Movie Adaptations

I teach Julia Alvarez's "In the Time of the Butterflies" in my Literature Class.
I usually have the students watch the movie with Zalma Hayek and Marc Anthony.
While the movie is great,being an adaptation it leaves things out, and changes some others.

I have my students:

1- Research the life and dictatorship of Leonidas Trujillo and the Mirabal Sisters
2- Read the novel
3- Watch the movie
4- Answer a series of comprehension questions related to the novel
5- Create a chart naming the differeces between the movie and the novel
6- Differenciate the real events from the made-up ones in the movie related to Trujillo's Dictatorship and the Mirabal Sisters. I try to make the students aware, though, that they must keep in mind who's tellingthe story and might it be different if told from someone else's point. Would the emphasis on things be different?

Eventhough the students watch the movie in class, the Exam is largely based on the novel. I use the movie to benefot those who are more visual, yet in a literature class, teh written work comes first. YET, teh students learn that they cannot always trust movies instead of readingteh novels.