In film some of the hardest movies to make are novels, mainly for the simple fact of trying to fit everything that's was so great about the novel into a 2 hour movie is really tough and plus some studios and filmmakers want to make the readers of the book happy with the film and that it did the book justice. I'm going to say this once and don't hate on me but .... THE BOOK DOESN'T MATTER, yes you must use the story to make the film but you can't put every detail from the book into the film its just not possible. So Hollywood has to change things up to make the film not seem boring. Ok enough with the rant I'm going to bring you my top 10 favorite films adapted from a novel. So without further ado...
10. Friday Night Lights
What can I say about this movie that you already didn't know. It was adapted from the best selling book of the same name and was eventually made into a hit television show. It follows the 1988 Odessa-Permian Panthers trying to follow in the tradition of the school in winning a Class 5A state championship. Throughout the movie the team is faced with unsurmountable pressure to win and most of the players feel that the pressure is just too much and all they want to be is normal kids. Head Coach Gary Gaines (played by Billy Bob Thornton) is also facing the pressure of a first year coach in the fact that if he doesn't win a state championship, his job may very well be gone. This film hits you with so many different emotions and if you play or did play high school football you can relate to this film. Friday Night Lights has a rating of 81% on rottentomatoes.com.
9. Blade Runner
This is one of the most visually stunning movie I have ever seen. The film depicts a dystopian Los Angeles in November 2019 in which genetically engineered organic robots called replicants (visually indistinguishable from adult humans) are manufactured by the powerful Tyrell Corporation as well as by other "mega-corporations" around the world. Their use on Earth is banned and replicants are exclusively used for dangerous, menial or leisure work on off-world colonies. Replicants who defy the ban and return to Earth are hunted down and "retired" by police special operatives known as "Blade Runners". The plot focuses on a brutal and cunning group of recently escaped replicants hiding in Los Angeles and the burnt-out expert Blade Runner, Rick Deckard (played by Harrison Ford), who reluctantly agrees to take on one more assignment to hunt them down. This film is breathtaking and stunning. Blade Runner was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Visual Effects and Best Art Direction and has a rating of 91% on rottentomatoes.com.
8. American Psycho
This film is awesome, gruesome and one of the scenes in the film makes me not want to walk up staircases. The film tells the story of Patrick Bateman (played by Christian Bale), the son of a wealthy Wall Street financier, is pursuing his own lucrative career with his father's firm. Bateman is the prototypical yuppie, obsessed with success, fashion, and style. He is also a serial killer who murders, rapes and mutilates both stranger and acquaintances without provocation or reason. While this film is terrifying it can still be hilarious. American Psycho has a rating of 67% on rottentomatoes.com.
7. Jumanji
As a kid I enjoyed this film and I still do to this day. The film takes place in 1969, when 12-year-old Alan Parrish (played by Adam Hann Byrd) is trapped in Jumanji whilst playing the game with his friend Sarah(played by Laura Bell Bundy). 26 years later siblings Judy (played by Kirsten Dunst) and Peter (played by Bradley Pierce) begin playing and unwittingly release the now adult Alan (played by Robin Williams). After tracking down the older Sarah (played by Bonnie Hunt), the quartet resolve to finish the game in order to undo all its consequences. This is an awesome film and this is one of Robin Williams top performances IMO. Jumanji has a rating of 50% on rottentomatoes.com.
6. The NeverEnding Story
Eventhough the film is very different from the book it is still one of my favorite books of all-time and the film is in my top 20 favorite films of all-time. The film tell the story of Bastian (played by Barret Oliver) who is dealing with his mother's recent death. His father (played by Gerald McRaney) is an imperious sort who continually lambastes Bastian for daydreaming and falling behind in school. On top of his father's badgering, he has to contend with a bunch of school bullies waiting for him in the schoolyard. One day he decides to plat hooky and walks into a strange bookstore, where in the attic , he discovers a book called "The NeverEnding Story". As Bastian reads the book, he's enveloped in the unfolding tale . A sickly child-like empress (played by Tami Stronach) from a and called Fantasia is concerned about who will take over the land if she dies. She decides it is best for Fantasia f she remains alive, so she dispatches a young warrior named Atreju (played by Noah Hathaway) to find a cure for the empress's malady. It turns out the land is consumed with a plague called "The Nothing", generated by blighted drams and hopeless fantasies. As Atreju continues onward to search for a cure for "The Nothing", he encounters an assortment of strange creatures. Bastian is so consumed with the tale he finds himself catapulted into the land of Fantasia himself. Atreju realizes the only way to save the land from the blight is with the help of this strange earth boy Bastian. This film is absolutely amazing and one scene in particular made a little terrified as a kid (it still does today). The NeverEnding Story has a rating of 80% on rottentomatoes.com.
5. A Clockwork Orange
This film is freaky and comes from my favorite director of all-time Stanley Kubrick. Alex (played by Malcolm McDowell). who is a charismatic, sociopathic delinquent whose interests include classical music (especially Beethoven), rape and what is termed "ultra-violence". He leads a small gang of thugs (Pete, Georgie and Dim), whom he call his droogs (from the Russian word for friends or buddy). The film chronicles the horrific crime spree of his gang, his capture and attempted rehabilitation via controversial psychological conditioning . Alex narrates most of the film in Nadsat , a fractured adolescent slang composed of Slavic (especially Russian), English and Cockney rhyming slang. This film is a masterpiece and has one of the most brutal rap scenes in film history. A Clockwork Orange was nominated for 4 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Film Editing, Director and Adapted Screenplay, it also has a rating of 89% on rottentomatoes.com.
4. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2
This film brings an end to one of the greatest books of all-time and one of the greatest film series of all-time. The final chapter in the Harry Potter film series follows Harry (played by Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (played by Rupert Grint) and Hermione (played by Emma Watson) as they prepare for the final battle with Lord Voldemort (played by Ralph Fiennes), who is determined to destroy harry once and for all. In order to defeat the powerful wizard, they must find and destroy Voldemort's last and most elusive Horcrux (that is, the enchanted piece of soul allowing him to remain immortal) before his nefarious plans come to fruition. This film is awesome and it was sad to see this franchise go. harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 was nominated for 3 Academy Awards including Best Art Direction, Makeup and Visual Effects, the film also has a rating of 96% on rottentomatoes.com.
3. The Lord of The Rings: The Return of The King
In what is the best film in my favorite trilogy off all-time and one of the my favorite films of all-time, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King continues the story of the fellowship as they have gone their separate ways in the quest to destroy the one ring. As Sauron launches the final stages of his conquest of Middle-earth, Gandalf the Wizard (played by Sir Ian McKellen) and Theoden King of Rohan (played by Bernard Hill) rally their forces to help defend Gondors capital Minas Tirith from the looming threat. Aragron (played by Viggo Mortensen) finally claims the throne of Gondor and, with the aid of Legolas the Elf (played by Orlando Bloom) and Gimli the Dwarf (played by John Rhys-Davies) summons the army of the Dead to help him defeat Sauron. Ultimately, even with full strength of arms, they realize they cannot win; so it comes down to the Hobbits Frodo (played by Elijah Wood) and Sam (played by Sean Astin), to bear the burden of the Ring and deal with the treachery of Gollum (played by Andy Serkis). After a long journey they finally arrive in the dangerous lands of Mordor, seeking to destroy the One Ring in the place it was created , the volcanic fires of Mount Doom. I loved the trilogy and this film in particular and it was the film that made me absolutely love movies.
2. Mystic River
This film has an amazing cast an amazing script and it kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Set in an Irish neighborhood in Boston, Jimmy, Sean, and Dave are three childhood friends who are reunited after a brutal murder takes place. Reformed convict Jimmy Markum (played by Sean Penn) and his devoted wife Annabeth (played by Laura Linney) find out that their teenage daughter Katie (played by Emmy Rossum) has been beaten and killed. Jimmy's old friend Sean Devine (played by Kevin Bacon) is the homicide detective assigned to the case, along with partner Whitey Powers (played by Laurence Fishburne). Jimmy also gets his relatives, the Savage brothers (played by Adam Nelson and Robert Wahlberg), to conduct an investigation of their own. Jimmy and Sean both start to suspect their old pal, Dave Boyle (played by Tim Robbins), who lives a quiet life with his wife Celeste (played by Marcia Gay Harden) but harbors some disturbing secrets. Mystic River was nominated for 6 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Adapted Screenplay while winning two (Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor) and it has a rating of 87% on rottentomatoes.com.
1. The Godfather Part 2
In what is considered the greatest sequel of all-time and what is also a prequel as well, The Godfather Part 2 continues the story of Michael Corleone (played by Al Pacino) (the new Don of the Corleone crime family) trying to hold his business ventures togehter from 1958 to 1959. The prequel parts of the film are flashbacks to a younger Vito Corleone (played by Robert DeNiro), from his childhood in Sicily in 1901 to the founding of the Corleone crime family in New York City. I will admit that the film is a little over 3 hours long and for some people I can see why you might get bored or uninterested, but believe me when I say that the film needs to be that long because of the story they are telling.
10. Friday Night Lights
What can I say about this movie that you already didn't know. It was adapted from the best selling book of the same name and was eventually made into a hit television show. It follows the 1988 Odessa-Permian Panthers trying to follow in the tradition of the school in winning a Class 5A state championship. Throughout the movie the team is faced with unsurmountable pressure to win and most of the players feel that the pressure is just too much and all they want to be is normal kids. Head Coach Gary Gaines (played by Billy Bob Thornton) is also facing the pressure of a first year coach in the fact that if he doesn't win a state championship, his job may very well be gone. This film hits you with so many different emotions and if you play or did play high school football you can relate to this film. Friday Night Lights has a rating of 81% on rottentomatoes.com.
9. Blade Runner
This is one of the most visually stunning movie I have ever seen. The film depicts a dystopian Los Angeles in November 2019 in which genetically engineered organic robots called replicants (visually indistinguishable from adult humans) are manufactured by the powerful Tyrell Corporation as well as by other "mega-corporations" around the world. Their use on Earth is banned and replicants are exclusively used for dangerous, menial or leisure work on off-world colonies. Replicants who defy the ban and return to Earth are hunted down and "retired" by police special operatives known as "Blade Runners". The plot focuses on a brutal and cunning group of recently escaped replicants hiding in Los Angeles and the burnt-out expert Blade Runner, Rick Deckard (played by Harrison Ford), who reluctantly agrees to take on one more assignment to hunt them down. This film is breathtaking and stunning. Blade Runner was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Visual Effects and Best Art Direction and has a rating of 91% on rottentomatoes.com.
8. American Psycho
This film is awesome, gruesome and one of the scenes in the film makes me not want to walk up staircases. The film tells the story of Patrick Bateman (played by Christian Bale), the son of a wealthy Wall Street financier, is pursuing his own lucrative career with his father's firm. Bateman is the prototypical yuppie, obsessed with success, fashion, and style. He is also a serial killer who murders, rapes and mutilates both stranger and acquaintances without provocation or reason. While this film is terrifying it can still be hilarious. American Psycho has a rating of 67% on rottentomatoes.com.
7. Jumanji
As a kid I enjoyed this film and I still do to this day. The film takes place in 1969, when 12-year-old Alan Parrish (played by Adam Hann Byrd) is trapped in Jumanji whilst playing the game with his friend Sarah(played by Laura Bell Bundy). 26 years later siblings Judy (played by Kirsten Dunst) and Peter (played by Bradley Pierce) begin playing and unwittingly release the now adult Alan (played by Robin Williams). After tracking down the older Sarah (played by Bonnie Hunt), the quartet resolve to finish the game in order to undo all its consequences. This is an awesome film and this is one of Robin Williams top performances IMO. Jumanji has a rating of 50% on rottentomatoes.com.
6. The NeverEnding Story
Eventhough the film is very different from the book it is still one of my favorite books of all-time and the film is in my top 20 favorite films of all-time. The film tell the story of Bastian (played by Barret Oliver) who is dealing with his mother's recent death. His father (played by Gerald McRaney) is an imperious sort who continually lambastes Bastian for daydreaming and falling behind in school. On top of his father's badgering, he has to contend with a bunch of school bullies waiting for him in the schoolyard. One day he decides to plat hooky and walks into a strange bookstore, where in the attic , he discovers a book called "The NeverEnding Story". As Bastian reads the book, he's enveloped in the unfolding tale . A sickly child-like empress (played by Tami Stronach) from a and called Fantasia is concerned about who will take over the land if she dies. She decides it is best for Fantasia f she remains alive, so she dispatches a young warrior named Atreju (played by Noah Hathaway) to find a cure for the empress's malady. It turns out the land is consumed with a plague called "The Nothing", generated by blighted drams and hopeless fantasies. As Atreju continues onward to search for a cure for "The Nothing", he encounters an assortment of strange creatures. Bastian is so consumed with the tale he finds himself catapulted into the land of Fantasia himself. Atreju realizes the only way to save the land from the blight is with the help of this strange earth boy Bastian. This film is absolutely amazing and one scene in particular made a little terrified as a kid (it still does today). The NeverEnding Story has a rating of 80% on rottentomatoes.com.
5. A Clockwork Orange
This film is freaky and comes from my favorite director of all-time Stanley Kubrick. Alex (played by Malcolm McDowell). who is a charismatic, sociopathic delinquent whose interests include classical music (especially Beethoven), rape and what is termed "ultra-violence". He leads a small gang of thugs (Pete, Georgie and Dim), whom he call his droogs (from the Russian word for friends or buddy). The film chronicles the horrific crime spree of his gang, his capture and attempted rehabilitation via controversial psychological conditioning . Alex narrates most of the film in Nadsat , a fractured adolescent slang composed of Slavic (especially Russian), English and Cockney rhyming slang. This film is a masterpiece and has one of the most brutal rap scenes in film history. A Clockwork Orange was nominated for 4 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Film Editing, Director and Adapted Screenplay, it also has a rating of 89% on rottentomatoes.com.
4. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2
This film brings an end to one of the greatest books of all-time and one of the greatest film series of all-time. The final chapter in the Harry Potter film series follows Harry (played by Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (played by Rupert Grint) and Hermione (played by Emma Watson) as they prepare for the final battle with Lord Voldemort (played by Ralph Fiennes), who is determined to destroy harry once and for all. In order to defeat the powerful wizard, they must find and destroy Voldemort's last and most elusive Horcrux (that is, the enchanted piece of soul allowing him to remain immortal) before his nefarious plans come to fruition. This film is awesome and it was sad to see this franchise go. harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 was nominated for 3 Academy Awards including Best Art Direction, Makeup and Visual Effects, the film also has a rating of 96% on rottentomatoes.com.
3. The Lord of The Rings: The Return of The King
In what is the best film in my favorite trilogy off all-time and one of the my favorite films of all-time, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King continues the story of the fellowship as they have gone their separate ways in the quest to destroy the one ring. As Sauron launches the final stages of his conquest of Middle-earth, Gandalf the Wizard (played by Sir Ian McKellen) and Theoden King of Rohan (played by Bernard Hill) rally their forces to help defend Gondors capital Minas Tirith from the looming threat. Aragron (played by Viggo Mortensen) finally claims the throne of Gondor and, with the aid of Legolas the Elf (played by Orlando Bloom) and Gimli the Dwarf (played by John Rhys-Davies) summons the army of the Dead to help him defeat Sauron. Ultimately, even with full strength of arms, they realize they cannot win; so it comes down to the Hobbits Frodo (played by Elijah Wood) and Sam (played by Sean Astin), to bear the burden of the Ring and deal with the treachery of Gollum (played by Andy Serkis). After a long journey they finally arrive in the dangerous lands of Mordor, seeking to destroy the One Ring in the place it was created , the volcanic fires of Mount Doom. I loved the trilogy and this film in particular and it was the film that made me absolutely love movies.
2. Mystic River
This film has an amazing cast an amazing script and it kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Set in an Irish neighborhood in Boston, Jimmy, Sean, and Dave are three childhood friends who are reunited after a brutal murder takes place. Reformed convict Jimmy Markum (played by Sean Penn) and his devoted wife Annabeth (played by Laura Linney) find out that their teenage daughter Katie (played by Emmy Rossum) has been beaten and killed. Jimmy's old friend Sean Devine (played by Kevin Bacon) is the homicide detective assigned to the case, along with partner Whitey Powers (played by Laurence Fishburne). Jimmy also gets his relatives, the Savage brothers (played by Adam Nelson and Robert Wahlberg), to conduct an investigation of their own. Jimmy and Sean both start to suspect their old pal, Dave Boyle (played by Tim Robbins), who lives a quiet life with his wife Celeste (played by Marcia Gay Harden) but harbors some disturbing secrets. Mystic River was nominated for 6 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Adapted Screenplay while winning two (Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor) and it has a rating of 87% on rottentomatoes.com.
1. The Godfather Part 2
In what is considered the greatest sequel of all-time and what is also a prequel as well, The Godfather Part 2 continues the story of Michael Corleone (played by Al Pacino) (the new Don of the Corleone crime family) trying to hold his business ventures togehter from 1958 to 1959. The prequel parts of the film are flashbacks to a younger Vito Corleone (played by Robert DeNiro), from his childhood in Sicily in 1901 to the founding of the Corleone crime family in New York City. I will admit that the film is a little over 3 hours long and for some people I can see why you might get bored or uninterested, but believe me when I say that the film needs to be that long because of the story they are telling.
So ladies and gentlemen what do you think of my list, do you agree or disagree and what are your favorite films adapted from a novel? Let me now in the comments and let your voice be heard.
Jonah Sparks
No comments:
Post a Comment