People always say you should read the book before seeing the
movie. That's because books tend
to not only be the original, "authentic" source material, but also because
they usually provide much more insight into a story's characters and
situations. Limitless pages allow
for extensive development you just don't get with 90 minutes of screen time.
Plus, some aspects of books just don't translate well to the
visual medium. For instance, you
aren't privy to character's thoughts and motivations while watching. And because much of the storytelling
and detail rely on the reader's mind, conjured expectations can be tarnished
when their visual representations are shown.
However, it's still good to see when a book has made its way
to movie format. It's proof that
someone at least has enough appreciation for a story that they find it worth
sharing with others via cinema display.
In fact, some books are brought out of obscurity by their silver screen
counterparts—essentially reversing roles to the point where people become
interested in the book because they saw the movie first.
While not all movie renditions are winners, here are a few
examples from horror literature that best exemplify this reversal and may have
increased book sales in the process.
Psycho
Everyone knows the name Alfred Hitchcock. But not everyone knows the name Robert
Bloch, the author responsible for the book behind Hitchcock's acclaimed and
successful Psycho.
In his book, Bloch does a great job creating suspense and a
general sense of unease with his perspective changes and build-up pacing. The 1960 movie capitalized on this, and
upped the ante even further with iconic
scenes that will forever be embedded in the minds of its audience.
If you've only seen the movie, read the book for even more
shocks and deviations that are sure to surprise you.
Rosemary's Baby
Rosemary's Baby is
considered one of the horror movie greats, having garnered both critical
acclaim and financial success—two things that rarely go hand and hand with the
genre. But many forget that this
movie actually came out just a year after Ira Leven published his best-selling
horror novel of the same name in 1967.
If the movie can still hold up to your horror standards
today, just imagine what nightmares will come from reading the book.
Jaws
Though the terrifying sea creature doesn't have a timeless
name like Moby Dick, the shark from the novel Jaws is arguably just as famous
because of his unforgettable on-screen presence.
Interestingly, the film's producers were so enthralled by
Peter Benchley's 1974 novel, they bought the rights to the film before the book
was even published. This publicity
helped keep it on the bestseller list for 44 weeks.
No, you won't read the infamous "You're gonna need a bigger boat"
line in the book—as that was ad-libbed by the actor Roy Scheider—but, you'll
still get just as many scares.
The Exorcist
A page turner of page turners, William Peter Blatty does a
remarkable job at being brilliantly descriptive while also allowing the reader
to conjure up his or her own satanic horrors of Christian mythos. Few horror authors even venture to give
you the kind of granular character depth that Blatty does—with layer upon layer
revealed as the story progresses.
This creates pure intrigue, which forces the reader to keep going.
The movie is a little more overt, but the added elements of
atmospheric music, pea-soup projectile
vomit, and superb actor portrayals make the movie a stand out all its own. Either way, you'll want to leave the
nightlight on.
Let Me In
A different approach to the traditional vampire tale, Let the Right One In is a more recent foreign
horror novel, written in 2004 by Swedish author John Ajvide Linkqvist. The story features pretty heavy themes
of alcoholism, murder, bullying, and absent parents, to name a few. Oh, did we mention vampires?
There's been a lot of hype since the 2008 movie rendition,
and its American adaptation in 2010.
But the book covers more ground and plunges further into the events and
consequences that the main characters must face as their relationship blossoms.
What do you think?
Did you know these were even books before you saw them? Which did you like better?
AUTHOR: Adrian
Rawlings; @adrianrawlings2
BIO: Adrian
Rawlings is a TV and horror blogger. Look to him for the scoop on hit movies
and TV shows, horror films, tech reviews, how-to guides, and more.
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