Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because they are particularly fond of lists over at The Broke and the Bookish. I'm sure they'd love to share your lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten list.
This week's topic is books I'd like to see made (or remade) into movies!
*I'm a book purist, and have seen maybe two book to movie adaptations that I consider great, so some of these will be remakes of already ruined stories, and others just in the hopes that one indie studios with bookish producers get a hold of the source material.
1.Arcadia Falls - Carol Goodman - I am a huge fan of this book. Boarding school for the arts? Check. Fairytale's. Check. Mystery in journal form. Check Check Check. Now I know if a major studio got their hands on this there would be all kinds of changes. That's okay though, because it's highly unlikely this will ever actually become a movie.
2. The Namesake - Jhumpa Lahiri - I really really liked The Namesake as a book. Really, I did. So I obviously went and saw the movie, which I hated. So much. Like apologizing to the friend who went with me kind of hate (though she didn't seem to see the problem. It is possible this is all in my head). I had a hard time finding the movie Gogol endearing or interesting, and thought the essences of the story was lost.
3. Ella Enchanted - Gail Carson Levine - YOU CAN NOT POISON A CROWN. YOU CAN NOT. IT DOES NOT WORK. DESTROY ALL COPIES OF THIS TERRIBLE MOVIE AND REMAKE ONE THAT FOLLOWS THE STORY AND DOESN'T HAVE ME SCREAMING. DO IT NOW!
4.The Other Boleyn Girl - Phillipa Gregory - I'm a big historical fiction fan, and while I tend to consider Gregory historical fiction lite I do still devour her work like it's some sort of weird, damask covered crack. I really liked The Other Boleyn girl. I really, really hated the movie. I didn't think anyone was convincing in it. When you can say that Scarlett Johansson was the best actor in a movie, there is an issue with that movie.
5./6. The History of Love - Nichole Krauss/Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Foer - I lump these two together because their story structure is similar, the subject matter is similar and the same pitfalls would come to each movie. While I would love to see both of them up on the big screen I can also picture them being destroyed by big studios who would have a hard time selling these sudo world war two/post 9/11/family death stories that are centered around children. Oh, I also don't have much hope for the version of ELAIC that is currently being filmed with Tom Hanks.
7. Falling Angels - Tracy Chevalier - little girls growing up at the beginning of the Edwardian era running around cemeteries and learning about life? Yes, please.
8.House of Leaves - Mark Z. Danielewski - Just the Navidson records. You know, the part with the growing house? Not, and I repeat, NOT the Johnny story. They just wouldn't work together well in the same film, in my opinion.
9. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Zafon - I loved this story, and it would be a great, noir-ish type film.
10. The Paris Wife - Paula McLain - I just read this a few weeks ago and I really loved it. It would be fantastic to see Paris in the 20's on screen, with Hemingway and Stien and Pound and everyone else being artsy and lost and amazing.
So that's my list. It's mostly me being angry, but that's typically what these lists turn into, isn't it?
12 comments:
LOL I said almost exactly the same thing about House of Leaves when I put it on my list. I want to see The Navidson Record so bad :(
I just read Hemingway's Moveable Feast a couple of weeks ago. Interesting that you enjoyed The Paris Wife - I'll look it out. I'd love to see that period made into a film, too.
Great list! I love your blog, will stop by again soon.
I agree completely with what you said about The Other Boleyn Girl. I remember staring at my computer screen in horror when I saw the casting for it.
Oh yes The Paris Wife is perfect movie material. Love to see it!
I almost had EL&IC on my list, but I don't see how it could be successfully adapted to the screen. Trying to get a kid that appropriate age that can do the kind of acting required is a feat in and of itself
These are some great books (I've read most of them, too...though I'm still awaiting Paris Wife from the library). I can only hope they'd be great movies.
Here's my post for today's Top Ten Tuesday.
I HATED the film version of Ella Enchanted. Other than the title, it bore almost no resemblance to the actual book. I'd love it if they redid it...and I just finished The Paris Wife and think it would make a fabulous movie, too! New follower.
I read Phillipa Gregory novels too--they're not good history but they're great fiction. I thought about watching the movie, but never got around to it. Now that I've seen The Tudors, it would seem even more wrong.
I didn't even think of Falling Angels. That would make a great movie! (if done correctly)
Shadow of the Wind is on my TBR list, so I haven't read it yet. But it does sound like it would be good as a book AND a movie. Also agree with Paris Wife!
I don't think there was ever a movie so poorly cast as The Other Boleyn Girl.
Natalie Portman? Really? She's supposed to be fierce and seductive.
And Mary was supposed to be innocent, and I'm sorry but Scarlett Johansen barely seems innocent. =/
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