My two favorite have got to be Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and To Kill A Mockingbird. Two that I would love see made are Flowers for Algernon and The Catcher in the Rye. The latter will probably never happen being that J.D. Salinger was adament about not having any of his works made into motion pictures. Any favorites? Ones you hated? Suggestions for future ones?
We love because He first loved us.
- 1 John 4:19
If I recall correctly, Flowers for Algernon was made in the sixties, I believe it was called Charlie. There has been a lot of discussion lately of an adaption of Catcher in the Rye. Not sure where that is at.
I like your choices of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and To Kill a Mockingbird. Great adaptions.
Correct about Charlie. Movie was very well done and extremely depressing, but so was the book.
*Boredom's not a burden anyone should bear*
I watched Charly last year in my lit. class, and I loved it (RIP Cliff Robertson)... They remade it calling it by the book title, but that version was completely crap.
As far as good movies: Gone With The Wind and Pride and Prejudice {the Kiera Knightley version) are pretty amazing, but then again, I'm a sucker for time-period movies...
The terrible ones: Twilight (okay, the book was somewhat lacking too, but The movie made me want to leave the theater in the first 5 minutes)and The Da Vinci Code
Dare to reply....... I SAID DARE!!!
Made you look
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Dangerous Liaisons
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is one of the worst in m y opinion. The book was SOOOOOOOOOOOO much better.
shareI've seen OFOtCN as a play as well, at the Old Globe Theater in San Diego, and it was excellent. I liked the film version, too. Michael Douglas produced OFOtCN, which is why Danny DiVito was in it; they used to be roommates in NY.
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My favourite book to movie adaptations are Godfather 1&2, Pride & Prejudice and Gone with the Wind.
Others that I loved but weren't phenomenal are:
The Client, The Firm, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Twilight 1, Baz Lurman's Romeo and Juliet
Water for Elephants - April 15, 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiNVZLwHbLc
Ew, I thought Twilight was an AWFUL adaptation. Of course, that's just my opinion, but after reading the book, Mom and I watched it on DVD. She fell asleep, and I just sat there with my jaw on the floor. The differences between the book and movie were too much for me, and the acting was terrible. (The movies have gotten better since then, with the latest one being my favorite. I hope the last two are even better.)
My favorite has to be The Notebook. I know it's a chick flick, but it's the only movie I've ever watched and thought, "Damn, the movie was BETTER!" That just never happens for me.
Call me Katie. ;-)
The problem with the Twilight films is definitely the script adaptation. If you haven't read the books, you're left scratching your head, wondering about a lot of details and characterizations that were left out.
I've never seen The Notebook or any films by the author of that book.
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So, I saw this:
http://www.latinoreview.com/images/stories/domestic-tintinposter.jpg
And thought it was a joke that someone had made to capitalize on Pirates of the Caribbean, but no, it's the real deal. Then I watched the trailer and have zero interest in seeing this.
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AGREED! I am glad that the movies are improving now that the franchise is moving along... I hope that Breaking Dawn isn't so... gray and dull...
As for the Notebook, I read the book after watching the movie, and was so disappointed with Nicholas Sparks... Maybe the book just fell flat to the movie, but it was complete *beep*
Dare to reply....... I SAID DARE!!!
Made you look
Two great ones: Sense and Sensibility (for which Emma Thompson won a screenwriting Oscar), and
The Accidental Tourist-- incredibly faithful to the book and amazing.
Bad ones: The Golden Compass and any of the Twilight books.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz455--bNEI
wfe trailer.
If they made a movie about Catcher & the Rye, that would go against everything that the book stands for.
i hope you choke on your bacardi & coke!
*Team Landa*
Salinger specifically stated that none of his writing could be adapted for film, and I think it's in his will as well. So far his family has refused all offers-- I don't know if they're allowed to go against his wishes. So I wouldn't hold my breath for Catcher in the Rye.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz455--bNEI
wfe trailer.
I'm looking forwards to 'The Bronze Horseman' and the other two books 'Tatiana and Alexander' and 'The Summer Garden' being made in to movies. (I hope the director can create that feel like Francis has for Water For Elephants)
and
I recently read the novel 'The Shadow of the wind' that would make a great film.
I would love Catcher In The Rye but i'm glad in a way, it won't be made.
I hated 'The Time Travellers Wife' movie, just horrible, it did'nt flow right.
The Bronze Horseman
I thought the time travelers wife movie sucked! I haven't read the book tho I'm sure it's better.
i hope you choke on your bacardi & coke!
*Team Landa*
I never read The Time Travelers Wife, but I thought the movie was bad. I think Eric Bana was miscast for one and had no chemistry with RM.
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The book is amazing, please read it if you haven't. But yes the casting had no chemistry what so ever.
The Bronze Horseman
The book was very well written (if a little long) you should really look into it (it's a thousand times better than the film )
Anyway as for adaptations....
I really liked Atonement, One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest, both hte series & film for Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibilty
Obviously The Time Travellers Wife was terrible but so was I Love You Beth Cooper (also fairly recent) My Sisters Keeper, the 2008 version of [i[Brideshead Revisited[/i] & Veriona Decides To Die
http://tinyurl.com/497effs
The cover of the new international re-release of Water For Elephants, a book that's number 1 on the Best Sellers list at the moment.
http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lingccotS81qbmraoo1_500.jpg
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Best Adaptation: Gone With the Wind
Worst Adaptation: The Prince of Tides
JMHO
"The only baggage you can bring is all that you can't leave behind."
U2
Speaking of book to film adaptations, I didn't see Eat, Pray, Love because I don't like the author of the book and I don't like Julia Roberts, most of the time. But this is funny, and I wonder if they're going to make a film of it:
http://tinyurl.com/4nljuv8
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WFE is number one on the Best Sellers list again.
They did a great job with the Lord of the Rings books and I can't wait to see The Hobbit. It's my favorite of the series.
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Movie blog calls out WFE as one to watch:
http://tinyurl.com/2a79bwg
I'm feeling less dispirited about 2011 now that I've tallied everything up. I'm looking at 39 films that will almost certainly intrigue and perhaps more than that -- 9 that appear top-grade (and seem the most likely Best Picture candidates at this stage) candidates, 26 that seem at the least like promising maybes, and 4 that will most likely qualify as "entertaining," however you want to define that. Here's hoping that other surprises turn up. Corrections and suggestions are welcome.
under "Qualified Expectations:
Water for Elephants (d: Francis Lawrence). Cast: Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, Christoph Waltz, Hal Holbrook. Synopsis: "A veterinary student abandons his studies after his parents are killed and joins a traveling circus as their vet," etc.
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War Horse looks promising. At least I know the score is good.
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Spring full of film adaptations of favorite books/ from the LA Times:
As grand as the spectacle of film can be, books offer a different set of pleasures: There is time to ponder, to turn the page back, to sit with characters' thoughts and share in their heartbreaks, their revelations. Some big movies are coming this spring from books that with any luck there might just be enough time to read before their glossy translations hit the screen.
Charlotte Brontë's tale of romance and a man with a secret, "Jane Eyre,"-- The film stars Mia Wasikowska ("Alice in Wonderland," "The Kids Are All Right") as Jane and handsome Michael Fassbender as Mr. Rochester. The much-loved novel is dark and moving, with twists and surprises.
Based on Michael Connelly's book of the same title, "The Lincoln Lawyer" — starring Matthew McConaughey — The Lincoln is McConaughey's car, which serves as his office as he crosses L.A. from courthouse to client. The movie's star-filled cast — Ryan Phillippe, Marisa Tomei and William H. Macy are just a few — points to the roster of intriguing characters found in Connelly's book.
Julian Schnabel ("The Diving Bell and the Butterfly") directs "Miral," starring Freida Pinto from "Slumdog Millionaire," coming to theaters March 25. Based on the semiautobiographical novel of the same name by Rula Jebreal, the book and film chronicle more than four decades in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Political opinions of the movie are bound to be strong; the book may give more room to consider the story outside the tumult.
I haven't seen any of these yet-- anyone?
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Cold Comfort Farm; good book, good adaptation with Kate Beckinsale and Rufus Sewell.
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Love in a Cold Climate, from the Nancy Mitford book.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0180369/
The 1980 version starred Judy Densch.
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Golden Compass was a huge disappointment.
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I JUST saw Jane Eyre and it was fabulous. I was very skeptical at first because I didn't think it would be possible to cram the book into a two hour movie, but they did a really lovely job with it. Sometimes it seemed a bit rushed, but the actors were perfectly cast and it was a beautiful, hauntingly tragic movie. I loved it.
shareIA, Jane Eyre was very well done. I think WFE was a good adaption. The strongest this year, although I haven't seen it, just heard, seems to be The Help.
shareMy absolute favourite book to film transfer has to be "Lord of the Rings". I loved the books and was very happy with the way the films turned out.
Other than that my favourite book to screen adaptations have all come from TV rather than the movies. Loved the BBC's 1995 adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice", but I was disappointed with the 2005 film. I also enjoyed the most recent BBC version of "Jane Eyre", and ITV's most recent "Northanger Abbey". I wonder if it has anything to do with classic novels being shorter than modern ones, so they don't have to leave so much out? Also, TV adaptations can cover four or six hours - something a film can't do.
Sky has also adapted two or three Terry Pratchett novels, and I think the last one, "Going Postal", was the best of the bunch so far.
I never got around to reading "The Time Travellers Wife", and I switched the film off half way through - something I rarely do - but my daughter thought the book was ten times better than the film, so I ought to give the book a go.
As for what I'd love to see adapted ... well, all my favourite Georgette Heyer books for one. I believe they made "The Reluctant Widow" in the 1950's (not one of my favourites) and there was a German version of "Arabella" also made when Heyer was still alive. I heard she hated them and wouldn't let anyone else adapt one of her books. Since she died there are companies out there holding film rights, but no one will take the risk because period films are so expensive to make.
Would also have loved to see one of Anne McCaffery's Dragonriders of Pern turned into a movie, but alas the failure of "Eragon" to set the box office alight has probably ruined any chance it had of being made.
I discovered the Georgette Heyer books when I was 14 and read them all! She's absolutely the best at historical romance. My favorites are These Old Shades and the sequel, Devil's Cub. I've always thought they would make fantastic films.
Didn't Hugh Grant do a Barbara Cartland film when he was younger? I vaguely remember something, it wasn't very good, though. I always thought Heyer was like filet mignon and Cartland a hamburger.
I've watched the DVD extras on Sense and Sensibility, and Emma Thompson talks a lot about how expensive period films are to make, but still, they're worth it when you have a good script. I liked Kiera Knightly's Duchess, too, although it was so sad it was beautifully done.
http://www.fanfiction.net/~cullenista
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Didn't Hugh Grant do a Barbara Cartland film when he was younger? I vaguely remember something, it wasn't very good, though.
I always thought Heyer was like filet mignon and Cartland a hamburger.
The Lord of the Rings
Sense and Sensibility
Forrest Gump
I'm looking forwards to 'The Bronze Horseman' and the other two books 'Tatiana and Alexander' and 'The Summer Garden' being made in to movies. (I hope the director can create that feel like Francis has for Water For Elephan
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Green Mile & Shawshank Redemption
Flowers in the Attic, by V.C. Andrews, is a beautifully written novel that was made into a movie in the early 80s....it was a disgrace to the book and I hope they plan to remake it.
If there was EVER a movie that needed to be remade it's this one. That movie is indeed a disgrace and totally fails to capture the essence of that book. I'm shocked there haven't been more VC Andrew movies as well.I'm actually surprised that they ever managed to get the first one made. It's such a taboo subject in almost every culture on Earth that it's almost impossible to capture correctly. I can't imagine this ever being re-made in America where societal mores seem to be shifting alarmingly right of center. You have some communities where parents have had their kids taken away for taking pictures of their toddlers bathing together in a bathtub, with claims that its child pornography. I think there would be a huge hue and cry over a film depicting an incestuous relationship between teenage siblings. Not to mention the poisoning of the younger brother at the hands of the grandmother.
Just saw this:
http://thestir.cafemom.com/entertainment/114065/new_water_for_elephant s_trailer
New 'Water for Elephants' Trailer: All the Makings for Book-to-Film Success
Water for Elephants has all of the makings of an awesome film: An attractive Reese Witherspoon, a dashingly handsome Robert Pattinson, and an intriguing plot that leaves me wanting more. The trailer tells the story of a young Jacob (Pattinson) as he drops out of Cornell and joins the circus. Based on the 2006 book by Sara Gruen, the movie comes out in April.
Sure — I have my doubts about book-to-film adaptations. But after getting a taste of how good looking Pattinson is here, there’s no way I’m skipping out on this one. And yes — I really mean it. Take off the powdered makeup and film him in the dim lights of the big top … it looks like we have a winner. And while there have been a fair share of book-to-big-screen flops, there are some seriously successful book-to-film adaptations, too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz455--bNEI
wfe trailer
http://i51.tinypic.com/2vbad0y.jpg
Lovely screen cap of Rosie, Jacob and Marlene.
Synopsis
Based on the acclaimed bestseller, WATER FOR ELEPHANTS presents an unexpected romance in a uniquely compelling setting. Veterinary school student Jacob meets and falls in love with Marlena, a star performer in a circus of a bygone era. They discover beauty amidst the world of the Big Top, and come together through their compassion for a special elephant. Against all odds -- including the wrath of Marlena's charismatic but dangerous husband, August -- Jacob and Marlena find lifelong love.
If I had to pick my absolute three favorite/least favorite adaptions at this point I would choose:
1. A Clockwork orange
2. The Godfather
3. Lord of the Rings
Two worst:
1. Primary Colors
2. The Scarlet Letter
3. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Maybe not the three best, maybe not the three worst, but those six films were the ones that immediately jumped into my mind after reading the OP.
One book i would love to see an adaption to movie is 'The Shadow Of The Wind'. I just finished reading it and just wow! An amazing novel.
The Bronze Horseman
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Just saw this trailer for Atlas Shrugged. Neither of the leads is the least bit appealing to me, and they aren't exactly selling me on the plot, either.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6W07bFa4TzM&feature=player_embedded
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New behind the scenes of WFE and talking with Reese and Rob:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eTck2iHQUM&feature=player_embedded
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