V: V for Vendetta and Other Movies Made from Books

V: V for Vendetta and Other Movies made from Books

I love books! Did you know that? Well, I do! I find a book that captures my interest, and I'm set for the day, week, and even month, depending on the book, length and interest. But now comes the thorny issue. What if they decide to make it into a movie? Imagine everything we visualize and every emotion we feel, being recreated as a movie or series? It would be a challenge, but may not be insurmountable. Let's look at some possibilities.

From the title, you can see that I like V for Vendetta. Very much. I loved it as a graphic novel by Alan Moore, and I was pleasantly surprised by the movie adaptation. It had just the right mood established. The right tension, the action, the passion, the anarchy to create a viable visualization of the book. Another great movie was Watchmen, also created by Alan Moore. That became one of my favorite superhero films of all time. I could relate to the characters, just as I did in the graphic novels. I think it's an incredible challenge to take an author who is a favorite of many and try to bring their ideas to the screen. 

Two  of the most challenging, and possibly the best for different reasons at their adaptations, are Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter. While there Re detractors, the overwhelming odds of this nearly impossible recreation has been rewarded. For Lord of the Rings, Peter Jackson decided the best way to maintain consistency was to fill the entire series at one time, and release the three films over the next several years. As one of the most awarded adaptations of all time, it paid off. I'll admit the first time I saw each, I was overwhelmed by the story having it shown to me after reading it for many, many years. The "it can never be made into a movie" adage had been broken. Unfortunately, this formula didn't work for the Hobbit, attempting to extend one book to three movie when one or two would have worked better.

For Harry Potter, finding the right British cast was critical, as well as continuing their parts through eight films assisted it greatly. Who would have guessed it's international success, except that it followed the books carefully to make the reader and non reader alike comfortable with the story being told.

Unfortunately, this hasn't always worked. A prime example are Stephen King books - while many have enjoyed success on the screen, and some have even received several adaptations, the challenge is to get the author's vision, and the reader's imagination across the screen. Fingers are crossed as two more movies are coming out this year, IT and The Dark Tower. Hopefully with today's technology, and studio's budgets, they will accomplish what many haven't, though I enjoyed the original IT, Cujo, Christine, Misery, among others, but perhaps it's truly a matter of taste.

So here's to the continual debate. Keep enjoying your favorite novels, and some may come to fruition and your satisfaction, like To Kill a Mockingbird, while others may be a disaster waiting to happen, like atlas Shrugged. Two more of my favorite books, but only one received the proper celluloid treatment it deserved. What are your favorites? What were total disasters? I'd love to know. Meanwhile, I hope to see you at the movies!