Book Vs. Movie — Sahara
Book Vs. Movie
We have all probably heard someone say “the book was better” or “why are they even making it into a movie, they are just going to screw everything up” when Hollywood decides to adapt another novel into a movie. Is the book always better? Is it possible to have a movie to be superior to the novel? Are there times when the two are able to stand on their own independently? These are questions that we are going to ask here at Tangential Space. With the Book vs. Movie column we are going to look at and compare a popular book and its film adaptation. We are not planning to use this as a forum to bash one or the other but instead to compare the two and see what they both have to offer. Obviously both mediums have their pros and cons, and depending on the author or film maker the end products can be very similar or drastically different.
Sahara — To kick off this first Book Vs. Movie column we will be looking at the 1992 Clive Cussler novel Sahara and its 2005 film adaptation directed by Brick Eisner and starring Matthew McConaughey. Both follow the exploits of Dirk Pitt as he works together with NUMA (National Underwater and Marine Agency) and the World Health Organization to figure out where a water born sickness is coming from before the situation escalates into a worldwide catastrophe. Pitt is accompanied by his longtime friend and coworker Al Giordino and Dr. Eva Rojas and her team from the WHO. Their work will pit them against anAfrican dictator General Kazim, and a ruthless french business man Yves Massarde. Along the way Pitt and company will also work to figure out the mystery of a Confederate naval vessel in Africa, as well as a long lost plane wreck.
First Encounter — Not which one was created first but rather which one did I experience first. I have found that my feelings about a movie based on a book can be more positive if I saw the movie first and then read the book, while if I read the book first I watch it with different expectations and it is more possible that I will be disappointed.
I had heard of Clive Cussler’s books but I had never read any of them when Sahara made its way to theaters in 2005. The trailers made it look like this would be a fun and entertaining movie though the critical response was more on the negative side so I waited a few weeks for the film to hit the 2 dollar theater, and I was treated to a very entertaining action adventure film. In the years that followed I have rewatched the movie and I have often thought about checking out the novel that inspired the film but it just never happened, until recently when I came across the book in a used book store.
The Debate — Both the novel and the movie share a lot in common. The overall plot between the two is very similar with some elements being altered or removed for the film. With a book the author has the freedom to make the story as long as possible, while within the Hollywood system film makers typically do their best to simplify things down into a two hour run time. With Sahara there are a number of significant alterations made to the narrative for the film, though for the most part I was ok with the changes that were made and I can understand why most of the changes were made. In the novel there is a section involving a prison camp/ gold mining operation where General Kazim sends his political prisoners and the World Health Organization team. The movie also removes the back story for the plane that Dirk and Al find in the desert, and a subplot about a kidnapped Abraham Lincoln being held prisoner on the Confederate vessel. While I enjoyed all of these elements while reading them, by removing them the film makers were able to maintain the heart of the story, while keeping to a 2 hour run time.
There are a few things that I found did bother me a bit as I was reading the book that I would have liked to have seen differently in the book. I think Matthew McConaughey was a great casting choice for Dirk Pitt (now as I read the books my mind pictures McConaughey as the hero), I also found the movie made some subtle changes to the character. In the book Dirk Pitt is an action hero, he beats up bad guys and can handle himself in combat scenarios, and the movie maintains this about the character they just push it a bit further. In the novel Dirk and Al receive assistance from a team of UN commandos and even then suffer heavy losses, while in the movie Dirk and Al are able to hold off an entire African army using antique civil war cannons as they await reinforcements. Its not a huge change, but it is enough. While I found McConaughey’s casting to be pretty spot on, I did find the casting of Steve Zahn as Al Giordino to be a bit off. In the books Al is short, stocky, strong, and intimidating; those are not things I think about Mr. Zahn. At the same time I do think that Zahn and McConaughey had very good chemistry and I could see them as longtime friends, they were able to portray they humorous dialogue between the two characters. It was just that I would struggle seeing Zahn standing up to a brutal and deranged prison guard without flinching. This casting choice is not a huge issue for, though if I had read the book first it probably would have bothered me more (and it did a bit as I read another book in the series, so i just do my best not to picture Steve Zahn as the character while I am reading).
There is one change that the movie made that I preferred to the book, and that is featuring author Clive Cussler as a character. I have now read two books in the Dirk Pitt series (Sahara and Atlantis Found) and in each book Mr. Cussler appears towards the end of the book as a wise old explorer who provides the heroes with assistance in a moment of need. I don’t know if this is something that occurs in all of these books, but as it happened in Sahara I found it to be a bit of a distraction and it ended up taking me out of the book for a bit. It was not enough to take away my enjoyment of the book, and even if it continues to happen I am sure I will continue to read and enjoy his books.
The Verdict — So which is better Sahara the novel or Sahara the movie? I am going to give it to the book, though for me it is pretty close decision. The freedom that the book has to flesh out the world of the story and to raise the stakes a bit more helped it to move ahead of the movie for me. Unfortunalty the movie did not do well enough to get a sequel as I would have liked seeing more of Dirk’s adventures on the big screen, and this series is perfect material for big cinematic action adventure movies. Thankfully I enjoyed the book so much that I have already finished another book in the series, and I will be able to enjoy many more of Dirk Pitt’s adventures.
Possible Tangents -
Books — If you enjoyed either the book or the movie I would encourage you to check out the other books in the Dirk Pitt series by Clive Cussler (currently there are 24 books in the series with the last 7 books being cowritten by Clive’s son Dirk Cussler). These books also remind me a bit of James Rollins’ SIGMA Force series, which are also action adventure books with a historical back story and an entertaining action feel to them.
Movies — While researching for this column I discovered that Sahara was not the first Dirk Pitt novel that was adapted into a film, in 1980 the novel Raise the Titanic! was made into a feature film. I have not read this book yet but I am planning to and I also look forward to seeing the movie even though it has not received very good reviews. Other possible movies to check out if you enjoyed Sahara would be the Indiana Jones or National Treasure films for the archeologist action film feel.
