Best Book to Movie Adaptations
We all know that feeling when we find a book we love and we can’t wait for it to turn into our new favorite movie! Sometimes it works, other times… not so much. As book readers it’s very easy to pick apart things that weren’t in the movies but there is nothing like those times when it works perfectly! When you actually get to see something inside your head suddenly on the big screen, there is something magical about that experience. Here are our top best and worst adaptations!
Hunger Games Series
The Hunger Games movies are one of the best adapted books ever, especially Catching Fire! While there are some minor changes to the series when they made the films, it’s not anything too major. Jennifer Lawerence and Josh Hutcherson were the perfect Katniss and Peeta. It’s important to note that author Suzanne Collins was heavily involved in the movies, hence a big part of why they are so amazing. The most satisfying feeling was sitting in the theater watching Catching Fire and literally seeing the book come to life completely. It was so accurate and faithful to the book. There were a little more changes in the other movies, but nothing that took away from the story Suzzane Collins told. We love going back and rewatching these movies!
Harry Potter Series
There’s nothing like rewatching Harry Potter and feeling the warm fuzzy feeling that comes with returning home to Hogwarts. This is another example where the author, JK Rowling, was heavily involved. Going back and rewatching the movies are just as magical as rereading the series. Obviously most of the books are huge, so there’s a lot of things that need to be fit into a two hour movie. The good thing with Harry Potter though, is the movies never took out or changed anything that was super major. There are a lot of things I wish were in the movies, but it’s understandable why they couldn’t put every little detail. They did a good job of keeping in all the important moments that book fans love, and balancing that with making an enjoyable film that everyone will love.
Twilight Series
Time to reminisce on the twilight years! This was such a fun time and we still love the series so much and thought the movies were actually very faithful. Recently, we started rereading Twilight and were actually pretty surprised how accurate the movie is. There are a few differences that we forgot about as well, but overall the movie was a great adaptation for book fans. We still remember sitting in the theater and freaking out when the Cullens came on our screen. What an amazing time. We’re currently rereading the whole series and are excited to relive it again as adults. It will be fun to go back and rewatch the movies as well since they are just as enjoyable!
The Fault in our Stars
The Fault in our Stars by John Greene is a classic young adult book that everyone should read. We actually had the opportunity to attend a private early screen in New York City for the movie and we were lucky enough to have John Greene come out at the end, along with the cast! This was so cool and an awesome experience. The movie did a great job of keeping it faithful to the story and characters, while keeping in all the strong emotions you get when reading. If you’ve never read or watched this one before, have tissues!
Perks of being a Wallflower
Perks of being a Wallflower is a heartfelt, and powerful book that we think every teen adolescence should experience. It’s a coming of age story about Charlie, who is a quiet kid who is a wallflower, he absorbs everything around him and isn’t exactly outgoing. He watches from the side and doesn’t exactly take risks, until he meets Sam and Patrick. It’s about friendship, love, music, and growing up. The movie did an amazing job of capturing all of this and the actors are perfect. Emma Watson, Logan Lerman and Ezra Miller are a few of the incredible actors that are a part of this film. We highly recommend reading or watching this emotional, heartfelt story!
Although it is more rare, popular book series can be made into successful adaptations. A lot of this is possible when there is a good team behind it that wants to keep it faithful to the books. The author being involved is always a plus as well. If you have never read or watched any of these before, we highly recommend reading the books and experiencing that first, then watch the movies. Have fun!