Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Top Ten Tuesday: Book-to-Movie Adaptations I Want to Watch (and One I Don't!)


Top Ten Tuesday is a bookish meme, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish!
My family's always been a big ol' pack of culture vultures - voraciously consuming any and all new media that's making news and seems like a good time - but there's a pretty nice matchup that's developed through our teen years, between my sister, The Cheerleader and me: while I've always cornered bookish news, she's got a special kind of enthusiasm for movies. Therefore, whenever there's a new movie that happens to be based on a book, well, there's a high chance we're freaking out about it.

Here's a list of some new, old, and everywhere-in-between titles we're excited have gotten - or are going to get! - the big screen treatment... plus one that's we're not really feeling so much.


TODAY, IN NOT-NEW NEWS...


1. Still Alice, Lisa Genova
You'd think I'd never shut up about this gripping contemporary novel, about a woman facing early-onset Alzheimer's written by an actual neuroscientist, but I have yet to see the movie, no matter how many times I have to beg we make it a Sigma Kappa sisterhood event for my chapter (really, I just need people to watch it with who'll hold me and refrain from judgement while I sob).

2. Gone Girl, Gillian Flynn
Despite the fact that I have touted this title as one of my most favorite recent reads of the past couple of years for a little while now - I even did a College Fashion post on it! - I haven't been able to bring myself to set aside some time to really enjoy this thriller. I'm just naturally a very anxious person, and it's a lot easier to set down a book and take a breather than try to distract yourself from the crazy with a pause button.

3. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Jesse Andrews
I don't know, The Cheerleader is especially obsessed with the cinematography of this tragically-fated teenage love story, but I've heard that the movie has a different vibe than the book. Thoughts?


MOVIE THEATERS ARE REALLY EXPENSIVE


4. The Martian, Andy Weir
My obligatorily nerdy father had been dying to get his hands on this novel since the first trailer came out, but while both he and The Cheerleader have seen it, I'm holding off until I can read the book. (The Cheerleader's still in the middle of reading it!)

5. Brooklyn, Colm Toibin
It actually took me a good couple instances of looking into the plot of this movie, about a young Irish girl's immigration to America in the '40s, to realize that it was based off of a book by the same name. On the other hand, it took me about 20 seconds of the trailer for me to realize that I really, really want to see this movie. 

6. Room, Emma Donoghue
I also had no idea that this movie was based off of a book the first couple of times I saw the trailer, but I definitely wasn't drawn to it as strongly... I mean, the story of a young mother and her five-year-old son, held captive in a room, isn't exactly the kind of stuff I usually fill my free time with. However, I've heard amazing things about this movie from my best friend, and it's been garnering quite a lot of early Oscar attention, too, so maybe I'll have to give it a try!


DON'T CARE HOW, I WANT IT NOW!



7. Alice Through the Looking Glass, Lewis Carroll 
I actually debated leaving this one off of the list, being that movie adaptations of any of the Alice in Wonderland books maintain a pretty tenuous hold on any and all organization of plot or characterizations of the children's stories. Still, this sequel is pure wonder and whimsy from top to bottom, and I like Sacha Baron Cohen too much to leave it off. 

(And I swear to goodness that if I hear one more person use the phrase "Alice in Wonderland 2" it's OFF WITH THEIR HEADS.) 

8. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
Okay, okay, I'm fully expecting this film adaptation to go the route of Grahame-Smith's other notable novel-turned-movie - Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter - but I actually really, really like the look of this one. 

9. The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupery 
Aaaanndd I cried ugly Savannah tears when I first saw the trailer for this one... even though, at the time, the only trailer was available in French. Still, I love this book - yet again, a great source of inspiration for College Fashion! - and I can't wait to introduce some of my friends to it with the movie, too.


(and... I'd prefer not to) 


10. The Jungle Book, Rudyard Kipling
I'm not so sure about this one, folks... I'm all for creative license and new interpretations of old stories and everything, but I think that even if the trailer didn't tell me that it was directed by the same guy who did Iron Man, I probably could have guessed. No thank you.

What were your Top Ten? Let me know, in the comments below! 

7 comments:

  1. So many times I feel the way you do about Jungle Book when I comes to movies made from books. Ask me about movies-from-books I've hated? I could go on and on all day. So my list is short!

    Here's my favorite book-to-movie adaptations!

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  2. Love this list!! I still need to watch Still Alice. Loved the book. I didn't love Me and Earl and the Dying girl when I read it but I still want to see the movie. Going to the movies is way to expensive so I will waiting for The Martian and Room to come on demand myself. Great picks!!

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  3. Alice Through the Looking Glass looks SO GOOD. I loved the first one and I have been anticipated the rest of them. The cast is just marvelous and I cannot wait :)

    My TTT

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  4. Nice list!! The Martian is an awesome movie, now I jujst need to read the book! I realize now that I forgot to add The Book Thief to my list this week too as I still have to read this book or watch the movie adaptation.

    Here's a link to my TTT post for this week: http://captivatedreader.blogspot.com/2015/11/top-ten-tuesday-ten-book-to-movie.html

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  5. I totally agree with you about The Jungle Book. Sometimes we shouldn't mess with things!

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  6. Gone Girl is a great movie, you should definitely watch it!
    My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2015/11/10/top-ten-tuesday-30/

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  7. Their adapting The Little Prince?!? I didn't know this....but I'm hesitant....such a strange, wonderful book. I'll have to try and find that French trailer. Have a great week!

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