Movies, Books, and Drama

While the west was already “developed” in the 1950s, we have become significantly more developed since then. Our society has more precise rules, more information, more security, more wealth, and more peace – all of which are reflections of the degree of development. We need more to be shocked – if at all possible – more to be pleased, and more to be happy.

On a note of some relevance, I am currently rereading The Lord of the Rings (for the third time). What comes to mind in comparison with the film adaptation is two things, the timeline and the dramatics. While the journey and time is dragged out over years and decades in the book, the movie does not make much effort to show that is less than a year or so. Also, actions are made more dramatic and sensational in the movie. These two trends are both common in film adaptations, but it leads me to the question of whether our society has been saturated with tales and stories. To get our attention, an event must truly be dramatic.

The one scene that quickly comes to mind is where Frodo accidentally puts the ring on while at the Prancing Pony. In the book he is dancing on a table, slips and the ring slides onto his finger because he was fingering it in his pocket. In the film, the ring goes flying through the air and slides onto his outstretched arm as he tumbles to the ground. While the difference is not enormous, it reflects the larger trend of making an event far more dramatic in film than in a descriptive book.