Yes, I read the book before seeing the movie. Yes, most film adaptations of books are not great representations of the original material. However, I'll counter that thin argument by saying that in the hands of a great director like Spielberg, a book adaptation should be so much more faithful to the plot which makes it great, rather than just good. Take Peter Jackson's Lord of the rings trilogy. He knew there was too much material to squeeze into a 3 hour movie, so he made 3 movies, and ended up with arguably the greatest fantasy adventure movies ever created. Spielberg ends up here with a movie that is entertaining for the masses who didn't read the book, but with something that could and should have been so much greater, deeper, and intelligently done.

The quest for the keys in the book is great entertainment and would translate nicely onto the screen. Instead we get a car race which is so fast and full of reference that it's hard to keep up, a second key hidden inside a movie which was nothing to do with the book, and overall character reveals which don't trigger any emotional response (as they did in the book).

It's difficult to give this movie a fair review, as I can see it from both sides of the coin (my wife who didn't read the book, and my 8 year old son loved it), but I'm aware of what it could have been, and I'm only disappointed.

Please, if you've not read the book, get down to a library and immerse yourself in it. I read it in a day and it was absolutely incredible. I grew up on pretty much all the nostalgic references, and the characters and plot are superbly done. I guarantee you'll love the book way more than you enjoyed the film.