Let’s talk about Book-to-Movie Adaptations!

Hello, lovelies! Today, I want to tell you all about my opinions on a rather controversial topic : Book-to-Movie Adaptations.

I’m going to split this post in two categories, the first one will be about movies/tv shows I enjoyed as much or even more more than the books (the horror!) and the second category will be about movies that I dislike/hate/despise and any other suitable word to express the pain of seeing an adaptation that doesn’t do your baby book justice.

Also, remember that this is my personal opinion, if you liked the books more than the movies or the movies more than the books and I did the contrary, that’s totally okay! Different perspectives are amazing because our world would be very boring if we liked the same things all the time. Now that we’ve settled this, let’s get into the actual post!

1. Book-to-Movie Adaptations I actually loved

 

• Lord of The Rings

(But I did say it, Aragorn, deal with it!)

As a person that adores Tolkien and his world so much, I will say it once and then you won’t be able to get it from me anytime again : I like the movies better than the books! Abort! ABORT! Phew, apparently, I’m still alive and you haven’t started throwing stones at me (hopefully)! I feel like Peter Jackson did a great job at choosing the right parts to include in the movies and he also did such a marvelous job at creating beautiful characters and revealing their personalities in a way that Tolkien didn’t. I love you, Tolkien, but sometimes you’re so absorbed in the landscape that you forget to get into your characters’ heads and hearts and describe what they’re feeling and it’s really bothering me!!!

I feel like Peter Jackson created/put in the spotlight so many new, unexplored relationships/friendships. For example, Legolas and Gimli – I feel like I could’ve brushed aside their friendship in the books, but in the movies, it’s such a huge part and it made me so happy. Also, Arwen and Aragorn that are otp material in the movie without anybody being able to say anything else (I dare you to try!!), in the books they are only there for three seconds. Sam and Frodo have a beautiful friendship everywhere, though, I can’t complain about it!

 

• Pride & Prejudice (1995 and 2005)

(wow, Marta, what an original gif you’ve chosen)

I don’t think they are better than the book, but they were probably as good and it was pretty cool to see Mr. Darcy on my screen *heart eyes* . I’ve watched the 2005 version before I’ve read the book and the 1995 one after reading the book, but I feel like they all have their strong points. The 2005 one has Keira and Rosamund, the 1995 has Colin Firth, and the book is just glorious. I really wish I could read more Austen books, but I didn’t have much luck with her books afterwards. Maybe recommend me some books in the comments? (I’ve read Northanger Abbey and didn’t like it all that much)

 

• A Monster Calls

I feel like I love the book a little bit more than the movie, but the movie adaptation was still perfect. I had huge doubts about how they were going to handle different visual effects, but everything went smoothly and the visual effects were A+++. The story is heartbreaking in either form and as I’ve said before, I absolutely recommend this one!

 

• Everything, Everything

This movie was really beautiful, I loved seeing the characters on the screen!! I’ve had a hate-to-love relationship to the book, I’ve loved the writing, hated the plot-twist. I feel like the movie saved some things, maybe it’s because of the actors because I adore Amandala ever since she had been Rue. The girl made me cry bitter tears through The Hunger Games. I loved how the movie was faithful to the book because I hate when movies decide to change everything about the books they’re adapted from (unless they are good changes).

 

• The 100

Even though I haven’t watched the last season yet, the tv show is so much better than the books. I’ve only read the first book and it was very bad compared to the tv show. (Also, Bob Morley is everything and I want him to always grace my screen because he’s an angel). Bellarke is also pretty awful in the books, there’s no Raven (what a ridiculous joke), the Grounders don’t even make an appareance until the end of the book and I feel like they are less bad-ass than in the tv show, anyway. Yap. All the points go to the tv-show.

2. Book-to-Movie Adaptations I disliked

 

• Before I Fall

This movie seemed so repetitive, oh my god. I can understand, though, I feel like it’s hard to make fun movies with this subject (having someone die again and again and then being brought back to solve things in their life) – if you’re wondering, it’s not a spoiler I just gave you. It’s in the book’s blurb. But I can’t remember the book being this boring, I’ve read it back in 2013 (I don’t trust that past me that much, though) and gave it four out of five stars, so I must have liked something. The movie just frustrated the hell out of me and did nothing else.

 

• Vampire Academy

Speaking of Zoey Deutch, what’s up with her and bad young adult adaptations? I actually really like her, but the movies – not so much. This one had a lot of potential, I loved the cast, but they turned it into a laugh-worthy movie. I saw this one in the cinema with some friends that hadn’t read the books, they all thought we were watching a comedy. Why such fake vampire teeth? wHy??? UGH. I really hope somebody tries to adapt the series into movies again (or better yet, into a tv-show) because it has the potential to be wonderful and bad-ass.

 

• The Hobbit

You might wonder how a person like me (who places LOTR in her favourite adaptations and The Hobbit in her disliked ones) exists. Well, I think I’m not in the minority here. Peter Jackson – lemme scream at you. What were you thinking when you split one damn book into three movies??? WHAAAAT? Why didn’t you make The Silmarillion a movie instead and then looked through The History of Middle Earth? I’m sure, us, die-hard fans of Middle Earth would have loved everything being turned into a movie, but this?? 

I do thank you, however, for getting Legolas into the movies. Because y’know, there’s never too much Legolas.

 

• Carrie (2013)

I have loved the book, but I disliked the movie because it was very dramatic, the acting was off and it didn’t scare me (at all?). The book was amazing, that ending terrified me and the suspension was glorious, it built up to everything. Sadly, the movie looked like a bad teen movie. Not for me, sorry!

 

• The Giver

I adored the book, it is so important to the dystopian genre and I feel like so many people should read it!! But the movie felt just bland, there were so many plot lines that were so much better in the book-verse and the movie just ruined them. But I’m thankful that they weren’t afraid to keep the black and white format. Kudos to them for that. Also, what is Taylor Swift doing in the movie????

Also, I’ll leave you with a list of my very anticipated book-to-movie adaptations :

• To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before
• Love, Simon
• The Goldfinch
• The Lord of the Rings tv show (I know people feel so and so about it and so do I, but you have to understand that this is my childhood and I will always be looking forward to seeing it in any forms.)
• The Darkest Minds
• Others that I’m forgetting right now

 

What are some of your favourite book adaptations and your least favourites? Do you agree with any of my choices?

Follow me on Twitter | Befriend/Follow me on Goodreads | Follow me on bloglovin’