The Lucky One: Book versus Film

Jill Marler

Mrs. Whitsell

English Composition I

10 September 2012

            Many complain that movies based on books are never as good. They believe some of the magic is missing, or the characters don’t match who they imagined.  Classic books contain important aspects that may be limited and not even appear in the two hour average a film contains. I’m a fan of every book Nicholas Sparks is involved in, and one of my favorites of his writing is The Lucky One. This masterpiece made it onto the big screen in the spring, and though I adore the film, there are many differences between the book and movie.

            The Lucky One captured all of my time from the second I opened it. Love stories are my favorite genre, and this one is quite a love story. The book and the movie have many similarities, as I had hoped when I heard a film was being made. The action scenes were captured in the intensity they had been described, and the amount of luck the main character has is displayed well. Many of the female’s emotions were revealed, as she was cautious to let him win her over. It was an amazing film, with the whole story captured in the short time.

            In contrast to the book, the movie left out some important moments that captured the viewer's emotions. There were moments which seemed predicatable, but they had been left out of the film.  The male lead character walked across the country for her, and experienced numerous things that were left out of the film. The movie didn’t include as much dirt about the female’s ex-husband as the book did, but his character was easy to dislike. Overall, scenes were left out, but the differences between the book and film weren’t a great deal!

            We all love seeing a good movie, and we have potential to be critical when our opinions interrupt the plot for it. Reading a book before seeing it in movie form is encouraged so you can imagine the story; rather than seeing the movie, and being stuck with the actors. Imagination is a big part of the magic in reading a story, and it’s important not to lose that.

            There are definite similarities and differences between The Lucky One book and movie, but I love hearing that a book I love is being filmed into a movie! It’s easy to be bitter when your favorite part is left out, or the little details that kept you involved in the story just aren’t displayed in the film you’re watching. I love when the characters match well; however, they may not have the personality you thought they would. The scenes may not all make it onto the movie, and the feelings may hide, but a film based on a movie is truly a great idea.