There have been many books turned into movies, and sometimes they're a disappointment or don't quite follow the book. For "Hollywood creative license," purposes, I suppose the powers that be feel they need to enhance the storyline.
Several movies I'd like to put on my "pleasantly surprised" list are "Lincoln Lawyer" and "The Lovely Bones." If my recollection is correct, and believe me, my memory isn't all that notable these days, they stayed pretty true to the books. Since I loved the books, the movies were a 'thumbs up' for me.
"Lincoln Lawyer" was the first book in an engaging series by Michael Connelly. It's a spin-off from the very popular "Harry Bosch" series. When I first saw the trailer, I knew Matthew McConaughey was the PERFECT guy to play Mickey Haller, the smarmy, cynical lawyer-turned-believer. Casting was pitch perfect! The movie did NOT disappoint in introducing us to this fascinating character.
"The Lovely Bones" did stray a tad from the book; however, it was done in a good way. To me, the movie expanded on it by telling more about the creepy neighbor. I don't want to give anything away, so I can't go into greater detail. It's a haunting story, a bit of a downer, basically told by a young girl who was murdered and can't quite cross over. She's watching her family from afar, observing how they cope with her loss. The imagery in the movie was breathtaking.
One example of a riveting book turned to crud was the recent movie, "We Need to Talk About Kevin." I have my own rating system of 1-5 for books I've listened to...the highest being a 5. I gave this a hearty 5. I didn't want to stop listening! However, the movie stunk and didn't do the book any justice. I would recommend reading the book over watching the movie, as it was beyond dreadful.
I liked the Lord of the Rings movies. Sure they cut a lot out, but I bought the Special Editions when they came out so that made it somewhat a little better. Considering how long the films already are in the Extended Editions I can understand why some of the information was chopped. I also love the Narnia movies so far. They are pretty close to the books.
ReplyDeleteSomething I hated? Mmm! That is a tough one because I really don't watch a lot of movies. Ah I know...The Bourne Identity movies. The first movie was okay...but #2 and #3 sucked so badly with the shakey camera shots and close up's (that were way too close) during the fight scenes that they made me want to puke. I absolutely hated them. I actually can't watch the 3rd one all the way through because it makes me feel that sick tryin to watch it...the only thing the DVD is good for is a coaster for my drink. LOL!
I enjoyed the Bourne movies, although I don't remember the fight scenes being too close. I'd have to watch it again to see what you mean. Then again, I never read the books, so I don't have much to compare them to. I DO wish that the next one coming out still had Matt Damon in it, although Jeremy Renner is a good actor, so I'm sure I'll check it out when it hits theaters
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