Books have a certain kind of magic to them that is hard to translate to a silver screen. It’s been attempted so many times to turn a great book into an equally great movie, but sadly history shows us that the movies very often fall short of their written counterparts.
Maybe the visual style doesn’t match, maybe parts of the story get lost, or maybe they just cut out too much because of time constraints – whatever the reason, here are some great books that got turned into horrible movies
Eragon
I mean, where do we even start with this one. Considering how the book is often compared to Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, it’s safe to say this movie falls very flat of Peter Jackson’s interpretation of Tolkien’s work.
The Great Gatsby
The parties and lifestyle of Gatsby are so fantastic in the movie, that it’s hard to imagine he’s a very tormented and unhappy man in the book. Baz Luhrmann, known for Moulin Rouge, has a unique style that makes it hard to bring across moments of pure loneliness.
Gulliver’s Travels
“It had Jack Black as a giant,” – Nuff said. Expect typical Jack Black jokes, which is nothing like the cleverness the book has. I mean, he puts out a fire by peeing on it, people. If that sounds like clever humor to you, then, by all means, go watch Gulliver’s Travels.
Cat In The Hat
Remember what Mike Myers did after Austin Powers? Well, this. And after that, nothing at all. Ever again. Mike Myers’ style of humor really doesn’t mix all that well with what is essentially a children’s book.
Alice In Wonderland
It’s just a weird movie. Tim Burton has developed his own visual style over the years, and this movie oozes of it. Don’t expect any of the unpredictable stuff the book has – it’s Burton. It looks amazing, but the story falls very flat.
The Golden Compass
Considering how the book was about a plot to murder God, it makes perfect sense the movie was changed slightly to please the Catholics. The only problem is that Catholics can read (they live their life based on a book, you know) so they knew what the book was about – they hated the movie before it was even released. And the people that weren’t Catholic hated that the movie that was watered down. So everyone hated it. Plain and simple.
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
The first big comic book movie. I mean, it had Sean Connery playing the lead role! Sadly, he cost so much they had to use nobodies for the other roles and had to change the story so much that the original creators of the comic book distanced themselves from the movie. Ouch!
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