Their Eyes Were Watching God
 

Is my very most favorite book in the world and Oprah has turned it into a made for tv movie that is on tonight. I swear if she made a mess I'm going to throttle her. Sometimes I think perfect stories should just be left alone. Flip side, if she does a good job and people like it then my fave author will finally get some well deserved yet post mortem notoriety.

How do you feel about books moving to the little screen? Have you ever saw a movie that was as good as the book?

It looks like Oprah's pulled out the stops on talent. I'm hoping this will be a great movie. Honestly though, it's hard to make a movie as good as a well written book IMHO. I'd love to see this one prove me wrong.

I didn't read the book but I am watching the movie right now.

Well?

I'm ok with it. :p

Nothing will ever live up to the way I imagined it. Truth be told I think Zora Neale actually has written better love stories but they are short stories and not a novel. I'm glad Oprah kept true to a couple of very important themes throughout Ms. Hurston's works.

I generally do not watch the movie of a book I have read. Like wise I will not read a book after seeing the movie.

When I read a book I create mental images of the people and places. If I watch a movie I'm forced to see X actor as that person or X set as the location. And while they might do a good job, it is not what I created in my mind. It tends to have deviated from the book. Books often spend great amounts of type descriping a persons thoughts, feelings and fears, a movie can not do that.

There are few Hitchcock’s that can show you an image and let your mind see the picture.

I don't know any movie that lived up to the book.

(ducks)

Cider House Rules is one I can think of. John Irving is one of my fave authors & I loved that book. It likely helped that he had a hand in the screenplay, however. Also, yummy Tobey Macguire, Charlize Theron & Michael Caine are excellent actors IMHO.

I'm sure there's another movie or two that has lived up to the book but I'm not awake yet. :)

I agree with Cider House...it's one of my favorite movies of all time.

Most movies based on books border on plagerism of the title and have little to do with the story.There are exceptions though.The 15 part series Brideshead Revisted was true to the Evelyn Waugh's novel.My personal favourite book to movie was Milan Kundera's The Unbearable Lightness of Being.It was close to being faithful to the book.I hear that a movie is being considered on the book The Davinci Code.It shouldn't be too hard. I think the book was written with a movie in mind.

I've mentioned in other threads that that is my fave movie ever. I've seen it several times & read the book after I first saw the movie. It's perhaps the only movie I liked better than the book but that's because Mr. Day Lewis is my pretend boyfriend & it was a very sensual movie.