Remove ads, unlock a dark mode theme, and get other perks by upgrading your account. Experience the website the way it's meant to be.

Weekly Discussion: Best Book-to-Film Adaptations

Discussion in 'Entertainment Forum' started by popdisaster00, Oct 11, 2016.

  1. popdisaster00

    I'm usually deluded Moderator

    What is the best film adapted from a book/novel? Why is it the best?
     
  2. Davjs

    Trusted

    Even though I think they jacked up the ending fight (pretty much anything from the point where after Harry comes back to life/leaves Kings Crossing), Deathly Hollows pt 1 and 2 add so many cool things not in the books to make it an epic.
     
  3. iCarly Rae Jepsen

    run away with me Platinum

    this is a tough one for me because a lot of times I haven't read the book, for instance I can say American Psycho is a good movie but I can't compare it to the source material to see oh they did Ellis justice or not or whatever

    Wild is the last time I can remember reading the book, which I purposefully did around when the movie came out, and thinking the movie did a goof job
     
  4. Liz

    Ew, David

    The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, both the Swedish and American versions, were pretty fantastic. I think Salander is a difficult character to translate to film but both of those movies (and actresses) really did a great job at capturing her complexity

    I also love how they adapted Coraline, even though the movie is vastly different from the book
     
  5. WordsfromaSong

    Trusted

    Paul Thomas Anderson did a great job of making Inherent Vice just as weird and confusing as the book.
     
    CarpetElf and Chase Tremaine like this.
  6. The Shawshank Redemption gets my vote here. It captures the spirit of the story and characters while adding even richer detail to the world. And most importantly it's just a great film.
     
    Garrett L., ChaseTx, Vivatoto and 3 others like this.
  7. cshadows2887

    Hailey, It Happens @haileyithappens Supporter

    The Maltese Falcon has always been my gold standard on this topic. Trimmed the fat while keeping every essential storyline and the tone. And what they had to tone down for censorship purposes (one character's homosexuality, in particular) they still imply in a way that's actually even more artful than the book.
     
  8. Chase Tremaine Oct 12, 2016
    (Last edited: Oct 12, 2016)
    To Kill a Mockingbird

    Period.

    /thread
     
    joe.boy.fresh. and Turkeylegz like this.
  9. carlosonthedrums

    Cooler than a polar bear's toenails Prestigious

    This actually lands on my list of adaptations that were better than the source material, although it may have an unfair advantage since it was only a short story without as much time to flesh out the characters. Brooks for life.

    The LOTR trilogy also beats the books in my opinion. I loved reading them in college, but seeing that world come to life in such a faithful, vibrant and loving manner was something else. The night my wife went into labor, Fellowship was playing on TV, and I couldn't think of a better movie to watch at that time.

    Fight Club elevated the source material too, but I'm biased because I think a little Fincher makes everything better.
     
    coleslawed and Davjs like this.
  10. CarpetElf

    douglas Prestigious

    Stanley Kubrick, Paul Thomas Anderson, and No Country for Old Men.
     
    coleslawed likes this.
  11. OhTheWater

    Let it run Supporter

    Open up the thread so you can get the name of the title right. My 8th graders used to call it that and I'd always tell them it's not a murder manual.
     
    ChaseTx likes this.
  12. Vivatoto

    There's a candle on Second still burning Prestigious

    Although the Shining is one of my favorite movies its a bad adaptation. Shawshank and Green Mile were both excellent adaptations.

    Honestly I'd probably go with the Harry Potter series. I feel like they really captured everything I could have wanted from the books. Basically what I look to when I think of a perfect adaptation.
     
    troyplaysbass likes this.
  13. CarpetElf

    douglas Prestigious

    Except the sixth book. That one was not good.
     
  14. Vivatoto

    There's a candle on Second still burning Prestigious

    I liked it
     
  15. flask

    Trusted Supporter

    Definitely NCFOM.
     
  16. lordjedediah

    N00b3

    The Harry Potter movies are bad adaptations.

    Fight Club is a good adaptation
     
    Kingjohn_654 and Zac Djamoos like this.
  17. smowashere

    Trusted Supporter

    Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. In fact, I think I prefer the film.
     
  18. CarpetElf

    douglas Prestigious

    Didn't know that was a book. I agree.
    Oh yeah, End of the Tour. Jason Segel is brilliant.
     
  19. GEM37

    She haunts the roads

    Persepolis.
     
    joe.boy.fresh. likes this.
  20. nl5011

    Trusted Supporter

    Fear and loathing in Las Vegas is almost word for word with the book. Terry Gilliam did a great job at capturing thompsons tone.
     
  21. OH MY GOSH. I can't believe I did that! I was just trying to make a quick joke, I wasn't even thinking about it.

    Thank you for pointing out my shameful mistake.
     
  22. cshadows2887

    Hailey, It Happens @haileyithappens Supporter

    Chase Tremaine likes this.
  23. One of my favorite films of last year! I'd list The Social Network as well, although that's only barely a book adaptation.
     
  24. CarpetElf

    douglas Prestigious

    Yeah, the End of the Tour was one of my favorites of last year as well.
     
  25. Nathan

    Always do the right thing. Supporter

    The Godfather is a masterpiece while the book it came from is a thin, misogynistic pulp work. The Lord of the Rings trilogy is an incredibly impressive adaptation that perfectly drew from the source story and world to create a visual interpretation that was strongly it's own thing. To Kill a Mockingbird, as mentioned, is up there. Apocalypse Now's interpretation of Heart of Darkness is not only a masterpiece, but one that, by changing the setting and political focus of the original novel, eliminates a lot of the nasty racism that was there. Recently, Carol was outstanding, though I haven't finished the Price of Salt.