Friday, July 16, 2010

Top Ten Picks: Favorite Books to Movies


Today as I decided I was going to catch up with all the posts in my Google Reader or know the reason why, I stumbled across something that I just had to do. Jillian at Random Ramblings has a weekly meme called Top Ten Picks in which she chooses a topic and participants have to find ten things that fit that topic. This week was favorite books to movies, and I couldn't resist.

My picks are all books that I greatly enjoyed reading, and I believe that Hollywood actually managed to capture the essence of each book on film-- in some cases even surpassing the book.

I do have to 'fess up because I did choose a short story rather than a book for one. There are also at least two cases in which Hollywood decided to make the movie a second time. In both cases the retread was nowhere near as good as the original. So here, for good or ill, is my list of favorite books that were turned into films (in alphabetical order):


The Andromeda Strain




Dances With Wolves




Gone With the Wind




The Haunting of Hill House



The Hunt for Red October



Jurassic Park



The Manchurian Candidate



Planet of the Apes



"Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption"



To Sir, With Love



So... what do you think of my choices?

23 comments:

  1. Cathy - Some great choices here! I have to agree with you about a few of your choices, actually. I really liked The Adnromeda Strain and To Sir, With Love, quite a lot.

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  2. What a fantastic list, Cathy. You know I'm going to agree with Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption right off the bat. All of these are great. I remember I read THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN in one day (while home sick from high school). Thanks for posting this.

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  3. I like your list but the only ones that I both read and watched is Gone With the Wind!!

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  4. Good list, Cathy. I've read a few of them and watched more of the movies I think. Let's see - ANDROMEDA STRAIN - great movie. GONE WITH THE WIND - read and, of course, watched - both good. HUNT FOR THE RED OCTOBER - loved the movie, never got around to the book but read several other Jack Ryan books. JURASSIC PARK - read and watched, think I liked the book better, but a good effort. MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE - good movie.

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  5. I love your choices! Micheal Crichton wrote so many wonderful books that worked well on the big screen.

    I thought Gone with the Wind felt a bit rushed on DVD, but my husband who hadn't read the book. didn't feel that and loved it.

    I haven't read and watched the others yet, but hope to read a few more soon :-)

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  6. Nice list, Cathy. I've seen more of the movies than read the books, but I think Hunt for Red October was better as a movie, Gone With the Wind a better book. Never read Dances With Wolves but I loved the movie and the same with To Sir, With Love.

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  7. You have some great choices and I love The Haunting of Hill House, both the book and the original movie. The remake was crap, the same goes for the remakes of Planet of the Apes and The Manchurian Candidate.

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  8. The only one on your list that I've seen the movie and read the book both is Gone With the Wind and I totally agree that it belongs on that list.

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  9. Nice picks! Jurassic Park made my list, too.

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  10. One of my favorite statements from my Mom, and I quote her on this frequently: "the only movie that was better than the book was The Ten Commandments."

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  11. This is a great list. I too loved Manchurian Candidate, Jurassic Park, and Gone with the Wind. Well-written books and stellar movies! It's so nice to have you with us this week :)

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  12. I have to agree that The Hunt For Red October is even better as a movie. Clancy was a novice writer--it was his first novel--and so easy to parody; just use a technical term and then put its definition in parentheses! A lot of what he was trying to tell in the novel is shown in the movie.

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  13. Good picks! I too absolutely love Dances with Wolves and Gone with the Wind!

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  14. Margot-- Two of my favorites!

    Michael-- You're very welcome. Lists like this are impossible for me to ignore. I always have to take a look!

    Staci-- I think I dated myself with several of my answers! LOL

    Kay-- I think the only reason why I preferred the book of Jurassic Park is because I missed the pterodactyl scenes... and even then I understood that the cost was what kept them out of the film.

    Jackie-- I have to admit that Scarlett O'Hara gets on my last nerve, so I was rather pleased that the film left out a husband/child or two! LOL

    Barbara-- I think most people are going to be more familiar with the movies.

    Ryan-- 99% of the time when it concerns remakes, my very strong opinion is HANDS OFF! LOL

    Kathy-- I'm glad. :)

    LaC-- I noticed. I've been keeping an eye on Mr. Linky!

    Kim-- LOL!

    Jillian-- I was thrilled to join in! :)

    Jeanne-- Yes, I agree, although I was such a young whippersnapper when I read the book that I thought the book was excellent. *blush*

    Leah-- :)

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  15. I think the book "Gone With the Wind" is even better than the movie, but it would have been tough to adapt faithfully!

    Some of these movies I didn't realize were originally books, such as "To Sir, with Love". I'll have to keep my eye out for that one!

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  16. Shawshank is one of my all-time favorite movies. I can't tell you how many people don't believe me when I tell them it's based on Stephen King short story!

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  17. To Kill A Mockingbird. Hands down.

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  18. Valerie-- There was so much to the book that I think they did an excellent job in deciding which things were to be filmed.

    Beth-- I'd believe you. I have the same problem!

    Molly-- It would be on my list, but I went out of my way to try to choose books/movies that I really enjoyed that I thought might not make it on anyone else's list. I'm contrary that way! LOL

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  19. I am a bad Stephen King fan...I had no idea that Shawshank Redemption was based on one of his books...bad, bad serena!

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  20. Silly me..I didn't even know some of those movies were books first! haha!
    Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe is one of my favorite books into movies.

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  21. Serena-- Shame on you! ;)

    Kris-- That is a good one.

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  22. Gone With the Wind is on my list too! And even though I didn't list it, I did like the adaptation of The Andromeda Strain (just finished reading the book for one of my book challenges).

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  23. Bev-- This was definitely a fun list to compile. Thanks for stopping by!

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