Letters to the Editor
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What the cinematic form requires
This is a matter of books and films, whether a book is faithfully rendered or not, brings nothing to the discussion. Probably the best writer, in terms of bringing a novel to bear that was already prepared for the transfer to film, it was James M. Cain. His writing style most perfectly delivered what the cinematic form requires, and the novel will always serve the film industry and its peculiar needs.
Film has rather simple needs; economy and dialogue. I look forward to "Into the Wild," because it isn't a novel, has no dialogue, and relies on a very sketchy character. In some ways its the filmmakers perfect choice. Perhaps the perfect novel awaiting a film was "Mildred Pierce", if you were looking for a faithful translation, forget it. There were no murders in the book and the time frame of the film story was turned completely around. In contrast the "Unbearable Lightness of Being" was at least faithful to that part of the story which was a romantic narrative, about two of the characters in the story, sans the self reflexive structures, and symbolic diversions.
Novels since Cain, have tended to indulge in what I would call marketing techniques, long chapters of description, ultimately meant to be cut from the final product, but which glamorize, or characterize, without actually building character, the actors role in the story. In the film "Midnight Cowboy" a lot of dialogue is lifted directly from the text of the novel, but the opening sequence, a series of flashbacks of Joe Buck is a compressed, stylized version of the entire first half of the novel. It's a very effective translation.