Summary
When books are adapted into movies and TV shows, they are often judged based on how accurately they translate the story from the page to the screen, but some “bad” adaptations can still be brilliant in their own right. Adapting books is a difficult task. Readers usually build up a mental image of the story, so creating a visual world which pleases everyone is almost impossible. Aside from the visual considerations, movies and TV shows are often forced to condense a much longer story to fit into a shorter format. Add in music, casting, and pacing, and it’s no wonder that so many adaptations leave readers disappointed.
However, just because an adaptation isn’t completely faithful to its source material doesn’t mean that it has no merit. Movies and TV shows should be judged based on more than just how closely they adhere to a book. Even if an author publically states their distaste for an adaptation, this doesn’t mean the adaptation should be completely disregarded. Filmmakers need to have the freedom to inject their own ideas into a project. This may upset the author or some readers, but it can benefit the movie or TV show in unexpected ways. Some great movies and TV shows use a book as a jumping off point, but then they forge their own unique stories.
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10 Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (1971)
Based on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl didn’t care for the big-screen adaptation of his popular children’s novel. The first problem was that the movie changed the name, but this reflects how the movie pays much more attention to Willy Wonka than the protagonist of the book, Charlie. Dahl was originally hired to write the script, but the project was taken out of his hands, and the character of Willy Wonka evolved a lot. Gene Wilder portrays Wonka with subtle hidden pain, which is completely absent in the book. Dahl prevented a Willy Wonka sequel from being made because of his distaste for the first movie.
9 Killing Eve (2018-2022)
Based on the Villanelle novels by Luke Jennings
Killing Eve ended in controversial fashion, with Villanelle being gunned down in the series finale. This received a lot of backlash from fans, and the fourth season was a mediocre send-off in general. The ending of Luke Jennings’ novels could have provided a more popular finale, as it sees Villanelle and Eve living together as a couple in Russia. Konstantin’s death was also handled very differently in the show. In the books, he is killed by Villanelle, rather than Pam. Despite these changes, Killing Eve still stayed true to the book’s portrayal of the obsessive, all-consuming relationship between Eve and Villanelle.
8 World War Z (2013)
Based on World War Z by Max Brooks
World War Z has very little in common with Max Brooks’ novel of the same name, except for an apocalyptic setting. The zombies in the book are described as slow moving, far from the quick zombies with access to a hive mind in the movie. Brad Pitt’s character was invented for the adaptation as well. World War Z doesn’t easily lend itself to an adaptation. It follows a UN employee who interviews survivors of the apocalypse over a period of ten years. This format is completely scrapped for the movie, which conforms more closely to the established conventions of the zombie horror genre.
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7 O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
Based on The Odyssey by Homer
It’s a deliberately loose adaptation, set in 1930s Missouri rather than Ancient Greece, and with a one-eyed man rather than a cyclops.
O Brother, Where Art Thou gets its title from a fake movie in the 1941 film Sullivan’s Travels, but the story is based on Homer’s epic poem, The Odyssey. It’s a deliberately loose adaptation, set in 1930s Missouri rather than Ancient Greece, and with a one-eyed man rather than a cyclops. Still, while O Brother, Where Art Thou is about as unfaithful as adaptations come, it’s a brilliant caper, aided by a strong comedy cast and more than one unforgettable song. The Odyssey is one of the foundational texts of Western literature, so it has been adapted, reinvented, and retold for centuries.
6 Howl’s Moving Castle (2004)
Based on Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
As with any of Hayao Miyazaki’s movies, Howl’s Moving Castle is filled with fascinating characters and intangible magic. But Howl’s Moving Castle changes the book in many ways. Most of the key characters are altered in some ways. Martha, Markl, and Madame Suliman aren’t even in the book. They are mostly cobbled together from other characters, but consolidating them into fewer characters helps simplify the narrative of the movie. The movie also focuses a lot more on the war and less on Sophie’s powers. Most of the changes made for the movie help streamline the story, but they don’t detract from the magical intrigue.
5 Game Of Thrones (2011-2019)
Based on A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin
Game of Thrones had to fill in some massive gaps when the series advanced at a quicker rate than George R.R. Martin’s novels. Without the novels to refer to, the series had to create its own story lines, but it had already diverged from Martin’s vision from the beginning. Game of Thrones was forced to condense some key character details, and it made changes to Sansa and Catelyn Stark’s fates. Game of Thrones changed Daenarys Targaryen more than most characters, and her eventual “Mad Queen” turn makes much more sense in the books, as her prophecies and visions hint toward her eventual destiny.
4 War Of The Worlds (2005)
Based on The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells
There have been plenty of adaptations of The War of the Worlds, including movies, TV shows, radio dramas, and stage plays. Steven Spielberg’s 2005 adaptation is one of the most well-known, with Tom Cruise in the lead role. The War of the Worlds was first published in 1898, and the 2005 adaptation understands that the setting should be updated to reflect the same sense of futuristic horror. This is a case of a superficial change being made to keep the source material’s spirit intact. The location of the story is also moved from London to New York, and the protagonist has children in the movie, unlike in the book.
3 Foundation (2021-)
Based on the Foundation novels by Isaac Asimov
Foundation drastically alters some of the characters from Isaac Asimov’s novel. Several key characters are gender-swapped in the show, including Gaal Dornick and Salvor Hardin, but these changes are relatively superficial compared to some of the other decisions the show makes. Asimov wasn’t as concerned with the Emperor in his novels, but the show builds up the story of his lineage and makes him a more central figure. The character of Raych doesn’t even exist in the books, but she’s a key character in the show. Foundation still respects the themes and the tone of Asimov’s work, even if it isn’t a one-to-one adaptation.
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2 Shrek (2001)
Based on Shrek! by William Steig
Shrek is even uglier in William Steig’s picture book. His smell is so putrid that the trees lean away from him, and he can cook food just by looking at it. Shrek retains some of his more odious qualities in the Dreamworks animation, but the movie changes his story entirely. Shrek’s parents are nowhere to be seen, and he goes on a classic hero’s journey, where he learns to overcome his flaws and saves a princess. It’s a funny subversion of fairy-tale tropes, but it has little in common with Steig’s narrative. There is still a dragon and a princess, but Shrek faces every obstacle with the same joyful enthusiasm.
1 The Shining (1980)
Based on The Shining by Stephen King
King has been complimentary about the visual style, but he disagreed with how Kubrick handled the character of Jack.
Stephen King’s novels have been adapted into plenty of great movies and TV shows, even if they sometimes change drastically on their transition to the screen. Stephen King was critical of Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, feeling that it changed the meaning of his novel. He has been complimentary about the visual style, and Kubrick’s other work, but he disagreed with how Kubrick handled the character of Jack, played by Jack Nicholson. King wanted the malevolent forces in The Shining to represent an omnipotent evil which can terrorize innocent people, but Kubrick believed that the evil came from deep within Jack.