What Movies Cannot Capture

It is unbelievable how a mixture of words can come together and craft a vivid painting of a scene. At times, these words create a more cinematic image than something you would see in a movie. So why would most people rather indulge in a film than pick up the book it was adapted from? When assigned to read a book for school, watching the movie adaptation has always been the “easy way out.” It is a universal experience that even a teacher of mine has admitted to doing. However, her plan did not go as expected. She had to write an essay about the novel Emma by Jane Austen and thinking it would save her time, she watched the 1996 film adaptation instead. She enjoyed the movie so much, she decided to give the novel a chance. As expected, the book was undoubtedly more scenic and captivating compared to the film adaptation. My teacher enjoyed the story so much that she scrapped the aspects of the film and focused on the intricacies of the book for her essay. Emma is the novel that inspired her to be an English teacher and it is crazy to think how things would be if she did not pick it up. No matter how many times negative comments will be made about books, they will always offer more than any film or series adaptation that dares to stand next to them.

Books provide readers with the freedom of creativity, allowing their minds to illustrate pictures out of the words printed on the pages. This also comes into play when imagining the characters within the story. You are not confined to associating a specific actor with the role of your favourite character. Instead, you can create the image of this certain character with the help of how they are portrayed in the book. You might even picture this character as yourself if you would like. The picturesque imagery plastered within the pages of the novel in your hands produces a clear scenery that allows you to feel like you have jumped into the realm of the book you are reading. Knowing how the characters are feeling, their thought process and mindset, and being engaged in the atmosphere of the setting, makes you feel like you are fully absorbed into the universe this novel delivers. Why bother watching a film play out in front of you on a screen when you can step into the fictional world itself? 

Not only does the power of imagery give books an edge in this age-long debate, but novels will always be more intricate and detailed than any visual medium.

No matter how long a movie is or how determined the director is to include refined details into their film, it will never be as complex as its book counterpart.

Comprehending expressive and striking words is a different experience from soaking in a fast-paced movie scene. 

Sometimes, we do not even have time to grasp what just occurred on screen before it cuts to another scene. While reading books, we can go at our own pace and slowly process what has unfolded. This leads us to another perk when it comes to books: going at your own pace. Reading books does not give you that cramped feeling of having to enjoy a storyline in less than two hours. Although they take time to complete, books are worth the time. Immersing yourself in books at your own pace allows you to process the narrative of the story, understand the depth of the characters, and insert yourself into the pages of the book.

The last point I will throw into this discussion is the vulnerability of writing. For years, writing has been used as a form of expression. Essentially, this is what this blog is. The writing embedded on the pages of books is the result of the authors expressing themselves.

Authors show vulnerability by forming pictorial sentences that develop into imaginary stories.

Unfortunately, the magic of these written words is not taken into consideration in film adaptations. Sure, there might be tidbits of the author’s detailed imagery planted somewhere in the movie, but watching it will never have the same effect as reading about it. In movies, you have the influence of actors and directors being implanted into the storyline. However, in books you simply just have the author’s words, their imagination, and their ability to paint a world with nothing but ink on a page. 

Books have always held more complexities compared to their film adaptations. They have always managed to paint a more memorable picture of a scene than any movie can provide. They have always felt like a way to escape. And no matter how many visuals, soundtracks, and performances it takes to fill a movie to bring it to life, just remember, a book can do exactly that with only words on paper.