Your Best and Worst Movie Adaptations of a Book

[heard03]

I heard Barry Levinson discussing The Natural on Bill Simmons' 30 for 30 podcast the other day and it got me thinking. IMHO The Natural is the best film adaptation of a book- the movie was wonderful, Redford was terrific and heroic- someone you could really pull for. I thought the book was terrible- I know The Natural is a fable, but the book was over the top and Roy Hobbs came across as an obnoxious jerk who evoked no sympathy.

My pick for worst adaptation is Starship Troopers- Heinlein's novel is a masterpiece that delves into society, politics, the military and it's appropriate use, and the right of suffrage and who in a society should have it. All of this goes on during an interesting and humorous story about the main character. The movie was an abomination- sophomoric and idiotic. Don't waste your time seeing it.

I'm curious- what are your best and worst picks for film adaptations?

[ThePhilosopher]

One of my favorite adaptations is Interview With the Vampire, while Queen of the Damned was easily one of the worst - although Starship Troopers is right up there.

[brad]

Originally Posted by heard03

My pick for worst adaptation is Starship Troopers- Heinlein's novel is a masterpiece that delves into society, politics, the military and it's appropriate use, and the right of suffrage and who in a society should have it. All of this goes on during an interesting and humorous story about the main character. The movie was an abomination- sophomoric and idiotic. Don't waste your time seeing it.

Wow, that looks like a review I wrote after seeing the movie. I have called it the worst movie I ever paid money to see in the theater. (That designation used to belong to Steel Dawn. Cat in the Hat would have been it, but I had free passes for that... and no one would go see Battlefield Earth with me.) I agree on all counts above.

For worst adaptation, I'd go with the Philip K. Dick short story Paycheck. The story is mysterious that has you figuring out what's going on along with the main character - and it is that mystery that drives the character and the story. The movie is boring and unsuspenseful.. giving away the "payoff" too soon and turning it into a bad formula chase movie.

Best adaptation.. I think maybe the Princess Bride. It gives a nod to the fact that it is a book in the way it was presented, and like the book, you don't realize its a comedy until you realize your sides and face hurt from laughing and smiling so much.

[HeatherLou]

The worst for me is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, I loved the book, the movie was cute, but I remember feeling, "Now what did they do that for?"

There are a few that I think got it right. Princess Bride, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Shawshank Redemption and The Stand.

I am afraid to go see two movies right now. I recently read The Lovely Bones and Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief. The previews for both are nothing like the books.

[Tom]

Best:
Princess Bride
Natural
Shawshank Redemption (do short stories count?)
The Jungle Book
Original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Lord of the Rings Trilogy (I haven't watched or read these, so going on public opinion)
Jurassic Park
The Godfather
Slumdog Millionaire
No Country for Old Men
LA Confidential
The Thin Red Line (lots of hate for this, but I like it)
A Beautiful Mind
Mystic River
Million Dollar Baby
There Will Be Blood
Apollo 13
Forrest Gump
Schindler's List
Dances with Wolves
Goodfellas
Silence of the Lambs
My Left Foot
Driving Miss Daisy
Field of Dreams
Das Boot
All The President's Men
The French Connection
To Kill a Mockingbird
A Time to Kill




Worst:
Cat in the Hat
I am Legend
The Scarlet Letter with Demi Moore
Probably all that Twilight crap
Pinocchio with Roberto Benigni
Battlefield Earth
Striptease
The Island of Dr. Moreau
Congo
Sliver
Cobra (Stallone movie)

[brad]

Originally Posted by Thomas Campbell

Best:
Original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Oh, I love the movie with Gene Wilder.. but did you know that Dahl hated it? According to his widow, the Johnny Depp version is much closer to what he wanted... although the dentist backstory was random.

[heard03]

Originally Posted by Thomas Campbell

Best:Shawshank Redemption (do short stories count?)
No Country for Old Men

Short stories absolutely count.

Haven't read No Country For Old Men yet(I really liked the movie). I did check out The Road(also by Cormac McCarthy) on Audible.com and was totally blown away by it. That book is a must read for every father! I haven't seen the movie yet, though I heard Viggo Mortensen said it was very true to the book.

[venchka]

Read No Country for Old Men. It fills in a few blanks in the movie.

[mmuhlenkamp]

Out of books I've actually read and movies adapted from them (I've seen a lot of movies on Thomas' list but haven't read most of the books). "Jurassic Park" and "The Green Mile" I think were very good. Adjustments were made for the movies without detracting from the overall story.

The worst... "Queen of the Damned" is definitely up there (though Interview with The Vampire was the best book of that series by far), I need to think up some more worst ones...

[jgrindal]

Best:
Jurassic Park

Worst:
I Robot
I am Legend

[miffed67]

My favorite movie adaptation is Lord of the Rings, altho they left some scenes out of the movie that I felt should have been in there. Also, Brokeback Mountain, and Dune. There are a LOT of Dune fans who hate the movie (the first one, from '85 or '86, I think it was?), but I loved it and still do. I don't think it's perfect, but I do think it's come closer than subsequent efforts. LA Confidential was an excellent movie, but I never read the book, so I don't know how true an adaptation it was. Hmmmm, Blade Runner. I've only read parts of the book, tho, and ummmmm 1984, and Schindler's List....and Angela's Ashes.

Adaptations I didn't like: I, Robot, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Battlefield Earth (EXCELLENT book....awful movie!) annnnnnd....that's all I can think of at the moment. I'll have to come up with some more, too!

[Daniel Bates]

I'm not going to repeat some of the excellent adaptations already mentioned, but I also like Blackhawk Down and Fight Club.

[Truckman]

Originally Posted by venchka

Read No Country for Old Men. It fills in a few blanks in the movie.

That movie is all blank...When I finished the movie, I tried to play the back of the DVD to see the ending...They can keep the money I spent on it, I just want two hours of my life back......Ben

[Jake]

"The Shawshank Redemption" and "Stand by Me" are two that didn't disappoint after reading the stories.
Actually, I thought Shawshank the movie was even better than the book(or short story in this case).


I use to like Dean Koontz books, but any movies adaptations of his are pure crap.

Oh, I didn't read Starship Troopers but I liked the movie......

[Jeff_Green]

One word... Lord of the Rings Trilogy. The best in the history of EVER!