Books vs. Movies

A while back I read "Memoirs of a Geisha" and thoroughly enjoyed it. I watched the DVD this past weekend, out of curiosity, and found that my instincts were right...it was no match for the book.

When I read "The DaVinci Code", 6 months or so ago, I felt like I was one of the last people on Earth to read it. I kept waiting for it to come out in paperback and eventually bought a copy from abroad on eBay. It was good, interesting, something to pass the time on my commute. Right now, there's all of this hype about the movie. I have no desire nor intention to see it, for one basic reason...the book is almost always better. Some things seem to inevitably get lost or inexplicably changed in the book-to-movie translation, whether it's the subtler plot lines, weird casting choices or bigger issues like politics that influence the production of the film. Now, since I haven't seen it I can't speak to the first point but I never agreed with Tom Hanks playing the lead (and what's with that awful haircut?). I always pictured Harrison Ford in his Indiana Jones days or maybe a Sam Neill-type. Also, there have been rumors that some accommodations were made to appease the Church, Opus Dei and albino rights activists. However, since the book was on the NYT bestsellers list for a million weeks, has good ol' box-office-bank Tom, and Ron Howard directing I'm sure no matter what it'll all spell ka-ching!