If you’ve ever loved a book, you know that feeling of trepidation about a film adaptation. Will they get the details of the book just right, the way you envisioned as you read it? Will they stick to the source material, flesh out your beloved characters precisely and make sure every climactic detail gets written in? Nothing is worse than leaving the theater and telling people they’re better off just reading the book, so it’s no wonder the book-to-film adaptation business is a tricky one; there’s a lot riding on this.
With A Wrinkle in Time and Ready Player One — both based on best-selling books — hitting theaters this month, we got to wondering which other book-to-film adaptations were out there that were truly great and worthy of our spotlight. While the proverbial jury decides where these two new adaptations will sit in the pantheon of book-to-film adaptations, there are already some really good examples out there of the right way to bring a book to the screen.
Here are 30 movies that rose to the challenge and hit all the right notes of character, plot and scene while keeping things close to the source. A viewer could enjoy these whether or not they’d read the book, and book lovers left the theater satisfied. Whether you’re in the mood for a good read or an interesting watch, you can’t go wrong with these.
The ‘Harry Potter’ Series by J.K. Rowling
It’s impossible to pick just one of these movies since all were so well done. Just consider them one endless experience of filmmaking that got the details right. Readers could find so many scenes to delight in and anyone who hadn’t read the books was introduced to an entire world of magic and wonder.
‘Gone with the Wind’ by Margaret Mitchell
This Southern Gothic is routinely listed as the second-favorite book of American readers just behind the Bible. The film adaptation had a heavy weight of responsibility and delivered with style. Creating not only the style of a Southern plantation but the shattering impact of poverty and war, it remains on the top of many viewers' lists of all-time favorite films.
‘The Godfather’ by Mario Puzo
How do you take the most epic family saga and put it on the screen? Director Francis Ford Coppola did it by casting a titan of acting, Marlon Brando, against a promising newcomer, Al Pacino. Both men gave performances that turned into instant classics. The filmmakers retained many of Puzo’s best lines, making this one of the most quotable films ever.
‘The Da Vinci Code’ by Dan Brown
This odd tale about a quest to beat the Illuminati was a risk for writer Dan Brown. But he infused so many interesting details and twists and turns that readers didn’t care whether this was all fiction or based on real theories. Tom Hanks took the character of a university professor and played him with a relatable humanity that kept viewers rooting for his success.
The Lord of the Rings’ Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien
Book lovers greeted the announcement of these films with skepticism. How could someone possibly capture the spirit of this epic fantasy series and put it on-screen? Director Peter Jackson proved that he loved the series as much as everybody else, though, as he created characters, sets and scenes that brought these books to vivid life.
‘The Hobbit’ by J.R.R. Tolkien
Peter Jackson hit it out of the park again with this adaptation of the travels of Bilbo Baggins. Though some thought the series could have been two movies instead of three, nobody argued about having another chance to reenter the movie magic of Middle Earth.
‘Misery’ by Stephen King
Though the film version tones down or leaves out much of the violence of the book, it retains the psychological horror that fans loved. Kathy Bates' performance as a crazed fan won her an Academy Award and created one of the most iconic characters in cinema.
‘The Hunger Games’ by Suzanne Collins
On paper, a series about kids killing one another doesn’t sound like a promising idea for a film. But directors Gary Ross and Francis Lawrence were able to focus on the heart of the plot while keeping much of the horror off-screen. They captured the spirit of the societal class struggle and personal battles of Katniss Everdeen with an unexpected gentle beauty.
‘The Help’ by Kathryn Stockett
Anyone who read this book knew that casting the right actors would make or break this adaptation. With Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer and Jessica Chastain, the filmmakers set themselves up with professionals who could exemplify the strong hearts of these Southern women.
‘Jurassic Park’ by Michael Crichton
With Steven Spielberg at the helm, it was almost guaranteed that walking through the gates of this strange theme park would be exciting and fun. Watching that T. rex chase down Jeff Goldblum in a Jeep solidified this film as an action classic for the whole family to enjoy.
‘The Maze Runner’ by James Dashner
This YA series was part of a wave of dystopian fiction, so when news of the movie adaptation came out, everyone asked the same question: Could it be as good as The Hunger Games? Yes, it could. Although darker than some other YA lit, the film hewed close to the book's storyline and engaged both readers and nonreaders alike.
‘Girl, Interrupted’ by Susanna Kaysen
The book is a memoir that explores one girl's struggle to understand herself while in a mental hospital. The movie holds that essence but fills the hospital with fascinating characters around Susanna, keeping this very interior topic interesting and informative.
‘The Princess Bride’ by William Goldman
The Princess Bride is a tale that is unmatched in its combination of romance and humor. Filmmaker Rob Reiner was already a master of those genres, so he was able to adapt Goldman’s work by embracing its sharp satire.
‘The Notebook’ by Nicholas Sparks
The unbreakable chemistry between Noah and Allie was pivotal to any attempt to adapt this beloved novel into a film. With Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling in the roles and Gena Rowlands and James Garner as the older versions of the same characters, the romantic fire was intact, and viewers could fall in love along with the characters.
‘Bridget Jones’s Diary’ by Helen Fielding
This novel was already a chick lit favorite when it was brought up for film adaptation. The casting choice for Bridget was controversial — an American in a British role — but filmgoers overwhelmingly found her to be just as relatable and likeable as the character in the novel.
‘Fight Club’ by Chuck Palahniuk
When this movie was released in 1999, it was hotly debated for its intense subject matter. It’s a mind game of violence and should come with a warning that the book isn’t for everyone and neither is the film. But those who love one will also love the other.
‘The Devil Wears Prada’ by Lauren Weisberger
The book made waves for strong portrayals of mean-spiritedness in the fashion world, and the film version didn’t pull any punches. Readers and audiences both loved this peek behind the curtain of the New York elite, though, and made the book and the movie wildly successful.
‘The Outsiders’ by S.E. Hinton
Hinton was just 18 when this novel was published, which might be what gave her such a good grip on the turbulent interior life of young people. The film stayed true to the story and launched the brat pack era, making overnight stars of young men including Tom Cruise, C. Thomas Howell, Matt Dillon and Patrick Swayze.
‘Les Misérables’ by Victor Hugo
This classic has been adapted for the screen 15 times, but we’ll go with the most recent version in 2015 starring Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway. It was directed by Tom Hooper, but Cameron Mackintosh, producer of the wildly successful Broadway show, served as consultant. Together, they were able to bring all the misery and victory of war-era France to life.
‘The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe’ by C.S. Lewis
With any epic fantasy, there is the question of how filmmakers will create a world that viewers can get lost in. Director Andrew Adamson managed to make both war-era London and Narnia immersive destinations and kept the story true to the soul of the book. A lion has never been more majestic on-screen.
‘Shutter Island’ by Dennis Lehane
Filmmaker Martin Scorsese chose to stay faithful to the book’s storyline and managed to perfectly pace the slow burn of this thriller. Leonardo DiCaprio plays the lead character perfectly to keep the viewer believing in him and his quest.
‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ by Ken Kesey
Kesey’s first novel took a few years to catch on, but when it did, it was met with equal parts love and controversy, including calls to ban it from schools. Audiences were eager to see if filmmakers could capture the same nuances of one man's battle against complacency and keep it interesting. They did, and the movie went on to win the five major Academy Awards and became an instant classic.
‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee
Many of us were introduced to this classic tale of family and racial justice as required reading in a classroom. Watching Scout and Atticus come to life on-screen was a fun reward for finishing the assignment. Director Robert Mulligan and actor Gregory Peck created a movie that set the standard for all book adaptations that followed.
‘Cold Mountain’ by Charles Frazier
Both the book and the film are sweeping tales of Civil War-era life in the rural mountains of North Carolina. The movie gorgeously captures both the grandeur of the place and the hardship of the time as described in Frazier’s prose, layering it over a sweet romance.
‘A Time to Kill’ by John Grisham
Roger Ebert called this the best adaptation of all Grisham’s novels, several of which have made it to the screen. With Sandra Bullock and Matthew McConaughey, director Joel Schumacher is able to translate this tough drama of life in an insular Southern town.
‘The Martian’ by Andy Weir
Weir’s book is written as a diary, which is chock-full of technical notes and detailed minutiae about physics and engineering. Ridley Scott and Matt Damon found the soul of the struggle amid those details and created a film that’s entertaining for even the least technically gifted. Reading the book just makes the movie that much better.
‘Babe’ by Dick King-Smith
It took 10 years for producer/director George Miller to adapt the book to a combination animated-and-live-action feature. It broke ground for visual effects development with its portrayal of talking animals but kept the spirit and story of Babe’s fight to find his place in the world.
‘The Hunt for Red October’ by Tom Clancy
Though there had been other action movies, this adaptation launched a wave of espionage and spy thrillers that we still enjoy today. The filmmakers took the meat of the plot and left out the technical details that bogged down some readers, bringing one of Clancy’s best to the screen for all to enjoy.
‘The Green Mile’ by Stephen King
So many of King’s books could make any list of favorites, but it’s the way filmmaker Frank Darabont captured the soul of King’s men on death row that makes this one a must-see. It’s a tough film, not easy to watch, but Tom Hanks and Michael Clarke Duncan are at their best and bring the kind of humanity that is hard to turn away from.
‘Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory’ by Roald Dahl
This movie was remade in 2005, but it’s the 1971 version that really captures the bizarre spirit of Willy Wonka and his quest to find an heir. A generation of kids grew up loving Oompa Loompas and wanting to ride on a river of chocolate thanks to this faithful adaptation.
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