For some people, it's never too late to talk about "Harry Potter," "The Hunger Games," "Twilight" or any popular book-turned-movie.
Auburn students can see both the positive and negative sides of these adaptations, which are often popular enough to overtake top box-office spots for weeks.
In other cases, including the recent flop "The Mortal Instruments," the transition from page-to-screen isn't so smooth.
According to Sara Wakefield, junior in environmental design, several factors come into play when it comes to bringing a book to life.
"Everyone loves Harry Potter," Wakefield said. "I don't think I've heard anyone who's read the books complain about the movies. But, then there are other cases where it doesn't really work out, because they didn't stick to the books or they didn't do a good job casting the movie."
Samantha Newell, sophomore in pre-nursing, said deviations from the book could be a major roadblock in getting fans' approval of a movie adaptation.
"I've never read it, but a lot of people hate 'The Princess Diaries' movie because they say it's really different from the book," Newell said. "They don't like the changes in the story."
Newell said in her experience, it can be annoying to see important scenes and characters skipped because of time limitations or creative reasons.
"I really loved 'The Hunger Games,' but they completely forgot to explain the mockingjay pin Katniss wears," Newell said. "That's a really important thing later in the series."
Laura Weisenbach, freshman in pre-nursing, said changes aren't necessarily a bad thing.
"I read 'The Princess Diaries,' and it's totally different," Weisenbach said. "But, I still like the movie. I just don't think of them as the same thing."
Newell said there isn't always a general consensus when it comes to these adaptations.
"I thought 'The Great Gatsby' was awesome," Newell said. "But people either loved it or they hated it. There wasn't much of an in-between on that one."
Wakefield said she doesn't think a movie's box-office success necessarily reflects how fans feel about a movie.
"Probably 90 percent of the people I talked to thought 'Twilight' was absolutely terrible," Wakefield said. "But it made a ton of money. And then with 'Harry Potter,' people love it and it's still a huge success."
According to Wakefield, some people will never be fully satisfied when it comes to their favorite books.
"I'm excited to see what they do with the next 'Hunger Games' movie when it comes out," Wakefield said. "I think it'll be great, but I'm sure there will still be people whining about what they do and don't do. You just can't please everyone."
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
