nikolah Posted October 22, 2022 Share Posted October 22, 2022 Hello all! I'm having a films marathon with group of friends soon, but unfortunately I'm not the biggest films enthusiast. Everyone is supposed to bring one film title to share so we could all watch it together. I have no idea what to watch with them, but since I am a huge books lover I thought we might watch a film that is a book adaptation. So here's my question: do you have any favourite film adaptation? or what is the best film adaptation of a book in your opinion? I'm obviously going to read it first anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian. Posted October 24, 2022 Share Posted October 24, 2022 On 10/22/2022 at 1:23 PM, nikolah said: Hello all! I'm having a films marathon with group of friends soon, but unfortunately I'm not the biggest films enthusiast. Everyone is supposed to bring one film title to share so we could all watch it together. I have no idea what to watch with them, but since I am a huge books lover I thought we might watch a film that is a book adaptation. So here's my question: do you have any favourite film adaptation? or what is the best film adaptation of a book in your opinion? I'm obviously going to read it first anyway. The Lord of the Rings movies are generally well respected and do a pretty good job of living up to the books. My personal favourite adaptation which comes to mind is The Godfather. The book is great but the movie(s) manage to be even better in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
France Posted October 24, 2022 Share Posted October 24, 2022 The Day of the Jackal was an excellent adaptation, I last saw it on TV about 25 years ago so I don't know how well it holds up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raven Posted October 24, 2022 Share Posted October 24, 2022 On 10/22/2022 at 1:23 PM, nikolah said: Hello all! I'm having a films marathon with group of friends soon, but unfortunately I'm not the biggest films enthusiast. Everyone is supposed to bring one film title to share so we could all watch it together. I have no idea what to watch with them, but since I am a huge books lover I thought we might watch a film that is a book adaptation. So here's my question: do you have any favourite film adaptation? or what is the best film adaptation of a book in your opinion? I'm obviously going to read it first anyway. Are there any specific genres you are interested in, or that would be suitable for your marathon? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley Posted October 24, 2022 Share Posted October 24, 2022 I’d second The Lord of the Rings. I don’t watch many movies either but that’s the first one that came to mind! There are some good Dracula adaptations too if you’re watching near Halloween! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hux Posted October 24, 2022 Share Posted October 24, 2022 I recently read the excellent 'Alone in Berlin' and have just discovered there was a film version made in 2017 (completely unknown to me). I haven't seen it but the cast suggest something reasonably good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 4, 2022 Share Posted November 4, 2022 (edited) This is an excellent idea for a thread, even after @nikolah has had his/her film evening (and would be interested to hear what films were watched!). I'd third the Lord of the Rings films. I loved the books (read them twice now), and enjoyed the films almost as much - they really were a good interpretation. I'd also agree with @France about The Day of the Jackal - a really good, edge of the seat, rendering of one of the rare thrillers that completely grabbed me. Other film adaptations I've particularly enjoyed have included the following. I've only included those where I've read the book AND seen the film, and really enjoyed both. I've not included any children's books/films. They're not necessarily the closest interpretations, just those which I think reflect or compliment the book. Sense and Sensibility (Ang Lee's version) Emma (Autumn de Wilde's version) A Month In The Country A Very Long Engagement The Hours Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (starring Gary Oldman) Lawrence of Arabia (apparently based on The Seven Pillars of Wisdom - I wasn't aware of this either reading book or seeing film, but it's brilliant!). Hidden Figures All The President's Men MASH The Big Sleep The Leopard Apollo 13 (based on Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13) Master and Commander (actually based on two other books in Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin sequence) One of my favourite books is To Kill A Mockingbird. I've never got around to seeing the film, but I've never known anybody who hasn't enjoyed it! (I think I must be one of the only people on the planet who really hated Alone In Berlin - the book I mean as haven't seen the film!). Edited November 4, 2022 by willoyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeleine Posted November 4, 2022 Share Posted November 4, 2022 I agree re the Lord of the Rings films, also the Ang Lee version of Sense and Sensibility, and I'm not a massive Austen fan but this was a great adaptation and stayed true to the book. TKAM is also an excellent film, and from what I remember also stays close to the book. I enjoyed Master and Commander but haven't read the books it's based on, it's a shame they didn't make any films. I thought The English Patient was a good film too, and made an incomprehensible book (to me it was, and I read it after seeing the film) into a watchable movie. Likewise The French Lieutenant's Woman - haven't read the book but enjoyed the film, more so on a second viewing. On a lighter note, and for pure entertainment, the film version of Jurassic Park (the first film) was also pretty good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raven Posted November 5, 2022 Share Posted November 5, 2022 On 11/4/2022 at 4:53 PM, willoyd said: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (starring Gary Oldman) The BBC version, with Alec Guinness, is better! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KEV67 Posted November 5, 2022 Share Posted November 5, 2022 Not a recent adaption, but I thought the film adaption of Get Carter was better than the book. Similarly, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 5, 2022 Share Posted November 5, 2022 (edited) 4 hours ago, Raven said: The BBC version, with Alec Guinness, is better! Agreed, but it's not a film! Go down that route, and there a whole new game - starting with, for me, Bleak House and the Jennifer Ehle P&P, which knocks socks off anything else I've seen on that front, excluding the swimming scene which was unnecessary IMO (she's very good in another excellent TV adaptation too, The Camomile Lawn). Then there's I Claudius, Brideshead Revisited, War and Peace, (the older one!), Band of Brothers......and so on and so on! Edited November 5, 2022 by willoyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy Posted November 5, 2022 Share Posted November 5, 2022 I echo A Month in the Country, The English Patient, The Camomile Lawn, To Kill a Mockingbird and Brideshead Revisited as being excellent books and films. Films I've enjoyed more than the books include The Piano, Out of Africa and The Reader. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timebug Posted November 6, 2022 Share Posted November 6, 2022 To me, 'To KIll a Mockingbird' is one of the most faithful adaptation of a book I love, to the big screen. 'Shawshank Redemption' comes close,although if you are familiar with the novella, there are a few changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeleine Posted November 6, 2022 Share Posted November 6, 2022 I agree with Willoyd re Brideshead, P & P and Bleak House, also Wolf Hall and The Night Manager, though I haven't read the books (have read Brideshead and P & P but not the others). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 9, 2022 Share Posted November 9, 2022 On 11/4/2022 at 8:46 PM, Madeleine said: I thought The English Patient was a good film too, and made an incomprehensible book (to me it was, and I read it after seeing the film) into a watchable movie. Likewise The French Lieutenant's Woman - haven't read the book but enjoyed the film, more so on a second viewing. I echo you thoughts on the film The English Patient, but for some reason have not got around to the book.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley Posted November 9, 2022 Share Posted November 9, 2022 Another one I really loved was The Secret Garden (the 90s one with Maggie Smith in - I haven’t seen the new one!). I’d also second Shawshank Redemption @timebug. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeleine Posted November 9, 2022 Share Posted November 9, 2022 Yes The Secret Garden is a good one, book is good as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeleine Posted November 9, 2022 Share Posted November 9, 2022 12 hours ago, willoyd said: I echo you thoughts on the film The English Patient, but for some reason have not got around to the book.. i found the book really hard to read, even after seeing the film. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KEV67 Posted November 9, 2022 Share Posted November 9, 2022 Aren't a great number of films adaptions of books? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley Posted November 10, 2022 Share Posted November 10, 2022 15 hours ago, KEV67 said: Aren't a great number of films adaptions of books? This is an interesting point so I looked it up and yeah, depending on the year, the percentages are really high! ‘The percentage of books adapted for film vary each year, sometimes substantially, as trends in popular culture must be followed. For example, in 2005 66% of films released were based on books, this then dropped significantly to 28% in 2011 and then rose to 65% in 2015.’ (From https://medium.com/publishing-in-the-digital-age/book-to-film-adaptations-caec7c65e96a ) That doesn’t mean they’re all good though 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 12, 2022 Share Posted November 12, 2022 Easier to take a story that's already been written and adapt it than think up your own. And there's a ready-made audience. No brainer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy Posted November 13, 2022 Share Posted November 13, 2022 I love Merchant Ivory's production of E.M. Forster's books Howard's End and A Room With a View. And although not a film, the TV series of R.F. Delderfield's A Horseman Riding By, is also excellent. I've re-read and re-watched all the books and films several times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muggle not Posted November 14, 2022 Share Posted November 14, 2022 Gone With the Wind? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lunababymoonchild Posted November 14, 2022 Share Posted November 14, 2022 14 minutes ago, muggle not said: Gone With the Wind? My favourite film. My family are always pleased when I get this out to watch it because it keeps me quiet for 3 hours! The book was close to the film - if I remember clearly - and, curiously, not as entertaining Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
France Posted November 14, 2022 Share Posted November 14, 2022 2 hours ago, lunababymoonchild said: My favourite film. My family are always pleased when I get this out to watch it because it keeps me quiet for 3 hours! The book was close to the film - if I remember clearly - and, curiously, not as entertaining Mmm, I wouldn't agree about the film being more entertaining than the book, I love both but in different ways and see them almost as separate entities which share a lot in common. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.