On Writing : Best/Worst Book-to-Film Adaptations by Ty Strange

I sadly don't read enough books to properly contribute, but I'm jumping into the thread to get some book & movie recommendations from the responses!

Sweet, David Abrookin!

My favorite book adaptation is "It," Ty Strange. I'm not sure what my least favorite is.

Hollywood releases ten (10) Adapations yearly; for a century-going! I love the finished product of a book-to-motion-picture just in general.. This media widens my eyes upon viewing. Note: Specifically by conglomerate movie corporations; main stream studios; major studios. Because there is a reason those professionals were invited into the production process of a gobal theatrical release; of significant reads!

Favorite: Bourne identity. Least favorite: Both Tom Cruise Jack Reacher movies.

It's such a tough topic so I'll narrow it to war movies for comparison sake and say my favorite is Full Metal Jacket (Kubrick caught every nuance of the book The Short-Timers) and the worst is The Thin Red Line (agreed with one review that said "they took a great book and wrote a bad script and then took the bad script and made a terrible movie"). But this is an endless conversation for cinephiles!!

I feel like The Giver was a hit and miss for me. But I did enjoy The Mazerunner.

Speaking of war movies, Sam Sokolow, I just read where the movie Mash was based on a book, Mash: A Novel About Three Army Doctors. I didn't realize this. I loved the movie, and now I wonder what the book was like.

I missed both those books and movies, Antonio M. The premise of The Giver sounds intriguing.

"The Giver" is one of my favorite books, Antonio M. and Ty Strange. It was required reading in school.

Favorite: Forrest Gump, It, Jurassic Park, & The Princess Bride

Least Favorite: Ender's Game, Artemis Fowl, Twitches, Cirque du Freak: The Vampire Assistant, The Shining (NOT saying it's a bad movie, but it's not actually a great adaptation of the source material), Ella Enchanted.

Favorites: I might be in the minority here, but Da Vinci Code. I thought it was great movie with relatable characters and an intriguing plot. It respected the original material, without straying too far from it. Some adaptations from Patrick Sénécal's novels (a French-Canadian author and screenwriter that specializes in thriller/horror stories). Jurassic Park.

Least Favorites: Harry Potter, I'm just not into it. Lord of the Rings. Twilight.

I agree with you, Marcel Nault Jr., about Da Vinci Code, if for only the fact that Dan Brown's work, much like James Patterson's, tends to be geared for the big screen.

I didn't realize Forrest Gump was based on a book, Ashley Renee Smith. Good to know. The Princess Bride is a timeless classic!

Favorite: Jurassic Park

Sort of favorite: Jaws (I love the movie. However, I read the novel, which was also really good and I think it should be redone as a TV series and stick closely to the book).

Least Favorite: I agree with Marcel Nault Jr. about the Da Vinci Code.

Favorite - the latest Reacher series, Hunger Games, Harry Potter, The Shining

Least - Enders Game, Giver, The Golden Compass, Divergent

Love/Hate - Twilight :)

Niki H, 100% agree about The Golden Compass! What did you think about the series?

Ashley Renee Smith I thought it was beautiful and remarkable in visuals and effects, grossly miscast with Lin Manuel, and struggled a bit with the amount of storylines. But I enjoyed it :)

I absolutely love the novel "Starship Troopers," but the movie, while not bad, disappointed me. I think a good adaptation is "Lord of the Flies."

I didn't know "Starship Troopers" was based on a novel, Reuben D. Gregorich. I saw the movie in theaters as a kid.

This is a great thread. I sadly cannot properly contribute, but I am curious if anyone has read "Lawrence in Arabia"?

I have not , however I am curious of your thoughts regarding the book vs the movie?

Maurice, "Starship Troopers," written in 1959 by Robert Heinlein, is at the very least an entertaining novel, and personally, quite intriguing. Within military SF, it stands alongside "Forever War" and "Ender's Game" as some of the best that has been written... in my opinion.

The Bonfire of Vanities. No idea why/how the movie bombed. The book was legendary here in NYC and author Wolfe became a rockstar.

Thanks, Reuben D. Gregorich. I'll check out the "Starship Troopers" book.

“To Kill a Mockingbird” might be one of the best book-to-screen adaptations in terms of overall quality and authenticity to the source material. “Harry Potter: Goblet of Fire” one of the worst in terms of drop in quality from source to screen.

The interesting thing about questions like this is that the intentions and goals of such endeavors differ between writers and viewers alike.

I think Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy sets out to do the most complete retelling of the books possible in a medium limited by time and budget. And I think he did a great job in capturing the story and themes of the books. On the flip side, I think he did the exact opposite with the Hobbit trilogy and failed to capture the themes and feeling of the book. And he absolutely didn't do a proper retelling, because he added a lot.

One of my favorite adaptations is Cloud Atlas. The movie made me decide to read the book. Honestly, it's one of the only times I think the movie is better than the book, and it's not even close. I actually think the movie adds a concept that some might say you can infer from the book, but isn't clearly stated. But that concept makes the movie so much better. And the ability to show it visually works quite well whereas the book obviously couldn't do that.

Good point, Terrence Sellers. I was curious after watching the first three Bourne movies how Ludlum's novels would read since his were published in the 80s and the movies were released about twenty years later. The advancements in tech alone piqued my curiosity so I read all three novels and loved them just as much as the adaptations. Similar story lines but engaging in different ways.

Some great comments here. Thx for chiming in, everybody!

Dan MaxXx, only reason I can think that The Bonfire of Vanities bombed at the box office is that Tom Hanks and Bill Willis were cast for two roles that they played more affable than the same two characters from the novel. Watered down effort?

Jonathan Jordan, To Kill a Mockingbird is a fantastic adaptation.

Niki H, I completely agree!

The best example I can think of is "A Winter's Tale." It's without a doubt one of the greatest, most ambitious novels I've ever read. That pretty much doomed any attempt at making a movie. It's too sprawling and time-jumpy to put in a 2-hour box. They pulled one of the subplots and it made no sense without the rest of the context. Poor Colin Farrell took the fall but it was doomed before the cameras rolled.

Just my own opinion, some of the Anne Rice adaptations are great as well, including Queen of the Damned (as I've stated before, it's a guilty pleasure of mine). I haven't seen the new series on AMC, based on Interview with a Vampire, but I've read and seen some of the reviews, and it's actually quite good. Surprisingly so.

Steven Spielberg's movie,The Color Purple, was almost better than the novel. The classic movie Gone With The Wind is another movie that was as good or better than the book. More recently, Liane Moriarty's bestselling novel, Big Little Lies, was a great read but the MAX series with Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern and Zoe Kravitz was definitely superior.

Marcel Nault Jr., the new Interview with a Vampire series is great and definitely worth watching!

Worst book to screen adaptation in my opinion, was Pat Conroy's, The Prince of Tides. Barbra Streisand played psychiatrist, Dr. Lowenstein and also directed and co-produced the 1991 film. The movie shifts the emphasis from the toxic Wingo family to the brief love affair between Lowenstein and Tom Wingo, an ex-high school football coach whose twin sister attempted suicide in New York City. As with most of Streisand's films, Barbra needs to be front and center. To her defense, the New York Times and other reviews were quite favorable.. Interestingly enough the film was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including best picture, but won none. The novel is in the top ten of my favorite books.