So me and Cheri are talking about Charlotte's Web and whether the cartoon or the movie was better.

Now I jump up right away and say that the movie was better. Yes, the cartoon was a classic. But the characterization errors drove me slightly nuts, and I think they can be described best in me and Cheri's reenactment of the movie (Sadly, this is the actual conversation we had):

"Wilbur: :3 I totally sound 30 years old then my age. See the emo tears I cry in waterfalls. ;-;
Charlotte: Wilbur, I SWEAR TO GOD, IF YOU DON'T SHUT UP I WILL HAUNT YOU IN YOUR SLEEP AND PERSONALLY MAKE SURE YOU BECOME ZUCKERMAN'S BREAKFAST TOMORROW MORNING!!!! X(
Templeton: :3 Guess what you guys? I joined the peace corps this morning!!! ^--------^"

Yes, we are freaks, and we pride ourselves on it :3

But seirously. That bugged me. Wilbur was too emo, Charlotte was too mean, and Templeton was way too nice.

And I guess that bothers me because it's a statement to the filmmaker's ability to understand a mere children's book. Cause I can see where they were going.... In the book, of course Wilbur's gonna carry on a lot (Wouldn't YOU if you were gonna die?) but he's definitely not the whiner they made him in the cartoon. In the book, Charlotte is BLUNT. That's a lot different than mean. And I dunno how they could have screwed up Templeton. The book clearly states he has "no morals, no decency, no milk of rodent kindness", how do you screw that up? Is it because he gets all the words for Charlotte? Did someone in the studio think it would be funny if he and Charlotte had a thing for each other? Seriously, WTH.

And it took them 50 years to make it right... Maybe filmmakers are just better at reading? Wilbur sounded his age and was no longer an emo whiner, Charlotte was restored to her position of serrogate mother instead of parrol officer, and Templeton was restored to his self-serving a-hole glory. And it wasn't that hard to do. If one 17 year old alone can read the book and convey the personalities correctly, it tells me the cartoon was more CHA-CHING, let's rush through the book so we can make our money, and the movie was more about the message. I did like the cartoon, but if you're gonna see one for the first time, make sure it's the movie.

*ahem*

*bows and slinks away*

-Chi <3

P.S. Now why can't I write an analysis like that in AP English? Oh yea... I DO. So why do I have a B in there right now? These are the questions...