MovieChat Forums > The Hunt for Red October (1990) Discussion > Proof that Hollywood can do great novel ...

Proof that Hollywood can do great novel adaptations...

posted 11 years ago by successor13326
5 replies | jump to latest

...when they put their minds to it. It's been a long while since I read the book, but I brushed up on the plot via the net. And it's pretty close to the novel. Yes, they did remove, compress and/or change certain characters and events from the book. But all in all, I think the screenwriters did a fantastic job adapting the story to the silver screen. Which is more than I can say for some of the screenwriters of other movies, like World War Z and Jumper.

[–] Hanz-Willhelm 11 years ago

I loved the film and liked it even more than the book. A lot was changed in the movie but that didn't bother me. Many films changed thing from the books they were based on.

[–] BertramWilberforceWooster 11 years ago

Of course they can do great adaptations. It's just some fans have become super sensitive, and their voices are heard easier since the advent of the internet. You should have seen the hate spewing about Harry Potter's scar being off-center or Lord of the Rings not having Tom Bombadil. That was a lot of fun.

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If I cannot smoke cigars in heaven, I shall not go!

[–] CGSailor 11 years ago

Oh I was banging my head in frustration at all the idiots screaming about how Bombadil wasn't in the film therefore the movie was ruined.

Bombadil was a great part of the book but seriously... it didn't add anything at all to the overall plot.

I joined the Navy to see the world, only to discover the world is 2/3 water!

[–] CGSailor 11 years ago

The Clancy Film franchise has it's ups and downs. The first three films were good adaptation regardless of the alterations, most were done for the sake of pacing and the differences in the written vs visual media...

But Sum Of All Fears was murderous to the novel.
And they're planning to do the same to Without Remorse if that ever gets greenlit.

I joined the Navy to see the world, only to discover the world is 2/3 water!

[–] Classics-Movie-Fan 11 years ago

It proves they COULD do great novel adaptations in 1990. Nowadays its all marketing based so that alone guarantees lousy movies as the actual talent is either retired or not interested in making movies within the current hollywood studio marketing lead system.