I felt guilty for disliking the book, but I really disliked it. What I loved about the movie was how intricate it was—complex, and yet all the elements fit together in this extremely concise, intentional way. Nothing was extraneous or misplaced. The book was completely lacking in that kind of concision: clumsy, sprawling, vague. Obviously the movie could not have happened without the ideas set forth in the book, but in terms of the kind of experience the viewer/reader has of the story, I liked the movie so much more. And I would like to think that it would be the same, even if I had read the book first (although I never would have even finished the book if it weren’t for my admiration for the film).