Great Films Based on Books

lorax: The very rare case where the movie is superior to the book.

Parthurbook: Not voting for it is IN-CON-THEIVABLE!

NiniScripsit: To those who have seen this film, no explanation is needed. For those who have not, watch it. Brilliant, groundbreaking, remarkable. And you get to watch Gregory Peck in one of his best roles.

Parthurbook: Masterclass: How to make an epic film from a short story (Stephen King).

NiniScripsit: Stephen King's novella, "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" transformed into a movie epic so good that it deserves multiple viewings. So many uplifting, soaring moments, so many realistic portrayals of the brutality of an archaic system, so many touching portrayals of flawed humanity. A true, totally American, classic.

anglemark: Based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

verncox: This Musical is a good way to make up for making cuts to a good narrative.

beehappy: Based on Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

mrswebster: Book still more, but never could have read these books without meeting and learning to love these characters through the visual story. Each role so wonderfully acted by each artist.

beehappy: Based on Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

hipdeep: Based on "The Body" by Stephen King.

Cecrow: Most accurate to vote for whole trilogy.

vwinsloe: Each installment of the trilogy was a masterpiece.

paradoxosalpha: Based on Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

NiniScripsit: This version strayed so far from the book, that I was severely disappointed. When a book is iconic to literally generations of women it should be respected and not re-worked at the director's/writer's whim.

Parthurbook: As ever, screenwriter William Goldman explaining the complexity of the Bernstein-Woodward source material with great economy. And holding attention when the audience knows the outcome before the start.

paradoxosalpha: The book and the (monumental) film were written simultaneously in conversation with one another. Both were based on the earlier Arthur C. Clarke story "The Sentinel," not a book--though the story was later included in a collection called The Sentinel.

NiniScripsit: Tawanda!

paradoxosalpha: Based on True Grit by Charles Portis

anglemark: Based on The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria Augusta Trapp

NiniScripsit: A lovely fairy tale based on real people and events. Although the book details a very different reality, Messrs. Rodgers and Hammerstein crafted such beautiful music and (although Lehman's screenplay strayed a little too far from Lindsay and Crouses libretto) the script told such a charming story that the film has become a beloved icon. And Julie Andrews is singing...what more is there to say?

Parthurbook: The madness of the Ken Kesey book echoed in the madness of the movie

NiniScripsit: A lovely, sweet and charming movie that manages in its quiet way to show the deep and blossoming friendship of disparate women and the, it is hoped, education of their sometimes obdurate men. Both the book and the film should be enjoyed again and again.

anglemark: Based on Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

: Changed too many things from the book.

oceancat: love miyazaki but yeah this is too different from the book

al.vick: based on the book, but SOOO much better.

mrswebster: DITTO to al.vick!

JulieStielstra: The best Austen adaptation ever - excellent acting, honest and vivid production values, the perfect mix of wit and heartfelt.

lizzy50usa: Based on the book by C.S. Forester

paradoxosalpha: Based on Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

timetunnel: Based on the short story "Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang

Parthurbook: The scale of the mission reflected in the scale of the Tom Wolfe book reflected in the scale of the movie.

StillLearning123 : Clicked by mistake! It’s a great movie!

JulieStielstra: Charming, emotional, honest; wonderful performances by all the kid actors. A childhood favorite unsullied by cuteness, visually lovely.

NiniScripsit: A true classic. Funny, witty and sophisticated in a way that movies, sadly, might never be again. And the brilliant pairing of Myrna Loy and William Powell is one of the most magical in film history. Nick and Nora are the best. Do read the book (I mean, Dashiell Hammet, c'mon); do see the movie. Both can't be beat.

NiniScripsit: One of the great melodramas of all time, and one of the best love stories in American film. The superb acting, brilliant script and brilliant casting make an unbeatable combination. The cigarette scene alone has become a trope. And the ending is one of the best ever on film..."Oh, Jerry, don't let's ask for the Moon. We have the stars."

anglemark: Based on Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky

Parthurbook: The meta quality of having Christopher Plummer playing Kipling - the author of the story - adds to the atmosphere of two stars (Connery and Caine) at the top of their game.

beehappy: Based on the graphic novel by Daniel Clowes

EMS_24: Based on the book by Peter Hedges with the same title

paradoxosalpha: Based on Les Liaisons Dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos

hipdeep: Based on stories from A.A. Milne's "Winnie-the-Pooh" and "The House At Pooh Corner."

SandraArdnas: One of those rare 'much better than the book' adaptations. Adapted from Rum Punch by Elmore Leonard

NiniScripsit: I'm surprised that more members didn't vote for this. It's a wonderful, truly hilarious madcap kind of film purportedly based on Patrick Dennis's real-life aunt (he liked to deny it), albeit with embellishments. Rosalind Russell is, well, Rosalind Russell; brilliant as usual. Mame Dennis is eccentric, charming, flamboyant and slightly nuts. The movie is so full of loony situations, insane frivolity and lovely, touching moments that, just like the book, you can't help but be entertained. And the screenplay is by Comden and Green; how good can you get? There are so many iconic lines, but the best, much-quoted (and the one I've kept with me as a touchstone since I read the book at 12 years old) is "Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death." As an affirmation of life in all its weird, wonderful glories this movie can't be beat. I devoutly wish that Mame Dennis was my aunt. She's exuberance personified. What a character!

JulieStielstra: Faithful and honorable adaptation; delightful to watch those two golden boys Firth and Branagh finding their excellence.

Parthurbook: An outstanding central performance in a film that captures the existential mood of its source Jerzy Kozinsky novel.

anglemark: Based on The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

Parthurbook: Only director Luhrmann makes Shakespeare this sexy.

paradoxosalpha: Based on Tideland by Mitch Cullin

oceancat: an amazing movie and then they never made more, sob. at least we have the book series