You know, let’s be honest. Hollywood generally lets us down when it comes to book-to-movie adaptations. The acting is never that good or the movie leaves out two-thirds of the book (I’m looking at you Percy Jackson…). But some movies somehow really capture a book and it can be so magical! You get to see these characters that lived in your head come to life on screen with REAL people. How cool is that?!
Anyway, this list is a little different. Usually, I just tell you the best books to read because why worry about the bad ones? But this list includes movies that span the spectrum. We’re talking the good, the bad, and the ugly. I want you to know what to stream now and I want you to know what to avoid at all costs. Don’t waste your time on those bad movies when there are so many other things you can do…like wash your hair or something.
The Good
#1: Shawshank Redemption
One of the greatest book-to-movie adaptations and movies in general is the 1994 adaption of Stephen King’s Shawshank Redemption. The original story is a novella in Stephen King’s Different Seasons but the story and the movie are simply incredible. The book even made it on Feyble’s Top 10 Stephen King Books. There’s heartache, suffering, survival, and in the end hope. In my book, very well done!
#2: The Silence of the Lambs
Although the book is a fantastic thriller, what makes this story come to life is the incredible acting skills of Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins. I can’t imagine these roles played by anyone else. I’m pretty sure “Hello, Clarice” wouldn’t be such a permanent phrase in movieology if not for Anthony Hopkins.
#3: Room
The movie Room won so many awards when it came out because of how well the script was written and because Brie Larson is a total boss. But the script was so incredible because Emma Donoghue, the author of Room, wrote the screen adaptation long before it became a film. That is definitely one way to stay true to the story!
#4: Fight Club
Chuck Palahniuk, the author of Fight Club, creates these amazingly disturbing novels that usually show us our basest nature. Obviously, Fight Club was no different. Although the movie didn’t stay completely true to the book, it took the themes and tone and created something that was brilliant in its own right.
#5: No Country for Old Men
If you haven’t seen this movie yet, go read the book! Cormac McCarthy (author of The Road and All the Pretty Horses) is an incredible writer and the movie stays so close to his writing that it’s better to read the book first so you can exercise that imagination before the Coen Brothers change your mind. But after you’ve finished the book, go watch the movie because Javier Bardem is no joke! Great acting, great filming, and a great screen play.
#6: The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings trilogy creates one of the most epic fantasy universes ever and somehow Peter Jackson stayed true to the books with the help of CGI and great actors. From beginning to end, Jackson keeps the story moving along at a good pace while not losing too much of the story. I appreciate you, Peter Jackson!
#7: The Devil Wears Prada
Meryl Streep can do no wrong and as Miranda Priestly she only made the audience empathize with this hard boss lady. The book is not as good about letting you like Miranda so the film’s adaptation was nice because it made her just a bit more likable at the end.
#8: Harry Potter Series
Of course the Harry Potter series needs to be added to this list! Most of the movies are great and stay pretty true (or true enough) to the books. The cast they picked was spot-on and even if Ginny and Harry didn’t work that well for me on screen, I was generally happy with the adaptations.
#9: The Princess Bride
Who doesn’t love The Princess Bride? I bet you didn’t realize it was a book though! William Goldman’s The Princess Bride is an epic novel with an entertaining and adventurous story that does well on screen. The movie misses out on a lot of the book (because the book really is a monster) but Goldman wrote the screenplay for the movie and managed to keep all the good fun bits.
#10: The Godfather
Yes, yes, I know. I HAD to have The Godfather on this list. Obviously one of the greatest movies of all time (according to the multiple Oscars), The Godfather is actually based on a Mario Puzo novel. Relatively faithful to the novel, the movie does the story justice and takes it to new levels of sordid.
#11: The Fault in Our Stars
Oh man did I ugly cry reading The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. And then of course I ugly cried again when I watched the movie. The movie stayed faithful to the book and the chemistry and acting between Shailene Woodly and Ansel Elgort really brought this story to life for me. Pro tip: make sure you have an extra large box of tissue!
#12: The Notebook
This is going to be a controversial pick and that’s why I saved it for last. But honestly, I loved The Notebook! I even loved it more than the book. Nothing against Nicholas Sparks (I almost always love all his novels), the book was only okay. The movie, though, is one of my favorites. And maybe the beginning starts off a little cheesy but when it gets going, it really gets going. I mean, how can you not love a movie with Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams in it?!
The Bad & The ugly
#1: A Wrinkle in Time
How can Reese Witherspoon, Oprah freaking Winfrey, and Mindy Kaling make something so bad?! Well you add Disney into the mix and you end up with a movie that leaves out some important pieces of an otherwise wonderful book.
#2: Percy Jackson & The Olympians
When I read the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan, I didn’t just read it. I binged those books because they were so tasty! When I heard they were going to make the movies, I was really excited and was hoping for something like Harry Potter. Unforutantely, me and every other Rick Riordan fan (probably including Mr. Riordan) were extremely disappointed. They didn’t follow the story at all and it ruined the movie for me. I didn’t even try for the sequel. Polite pass.
#3: The Dark Tower
Now usually film adaptations of Stephen King books tend to be pretty good (Shawshank Redemption made the good list and The Green Mile was so close) and God knows Idris Elba and Michael McConaughey are good at everything they do. But this movie just was not true to the novel. The book is LONG and the movie unsuccessfully tried its best to jam in every piece of information into it.
#4: The Giver
The Giver is a classic novel that everyone should read. The movie is so far from the book that there is no reason to watch it at all. It’s like The Giver wanted to be the Hunger Games movies so they threw in all these unnecessary action scenes and forced romance and ruined it for me! The movie is completely forgettable so stick with the book on this one.
#5: The Shining
Apparently, every Stephen King book is eventually made into a movie or TV show. Why he doesn’t just go into screenwriting is beyond me. The Shining is one of Stephen King’s most popular books and movies. I’m pretty sure I fell asleep watching it though… Not to be snobby about it but the book was definitely superior *hair flip*. No, but seriously, the movie really didn’t do the story justice. Even Stephen King called it “a Cadillac with no engine in it. You can’t do anything with it except admire it as a sculpture.” Not a rave review at all.
#6: Eragon
Eragon, the book, was a New York Times bestseller for 121 weeks, an extremely popular YA fantasy novel, and overall exciting story. The movie was a dud. It’s sitting at a middling 5.1 on IMDB and that’s because it’s boring and went so astray of the original book. I mean, how do you make a movie about dragons boring?!
#7: Twilight Saga
I’m not saying the Twilight Saga is great American literature but it wasn’t a fad for no reason. The movies, however, are just plain bad. Nothing in them is redeemable. The sparkly vampires come off even more ridiculous when you see it on the big screen than when you read it. And the acting and chemistry between Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart is non-existent.
#8: City of Bones
It seems like the YA book-to-movie adaptations are popular and they’re either okay or REALLY bad. The City of Bones movie falls into that category. The book series is pretty solid and they made it into a TV show so maybe that’s a little better? I haven’t seen it yet so it could be just as bad…Regardless, two thumbs down for this one.
#9: My Sister’s Keeper
I think the movie itself isn’t terrible but it doesn’t do the book justice. The movie went so afar of the story that the movie HAD to be included on this list. Characters are left out, the setting is completely different, and the twist ending from the book didn’t make an appearance at all. Not a good adaptation because it didn’t actually make the book into the movie. It picked up the plot of the book, chose its favorite parts, and stuck them willy-nilly into a movie script.
#10: The Great Gatsby
Making famous American literature into a movie is difficult and not even Leonardo DiCaprio in a beautiful suit could do it in this one. Although the movie is obviously well shot, it just misses something that the book has in spades – emotion. Sacrificing emotion for cinematography, this film did not do justice to one of the greatest novels ever written. Next.
Alyssa Flores
Alyssa reads hundreds of books a year and is on a never-ending quest to find the perfect book.
