Breaking Dawn Part 1 – my after-watching thoughts!

I love it when you step into a movie theatre as a person living in one world, and then a couple of hours later you emerge from it feeling as if you've just entered another. Before long, though, this spell making everything have a, ahem, dazzling quality wears off and the world is once again stale in comparison.

That's how I felt when I watched Breaking Dawn Part 1 on Saturday. Even though I didn't think the film was perfect, by the end I was completely floored! I thought the second half of it was so much better than the first. Don't get me wrong; I loved Bella and Edward's wedding, and Isle Esme was completely gorgeous, plus I thought the arrival scene with the street party in Rio was a fantastic touch (I would've died to have been Bella during those moments!)

But what saved me from checking my watch was Jacob. I've never really been a huge fan of his; in Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse (book-wise and film-wise) I thought he was whiny and overly obnoxious, and really disliked him for being so adamant about hating Edward and trying to take Bella from him. But reading (and watching) Breaking Dawn really changed that.

(Psst! If you haven't read/watched Breaking Dawn, skip this paragraph and resume at the next!) He stops being so arguably selfish and starts showing respect for Bella's decisions and even the entire Cullen family. How he stepped up to protect Bella from Sam's pack was absolutely amazing! I'd say that's my favourite part of Breaking Dawn; when he essentially moves in to the Cullen house and really gets to know all of them more. I love the moment when Carlisle and Esme say something to Jacob about protecting their family, and Jacob turns to them and agrees that he now truly can see them as a family as strong as his own. He definitely won me over right there. Oh man, and those moments when Bella was dying on the operating table? Unreal. Though perhaps a little too much blood for me but what can I say, I'm squeamish!

So now I've hopped on the Team Jacob bus! I'm never going to stop believing that Bella and Edward are meant for each other – Bella and Jacob in my mind just doesn't work. But from the perspective of which character I love the most and appreciate that Bella needs in her life to keep her own sanity in tact, that's where Jacob comes in. He's definitely a loyal werewolf and an amazing friend to have!

I can't wait for Part 2 either. Part 1 ended with the most perfect cliffhanger! Though I do worry what they're going to do with it – if they want the film to do well, they're going to have to adapt the story a whole lot to make it interesting enough. The ending to Breaking Dawn at the moment pretty much lacks the right amount of transferrable cinematic form. So that'll be interesting.

I really want to know now, you guys, whose team are you on: Team Edward, Jacob, or Switzerland? And have you seen Breaking Dawn yet? What did you think?

Books vs. TV & Film adaptations

I don't know about you guys, but I have a love-hate relationship with films and TV shows adapted from books. There's usually something that offends me about the way the story has been translated, whether I've seen the film first or vice versa. Although, this seems to happen to me more with feature-length films than television series's, as I guess the former have a lot less time fit the detail in. But there are times where I just feel they've made a few too many changes. Not all the time, as you shall see, but it's always something that's in the back of my mind.

Here are a few of the adaptations I've seen:

1. The Twilight Saga (The Twilight saga by Stephenie Meyer)

I watched Twilight before reading any of the books, initially falling victim to the hype and renting it out on DVD. I wasn't sure if I liked it that much, but went on to read the first installment and absolutely fell in love with it. Aside from preferring New Moon in movie form (not enough Edward in the book), I am more of a fan of the written. Eclipse is by far my favourite of the novels but my least favourite of the films, so needless to say I was pretty dissapointed about that one in particular. But I can't wait for Breaking Dawn Parts 1 & 2 to come out (so curious to see how they handle the whole Renesmee situation!)

2. Confessions Of A Shopaholic (The Shopaholic Series by Sophie Kinsella)

Having loved Sophie Kinsella's Shopaholic books, I couldn't wait to see Becky on the big screen. But here's another film that fell short of my expectations! I can't understand why they had to change so much of it. Firstly, why is Becky American? I'm sure London is interesting enough. Plus what did they do with Suze? She's completely different in the book! If I was in charge of casting, I would've no way picked Krysten Ritter to play her. So wrong. And Derek Smeath did not need to be that evil because he certainly wasn't in the book. I understand they have to change certain things for more 'cinematic effect', but was this really necessary?

3. Pride and Prejudice – 1995 BBC adaptation (Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen)

This is my absolute favourite adaptation! I don't know if it's because my first experience reading Pride and Prejudice went alongside watching the BBC series as a study aid in school, but I think it captures the magic of the book with incredible precision. Sure there are a few scenes which have been taken out, altered or added in (most notably that famous wet t-shirt scene), but it's done so well. I just love everything - the casting, the locations, the costume, etc. Anyway, you get the point! ;-)

4. Marley And Me (Marley And Me by John Grogan)

I read the book a while ago and so can't remember all the particulars, but I do recall thinking that aside from leaving out a few scenes and altering others, the film pretty much stays true to John Grogan's memoir. I really like both versions, though I can't watch the film too often because the ending makes me bawl my eyes out! It's seriously one of the most touching films I've seen. They did well with this one.

5. The Hobbit (The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien)

Fear not; my time machine is still in the shop! But this adaptation I can't help but speculate about because I'm so. darn. excited! I loved The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, and loved reading The Hobbit so I'm very curious about how this will turn out. I do have my concerns though – I've heard that Cate Blanchett will be back as Galadriel and Orlando Bloom as Legolas, but their characters aren't in the book. I'll just trust Peter Jackson for now, though. I really must read The Lord of the Rings books to get some more perspective between now and next Christmas!





Of course, there are loads of famous adaptations that I've left out, like Harry Potter (haven't read the books or seen the films recently), Bridget Jones (haven't read the books yet), Game Of Thrones, Mildred Piece, Revolutionary Road, and so forth.

So let me ask you guys, what are some of your favourite and least favourite adaptations? Do you tend to reach for the film after you've read the book, or do you avoid them at all costs in case they ruin the story for you? I'm all ears!