It’s Thursday and I’m back with a new Thursday Movie Picks feature post. This series is hosted by Wandering through the Shelves and offers you a weekly prompt to post some movie recommendations/talking points according to the theme. Usually, you are supposed to post about 3-5 examples, which I find a very manageable amount.
Today we are going to talk about the worst book to movie adaptations! I’ll probably always be in the minority on this, but I really enjoy adaptations for the most part. Even when the material isn’t adapted super faithfully, I just love seeing it come to life, but … as with all things, not everything turns out great. This topic was suggest by Becks @The Punk Theory and I hope you’ll all enjoy it!
*I’ll stick to books I’ve actually read here, but know that I know there are a lot more bad examples of adaptations*
Fallen
Oh boy, it’s a long time that I’ve read and/or watched this, but it was not great. I’m pretty sure they fully intended for this to become the next Twilight, just with angels, but they missed the mark by a lot.
Inkheart
The Inkheart trilogy is one of my all time favorite childhood book series and I was elated when they decided to make them into a movie. Paul Bettany as Dustfinger and Brendan Fraser as Mo were really great casting choices, but other than that … I found very little to like about what they did with my beloved material. It’s a shame, because so many cast members were really top notch, but somehow they couldn’t portray the whimsy and magical setting or even the beautiful complexity of the characters.
My Sister’s Keeper
The book and movie are both sure to make you cry with their devastating premise, but by changing the end of the film, I felt like they undermined one of the key elements of the book. It’s not a bad movie exactly, but I felt like they lost a really important message along the way.
The Wave (1981)
This was a movie made for TV and it really showed in its quality. Based on the book that is based on a real life experiment a teacher underwent with his class, this movie just felt fake and corny. I remember having to watch it in school and just shuddering at the bad performances.
Life and Other Disasters 