“The book is a movie that takes place in the mind of the reader.” Ever heard of this one? When it comes to movie adaptations of books, the views are hugely polarizing. Many good books were totally ruined by the film and that has led to the popular contention of not watching the movie before you have read the book.
However, there are many exceptions to every stereotype. There are movies that have taken the book to the next level and created magic. Don’t believe us? Take a look at this list and see for yourself:
Forrest Gump
Who hasn’t heard of Forrest Gump, the classic directed by Robert Zemeckis. While the movie has its share of controversies involving sexuality, disability and race, nobody can deny that the film is a fine example of movie making.
And it is a considerable improvement on the book. Where the plot in the book is treated more like an absurd adventure saga, the film does away with much of these elements and handles the story with more sympathy.
The book has a lot of extra material and characters that somehow weaken the plot. Whereas the movie trims down all the unnecessary stuff and makes the overall plot more cohesive and immersive. Just a great example of how an average book in the right hands can become a great film.
It’s a Wonderful Life
It’s a Wonderful, a 1946 Christmas fantasy drama film directed by Frank Capra and based on the short story or booklet titled The Greatest Gift.
The short story was written by Philip Van Doren Stern and published privately. While the book is good, it misses some of the key elements that make The Greatest Gift such an iconic film and a Christmas special.
The film is also a Finance film in a sense because the protagonist George Bailey played by James Stewart is shown as an honest and affable guy who manages a community finance operation – the Bailey Building and Loan Association.
If you compare the short story to the film, you can see the creativity of the screenwriters and the liberties they have taken with the original. It’s a Wonderful Life borrows the main events and details of the short story to create the first two thirds of the movie but the rest is the screenwriters imagination and storytelling.
Despite performing poorly at the time of its release, it went on to become a sleeper hit much like the book.
There are many books about the world of finance and con men that are inspired by a book including The Wolf of Wall Street. However, if you ever find yourself in the need to borrow or take a loan, please check cash loan rates before you go ahead.
The Princess Bride
There are quite a few differences between the book by William Goldman and the movie directed by Rob Reiner. If you have seen the movie and never read the book, you are sure to be surprised by it.
This is not to undermine the greatness of the book. It is filled with great little tidbits, more character development and history and many asides that can’t be worked into a movie.
The book is filled with great little asides and random tidbits and a bit more character history.
The Princess Bride has a special place in the pop-culture pantheon and has over the years accumulated an audience that loves the films, the characterization and the countless quotable moments.
The quotable quotes is also why The Princess Bride movie continues to reign supreme in the era of Internet memes and GIFs.
Jaws
While Peter Benchley’s original novel is the source for Steven Spielberg’s classic Jaws, the novel doesn’t quite live up to the drama and terror of the film. The novel sheds some interesting light on class but there are too many plot digressions and unlike the film the story meanders.
And unlike the film, there is nothing special or engaging about the writing style that holds you on till the end. The characters in the book are less than likeable. In fact, Steven Spielberg has admitted he hated the characters in the book so much that he wanted Jaws to win.
Psycho
Who can forget the iconic shower murder scene in Psycho where Marion Crane is enjoying the warm water showers when Norman Bates pulls back the curtain and the murder is depicted using the sinister score?
Yet, in the Robert Bloch novel of the same name, this murder is just a line. It took the genius of Alfred Hitchcock to turn a less-than-thrilling book into a masterpiece of the thriller genre.
By using his trademark suspense techniques and developing both Marion and Bates characters and creating a cultural and psychological watershed in cinema that the book couldn’t possibly achieve.
Conclusion
Making a book into a movie is tricky for there are always fans who will favour the book. Yet, some of these masterpieces prove that with the right director and screenplay, sometimes the movie is better than the book.
