX-79G]

Philip K. Dick was a great idea man, but no one thought he was the most brilliant crafter of prose. The bones of his short novels adapt easily to films, which is rarely true of really great sci fi novels.

Androids and Blade Runner are very different, but when comparing an adequately written book to one of the all time greatest sci fi films, I'm going to give it to the film. It would be different if we were comparing a widely acknowledged great book to a great movie.