Film Friday #2: Book vs. Movie

Every Friday we take a look at varying topics relating to the film adaptation of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.

A common complaint from fans of a book series being adapted to film is that the movie is nothing like the book.

That’s because books are not movies and movies are not books. They are both different in their own regard and add a unique perspective to the story.

With book to movie adaptations, the studio is faced with the daunting task of creating a vision of that world that will satisfy not only their vision, but the visions of readers and moviegoers alike.

Such is the case with the highly anticipated adaptation of THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS: CITY OF BONES, which is currently filming in Toronto through November 6.

I’ve seen some of the same remarks since early on in the adaptation process and currently: But this is how it happens in the book so it should happen that way in the movie.

As fans of a book we are highly protective of the characters and the story and want it to be treated with care in the adaptation process, but as fans we also have to realize that in a movie adaptation there are things that will be lost and added.

But the thing that some people don’t understand that it is extremely hard to cram a 400-plus page book into a two-hour movie without losing the essence of the story. So that’s going to require some give-and-take in regards to scenes, characters and pacing.

I don’t think that a movie “ruins” a book as they are two different interpretations of a story. The books will always exist for the reader to go and re-read them and get swept up in the story just as the movie will always exist for the moviegoer to get lost in the world for a couple of hours.

The movie only serves to add to the story–to add a different perspective that we might not have gotten before. That doesn’t mean that the essence of the story and the characters that we care so much about will be lost in the adaptation.

“It’s not just an adaptation of a book, it’s a movie that can stand on its own, which I’m really proud of so far,” Lily Collins (Clary) told MTV’s Josh Horowitz at TIFF.

So for those expecting a carbon-copy in the film, you’re going to be disappointed (but I really hope you’ll give it a chance). But for those with an open mind, I really believe that this will only add to your love of the series and give you a different glimpse at the story we all know and love.

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