Twilight: 5 Ways The Books Are Better Than the Movies (& 5 Ways the Movies Are Better) – Screen Rant

Stephenie Meyers' popular Twilight series inspired a successful film franchise, but how do the movies compare to the books? Which is better?

A dream Stephenie Meyer had about a vampire sparkling in the woods turned into one of the most popular young-adult book and movie series of all time. Each book in the series received a movie adaptation, withfour different directors giving their take on the story. The films did a pretty great job of capturing the feel of the books they're based on, but, like all book-to-screen adaptations, certain things were lost along the way.

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With the recent release of the long-awaitedMidnight Sun, and all five films being available to stream, it's time to revisit both the books and the movies and see how they compare.

The firstTwilightfilm condenses the story so that the events of the first book take place over the span of roughly three months, rather than the five months it takes for the same events to unfold in the book. It makes sense that this change had to be made, as a film only has about two hours to tell a complete story. However, the book's longer timeline takes more of a slow-burn approach to Bella and Edward's relationship, while also giving readers more time to witness these characters falling for one another.

One of the best features of the Twilightmovies is the soundtracks.The firstmovie has a soundtrack that's alternative, angsty, and captures the vibe of the film; the New Moonsoundtrack feels like a natural progression and maturation, with songs reflecting the themes of the second film;Eclipse's soundtrack works to transition the series from the indie feel of the first two movies to the more mainstream, pop-feel of theBreaking Dawn's. Of course, bookstypically don't come with a musical component, so this may be an unfair advantage. But, theTwilightsoundtracks are truly great, and these comparisons are a byproduct of trying to liken two different mediums for storytelling.

The Cullens, the wolf pack, and Bella's human friends all receive deeper characterization in the books than in the movies. Though the movies do their best to give some background to characters like Rosalie and Jasper, their roles, as well as the roles of many other supporting characters, are greatly reduced for the sake of keeping the main plot moving forward.

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Again, this is an expected and understandable alteration to the source material for the sake of time, but Bella's choice to become a vampire is fleshed out better in the books through her experiences with these secondary Twilight characters.

Charlie Swan is the unsung MVP of theTwilightsaga. All he does is love his daughter and mind his own business. Billy Burke's portrayal of possibly the least problematic father of all time made the character universally loved by fans, even as he mostly stayed out of the action. Of course, it's Stephenie's invention of the character that is the basis for this great performance, but Burke (and screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg) really elevated the character to something special.

One of the main difficulties the movies faced was with trying to use aging human actors to portray characters that were neither mortal nor human. In the books, vampires are described as unchanging beings with supernatural beauty and strangely colored eyes. The fact that the actors who brought the vampires to life, so to speak, were aging themselves couldn't be helped, but the looks seemed to vary quite drastically from film to film when it came tothe choices made by the hair and makeup departments. In addition, certain effects were difficult to achieve, such as the speed of the vampires and the face of the creepy baby.

The firstTwilightbook is told completely from Bella's point of view. The threat is introduced when nomadic vampires James, Laurent, and Victoria break up a very intense baseball game and begin to hunt Bella. The movie makes this introduction feel less out of left field by introducing these vampires earlier in the movie when fans learn that a string of semi-local murders are occurring. Bella's dad, police chief Swan, investigates these killings, and a close friend of his dies from a vampire attack. This plot only exists in the movie, and works to add a greater sense of danger for the audience as fans see Bella begin a relationship with a vampire.

Actors Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner did a great job bringing their Twilight characters to life. However, books, being essentially free from time constraints, often have an upper hand when it comes to characterization and the development of important relationships. In the movies, many conversations between Bella, Edward, and JacobBlack are fraught with tension as the topic of these discussions usually revolves around one of the threats they're constantly facing. The books give readers greater insight into these relationships. Bella and Edward are able to talk about things other than who might be trying to kill Bella, and Bella and Jacob's bond goes deeper, making Jacob seem like a more viable option that he does in the films.

Movies based on books often get a lot of flack for the inevitable ways in which they alter and exclude things from the source material. Something that doesn't often get talked about, however, is how movies can take pages of material from a novel and portray the thoughts and sentiments of the pages in a brief shot or scene better than words could do. Certain visuals in theTwilightmovies are able to do this. Descriptions of the beauty of the pacific northwest don't do the place justice, but each film makes the setting of the story a visual touchstone for the series. Other visuals pack emotional weight, such as Bella and Edward Cullen seeming to share a moment as she's drowning. It's moments like these that give the films an edge.

Kristen Stewart did a phenomenal job as Bella Swan. However, it's much more difficult to tell a movie in first person, whereas the books are almost entirely told from Bella's point of view. Because of this, reading the books tells us so much more about who Bella is as a person: how she was raised, what motivates her, and how she is feeling at any given moment. It's no fault of Stewart's that book Bella has greater depth and detail in the books.

Action has never really been a focal point ofTwilight. The series, is about romance first, and the supernatural world second. There's only a handful of action sequences in the books, and most of them describe training for fights fans don't actually get to see. The movies have the advantage of being able to show this.Viewers see the Cullens fight James, something Bella can't describe in the books as she's unconscious; They also get to see the battle between the newborns, the Cullens, and the werewolves inEclipse. Additionally, actions sequences are inserted into the films for the sake of providing a bit of tension and excitement to audiences. These changes work well for the movies, and are an example of why the adaptation that's 100% faithful isn't always the best avenue.

NEXT: Twilight: 10 Ways Jacob Got Worse And Worse

Next Twilight: 10 Ways Carlisle Got Worse & Worse

Madilyn Ivey is a reader, writer, and film-lover based in Seattle, Washington. She has been a hostess, barista, and a shelver of books. She now works as a freelance writer for Screen Rant. She is a graduate of the University of Puget Sound.

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Twilight: 5 Ways The Books Are Better Than the Movies (& 5 Ways the Movies Are Better) - Screen Rant