4 ms·

I don't know if you've read it, but if you haven't it's a pretty odd choice to make a movie out of. It's closer to pulp than it is literature. Not that there

I don't know if you've read it, but if you haven't it's a pretty odd choice to make a movie out of. It's closer to pulp than it is literature. Not that there is anything wrong with that, you can't live on michelin star restaurants and can get by with the occasional big mac combo meal, but given how feted the movie became, the novel is somewhat underwhelming.

gumby 5y ago
It’s unambiguously a pot boiler, intended as a beach read. In fact I encountered the paperback, a couple of years after it was issued, at someone’s beach house on a shelf full of potboilers (Michener, Susann, etc). 11 year old me was scandalized by the sex scene in the first chapter.
cm2012 5y ago
I'm not sure I'd agree it's that pulpy. The cultural and family dynamics in the book are interesting to explore.
jeffnv 5y ago
The movie is a Coppola masterpiece. The book feels much more like a Quentin Tarantino. Definitely a fun read.
wyldfire 5y ago
I haven't read "The Godfather" but the films are truly fantastic. That said there are several other examples of adaptations that outshine the original - "Shawshank Redemption", "Bladerunner", etc. Among recent productions there's many readers who say "Station Eleven" was better than the source material.
- firebones 5y ago
  Naw, King's novella "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" was totally solid in its own right before the movie. Same with "The Body" and its earlier subsequent "Stand By Me". Both of those from "Different Seasons".
  - wyldfire 5y ago
    You're probably right - I was basing it on King's praise for Darabont's work.
  - johnwalkr 5y ago
    Apt Pupil is also from Different Seasons and both the novella and movie are pretty good.
- skeeter2020 5y ago
  Bladerunner is a good example. I found the book unreadble (both dated and just plain not very good) but the movie stands up today.
- dmitriid 5y ago
  I made the mistake of reading Interview with a Vampire. Yuck. How they managed to make a great movie out of that is beyond me.
- d4rkp4ttern 5y ago
  Interesting how different opinions can be. I loved "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep", as well as the Bladerunner movie!

gumby 5y ago

It’s unambiguously a pot boiler, intended as a beach read. In fact I encountered the paperback, a couple of years after it was issued, at someone’s beach house on a shelf full of potboilers (Michener, Susann, etc). 11 year old me was scandalized by the sex scene in the first chapter.

cm2012 5y ago

I'm not sure I'd agree it's that pulpy. The cultural and family dynamics in the book are interesting to explore.

jeffnv 5y ago

The movie is a Coppola masterpiece. The book feels much more like a Quentin Tarantino. Definitely a fun read.

wyldfire 5y ago

I haven't read "The Godfather" but the films are truly fantastic. That said there are several other examples of adaptations that outshine the original - "Shawshank Redemption", "Bladerunner", etc. Among recent productions there's many readers who say "Station Eleven" was better than the source material.

firebones 5y ago
Naw, King's novella "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" was totally solid in its own right before the movie. Same with "The Body" and its earlier subsequent "Stand By Me". Both of those from "Different Seasons".
- wyldfire 5y ago
  You're probably right - I was basing it on King's praise for Darabont's work.
- johnwalkr 5y ago
  Apt Pupil is also from Different Seasons and both the novella and movie are pretty good.
skeeter2020 5y ago
Bladerunner is a good example. I found the book unreadble (both dated and just plain not very good) but the movie stands up today.
dmitriid 5y ago
I made the mistake of reading Interview with a Vampire. Yuck. How they managed to make a great movie out of that is beyond me.
d4rkp4ttern 5y ago
Interesting how different opinions can be. I loved "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep", as well as the Bladerunner movie!