The book was exceptionally good, but the movie lacked a lot of the tense emotion and wonder that you could feel seeping through the pages as you read. In all honesty, movie adaptions of books should stay as true and close to the book as possible.
The author had a vision of a fascinating world when writing a novel and readers get pulled into that fantastic world. What we want to see, as both readers and movie-goers is the *authors* vision come to life, not something's that's been *just* made for profit.
More praise and positive recognition would go to the producers and directors if they would just follow the book and make their audiences extremely grateful and happy for having their favourite literary work brought to life.