Tuesday, 24 April 2018

My favourite book and film

"Books and movies are like apples and oranges. They both are fruit, 
but taste completely different." - Stephen King

Books are a pleasure that good readers enjoy. They lead you through mysteries, such as Agatha Christie's detective stories or Dan Brown's plots, to scientific, philosophical, historical, romantic issues in an endless number of genres written both in formal and informal language, fiction and non-fiction. 

When I was about ten, my father gave me a book to read it carefully, as it contained "messages that I would cherish all my life long". He was not fond of reading, but that book had meant a lot to him and wanted to transfer his feelings to me.

From Enrico's diary
I enjoyed reading it! The book written by Edmondo de Amicis, “Cuore”, the Italian term for "Heart", tells us about  Enrico—the main character—who is a nine-year-old boy, who writes about his life at school, his friends and not so much friends, their families, his teachers ... The novel covers one year of Enrico´s life at school narrated in the form of a diary; each classmate´s life develops and grows in your mind and you end up by feeling love and understanding for them. As Enrico’s classmates, you also waited eagerly for reading the story of the month; these remarkable “monthly stories” were short stories full of sensitivity, braveness, endurance, warmth and genuine love—one of such stories was “From the Apennines to the Andes”...

Grand Rex, Paris, France
As a teenager, I developed a liking for watching films in those attractive buildings with a superb architecture, similar to opera houses, where you could enjoy watching both the surroundings and the films and everyone would be quiet and respectful... no popcorn existed… Technicolor and Cinerama brought elegance and modernity, and super-productions became common. Ben-Hur, The Sound of Music, Star Wars and E.T The extraterrestrial were invested with the stateliness of the theatres.

Although technological advances have made possible to give life on screen to Tolkien's fantastic world, The Lord of the Rings; and Crichton's Jurassic Park;  I'd have liked to have watched them in the magnificent buildings of the past century without the sound of popcorn around me.

I enjoy watching films, so naming my favourite one is  especially hard to me. Big Fish, As Good as it gets, The lord of the rings, Sense and Sensibility, Skyfall, La la Land, Rainman, The Cyder House Rules, Faceoff, Dead Poet's Society ... are just a few of films that come to my mind...

Yet, there is a film that I think everyone should watch to live and learn from. We often hear that books are far better than films. A long time ago, I watched a film named "The Shawshank Redemption", a beautiful story of a man accused of murdering his wife and how he faced his life in prison; it has an extraordinary ending. Great casting, well-structured film.

I looked for the book and I realized that it was a rather short  (about 50 pages long) story written by Stephen King. The author and the director of the film worked together; the film was nominated to several Oscar awards, but won none. To the critics' surprise, the video was a complete success and today is considered a real masterpiece...! And I must say that the film was to me better than the novel; the music, the location, the casting and the direction contributed to the enrichment of a solid story.

Now, it is your turn:

Tell me what your favourite film and book are
What makes them attractive
When  you read/watched them
Why you recommend them
Minumum length :180 words.
Remember to make comments on 3 of your classmates' posts and also the teacher's 

30 comments:

  1. I think movies are better than books, I really hate to read :(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Tomás,
      I am not such a good reader too. But I believe that reading is a practice that needs cultivation... Perhaps, you have been a bit impatient... Give it a chance, you might start liking it.
      See you,
      See you,

      Delete
  2. I've had never read Cuore and it seems to be a book I could enjoy in my free time, as for the film it's sad that it didn't won any Oscars since it's considered a masterpiece.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Karina,
      Cuore was a book that I enjoyed when I was a kid... Nice to know that you liked the film.
      See you,

      Delete
  3. The sound of popcorns in the cinema are really annogying! Anyway i prefer go to the theater because you can feel the feelings of the actors and that´s awesome!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Savka,
      Undoubtedly, watching a play is a quite another experience...!
      See you,

      Delete
  4. I love books, I think they are better than movies because when you read you stimulate your imagination a lot!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Camila,
      I agree with you appreciation in most cases... Yet, there are some limited, even boring books that may become masterpieces as films... Exquisite music, good actors' performace, well-elaborated script under the hands of a good director can make the difference....
      See you,

      Delete
  5. i think stephen king has better books , like the shining , it , carrie , all best sellers , they are also great movies but you know , in movies they cut some scenes because of the time , i dont like to read frecuently but some of their books worth the effort

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Luis,
      I haven't said that "(Rita Hayworth and)The Shawshank Redemption" is his best book... Not even close... It was one of 4 short stories... The director kept the spirit of the short story, he enriched its content with adequate music and casting, ... So, the film is to me a masterpiece.... Stephen King has many other better books... as you say....
      See you,

      Delete
  6. It sounds that you really like "Cuore" I think I'll read it in my free time, I've never seen "the shawshank redemption" but it saunds really interesting it has a great plot

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Francisco,
      The book was great to me when I was a kid... The film is great, give it a try.
      See you,

      Delete
  7. I didn't know about this film, I'll definitely watch it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Macarena,
      Please do it. You won't regret it!
      See you,

      Delete
  8. yeah i loved that movie, it touched my heart

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Daniela,
      I've watched it many times and it still moves me.
      See you,

      Delete
  9. The Lord of the Rings is one of my favourite films too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Joaquín,
      Did you know that the music has messages that are not obvious and that understanding the music enriches the story?
      See you,

      Delete
  10. Hi! I've never read "coure" but It looks interesting,I will read it. And about the movies that you like, La la land is my favourite one, I think that it's a good movie with a great cast. The name of the movie makes sense with the story.
    Nice post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Valentina,
      La La Land is a name that refers to music and place. La stands for L.A. (Los Angeles)
      See you,

      Delete
  11. I haven't read that book. Sounds interesting!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Replies
    1. Hi Sebastián,
      Remember that the book is based on the diary of the Enrico... I hope you like it.
      See you,

      Delete
  13. The film sounds very interesting, not of my type, but i will see it

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Carla,
      What are the movies you like most? The movie is about hope...
      See you,

      Delete
  14. Personally i didn´t know the movies neither the books but i supose that are good!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Vicente,
      Give the movie a try...and then tell me if you liked it.
      See you,

      Delete
  15. Maybe one day i´ll read that book, It look interesting.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Camila,
      If you like warm books made from diaries, you will like it.
      See you,

      Delete