Author Topic: Movies & Books Into Movies (Read 588669 times)

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #200 on:** June 12, 2009, 04:26:32 PM »

How many of you have read a book,
then watched a movie that was based on that same book?

Were you disappointed?
Or elated that they hadn't made any significant changes?
Or even surprised to discover the movie was even better than the book?

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Books Into Movies Now on DVD
Recent Movies Based on Books
Books in a Series by Their Authors
Movies Based on the Book

Join us in an ongoing discussion of this very popular subject right now.
Pull up a chair, take off your shoes, pour yourself a cup of coffee or hot chocolate, and join in!

Your Discussion Leader: pedln

marjifay, did you see "Finding Forrester"? That was a good film. And I liked his action ones: The Rock and the one with J. LOpez.

maryz, the movie with Jodie Foster was a remake, but no musical! I loved that one too. I may not have been around for the IRene Dunne one. (just probably haven't seen it)

My made up saying is: "There is no Bond but Bond, and Connery is his name".

PatH · « **Reply #201 on:** June 12, 2009, 04:29:36 PM »

I don't see how anyone could equal the original "African Queen" We don't have a Katherine Hepburn.

And I'd add "The Wizard of Oz".

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #202 on:** June 12, 2009, 04:33:10 PM »

Oh, yeahhhh, the Wizard of Oz! How could I forget that one?

And a big, loud NO on anyone doing the African Queen, don't care who might play "Charlie".

CallieOK · « **Reply #203 on:** June 12, 2009, 05:23:23 PM »

Oh, I most definitely do not want to see a remake of GWTW. Rhett Butler is Clark Gable is Rhett Butler - and there is NO - NOT ONE - current "Hunk" that can duplicate that role!

Babi · « **Reply #204 on:** June 12, 2009, 05:51:58 PM »

The only logic required to do a remake is: "Will the public come to see it?"
And obviously, we do. Look how many times Jane Austen and Agatha Christie have been re-done, yet I wouldn't miss a one!
Some themes have been overdone for me. I'm really tired of stories about
half-baked stories about King Arthur.

mrssherlock · « **Reply #205 on:** June 12, 2009, 09:39:30 PM »

Never thought I'd say this but Daniel Crain, IMHO, is the best Bond. Connery's Bond belongs the the age of Doris Day and Rock Hudson love stories (remember when?) but DC is a sexier, more dangerous, more intelligent but more visceral Bond. Two different animals.

marjifay · « **Reply #206 on:** June 12, 2009, 10:35:14 PM »

No, Tomereader, I haven't seen Finding Forrester. I'll look for it.

And I take back what I said, because I did like the film The Name of the Rose which Connery made after the all the James Bond films.
(I agree with your saying about Connery & Bond!)

A remake of a film I want to see is The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3, because it has James Gandofini from the Sopranos, and John Turturro in smaller parts. I'll probably be sorry because I really liked the original film with Walter Matthau, and haven't cared much for any Denzel Washington films I've seen.

Marj

Babi · « **Reply #207 on:** June 13, 2009, 10:34:45 AM »

Really, Marjifay? I don't think I've seen a Denzel Washington film I didn't like,
though I admit I don't want to see the one about the big time gangster. I find
him to be an excellent actor.

marjifay · « **Reply #208 on:** June 13, 2009, 11:17:54 AM »

Well, Babi, that's what makes life interesting, isn't it? Not everyone agrees about a lot of things. I'm sure a lot of people agree with you re Denzel Washington's films.
Marj

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #209 on:** June 13, 2009, 11:17:56 AM »

marjifay, I agree about "The Name of the Rose", but I had read the book, and it rather skewed my impression of the movie, even though my Sean was in it!! Ha Ha! He did a great job, and fit the part well. Think his "tonsure" was real?? LOL. When I saw my first Bond movie (1966, was it) (I had been reading the books from the time they were published here), and Sean popped up out of the water in those swim trunks...well let's just say I was in love! Should have still been sighing over Elvis, but this was a M-A-N, and oh so sexy! (Daniel Craig looks pretty great in swim trunks too, even to an old woman like me!)

Frybabe · « **Reply #210 on:** June 13, 2009, 11:24:50 AM »

My estimation of Sean Connery and George C. Scott went way up years and years ago when I read that they are/were readers (and not just for movie character research).

Finding Forrester is something of a little known GEM in my opinion. The Hunt for Red October is one of my personal favorites. And don't forget The Man Who Would Be King, Medicine Man, and The Wind and the Lion none of which I have seen in a long time.

I remember Scott best for Patton, of course, and Dr. Stangelove.... Didn't he also play in a version of Beauty and the Beast or am I remembering wrong?

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #211 on:** June 13, 2009, 11:33:29 AM »

To All: And as we talk about movies, it just dawned on me...see if you find it so...remembering older movies, and the studios' "star system", isn't it amazing that you seem to remember the stars of those films, but the supporting actors kind of fade into the background. Whereas these days, most of the supporting actors seem to hold a second-level star quality, and now those actors/actresses are coming to star in their own films. I know I'm not wording this the way I want to, but hopefully you all will understand what I'm getting at! Think Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Thomas Haden Church, Malkovich, etc. Even in secondary roles these actors stand out, and finally are being recognized for it. I appreciate them as they have labored long and hard for recognition.

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #212 on:** June 13, 2009, 11:40:33 AM »

I agree, frybabe, about Finding Forrester being a GEM, and how could I have overlooked all the movies you mentioned, I loved every one of them, Red October specially. Wow, are we having a great discussion, or what? LOL

mrssherlock · « **Reply #213 on:** June 13, 2009, 12:19:54 PM »

Tomereader: Good point. Appreciation of directors has become a selling point, too. In the studio days the studio was the producer and set the tone of the product. Nowadays a package is set up, director, story, actors, etc, and then sold as a whole. Seems like a better integration of talents, personalities, etc. Of course the money men still have the last say, as always. Profit is the bottom line.

marjifay · « **Reply #214 on:** June 13, 2009, 12:49:14 PM »

Am loving the discussion. Interesting, all the different opinions.

Tomereader, I've never seen Thomas Haden Church that I know of. One of the sexier hunks IMO in secondary roles is Willlem Dafoe.

And some of my favorite movies have been those written/directed/acted by (dare I say it?) -- Woody Allen.

pedln · « **Reply #215 on:** June 13, 2009, 12:52:03 PM »

Babi, I’m with you on Denzel Washington. I like him.

Tomereader and Jackie, good points about the supporting actors and the packaging of the film as a whole. And, I won’t try to name names, but more actors are also directing, with many good results.

Marjifay, I had to search Netflix for Thomas Haden Church because I didn't know if I'd seen him or not -- he was in Sideways. It takes me a while to learn names and faces of some of the more recent actors. Laura Linney is one I really like -- in Jindabyne and loved her in John Adams. (Must confess I've never seen a James Bond movie -- saw Connery in Hunt for Red Oct. & Murder on the Orient Express.)

maryz · « **Reply #216 on:** June 13, 2009, 01:16:57 PM »

We first saw Thomas Haden Church in the sitcom, Wings, as the not-too-bright mechanic.

Gumtree · « **Reply #217 on:** June 13, 2009, 01:34:27 PM »

Marjifay: I agree about Willem Dafoe as a great actor - hadn't really thought of him before as a sex symbol but can definitely see what you mean

I remember him best as Caravaggio in The English Patient and as T.S. Eliot in Tom and Viv but have seen him in a host of other films as well.

mrssherlock · « **Reply #218 on:** June 13, 2009, 08:19:33 PM »

Wings! I loved Wings.

marjifay · « **Reply #219 on:** June 13, 2009, 10:16:50 PM »

Oh, now I know who Church is -- I also loved Wings, one of the few sitcoms I watched besides Sieinfeld. Church was great as the mechanic. I'll have to get Sideways. Thanks, Tomereader.

Marj

Babi · « **Reply #220 on:** June 14, 2009, 08:28:49 AM »

PEDLN, I'm amazed. I don't know how one could have avoided seeing a James Bond movie. They are so popular it's like saying one never saw a Walt Disney movie or read Harry Potter! You must have made a conscious effort to avoid them.

I had to go look up 'Finding Forrester', but now I remembet it and I agree..it
was wonderful.

maryz · « **Reply #221 on:** June 14, 2009, 08:48:03 AM »

Some of us are just slower, Babi.

The only Bond movies we've seen are those with Sean Connery.

And I didn't read any of the Harry Potter books until after I'd seen the first movie. Having said that, I've now read all the books, but have seen only 2-3 of the movies.

Obviously, we don't go to many movies. I'd go frequently or watch at home, but John's never been a movie-goer.

marjifay · « **Reply #222 on:** June 14, 2009, 02:27:57 PM »

Babi, I never read Harry Potter, or seen the movies, nor do I intend to
(LOL)

Marj

Babi · « **Reply #223 on:** June 15, 2009, 08:31:04 AM »

I watch all my movies at home, MaryZ. On Demand TV or Netflix...it's all about
closed captioning now for me.

Whatever makes you happy, Marj; some probably consider Harry Potter too juvenile. Val and I found them highly entertaining.

pedln · « **Reply #224 on:** June 15, 2009, 08:39:58 AM »

Well, I read the first Harry Potter years ago, but you all know so story -- so much to read, so little time. And I used to watch the movies with my grandkids when I'd go to visit. You've given me an idea, Babi. Now that they're all in high school or college, I think I'll ask on the next visit if I can take them home for a Harry Potter Marathon. I think they've got them all.

Babi · « **Reply #225 on:** June 16, 2009, 08:08:48 AM »

Sounds like fun, PEDLN. Don't forget the popcorn!

pedln · « **Reply #226 on:** June 16, 2009, 09:57:39 AM »

Golly, there sure seems to be a lot to talk about in Books and Movies these days. Werem’t we just talking about The Third Man? And here’s the NYTimes with an article about Graham Greene’s films, saying that he was “entirely comfortable with the movies.”

The Screen’s Seduction of Graham Greene

And Tomereader was talking about the talented supporting actors who have now come into their own. I just finished watching the 2001 production IRIS, about Iris Murdoch’s decline into Alzheimers. Kate Winslet had been nominated for BSActress with that one (and Judi Dench a Best Actress nomination.) Jim Broadbent won a Best Supporting Actory for his role as the aging John Bayley. I’m not familiar with him. What else might he have played in. The young John Bayley was played by Hugh Bonneville, and the name is familiar, but I don’t know what films.

(And, I must confess again, I don’t think I’ve ever read an Iris Murdoch novel. But that will change.) Which should be the first?

mrssherlock · « **Reply #227 on:** June 16, 2009, 11:00:14 AM »

pedln: Internet Movie DataBase (IMDB) has a very nice searchable database. To see what movies Jim Broadbent was in see here:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000980/
This is one of my main sources, along with Fantastic Fiction and Wikipedia. It's fun while watching a movie to look at IMDB and learn about the location(s), anachronisms, etc. Sometimes I get an urge to see, say, all the movies Christopher Guest made so I look him up and then start ordering the novies from Netflix, another of my primary sources.

PatH · « **Reply #228 on:** June 16, 2009, 11:03:56 AM »

Pedln, I'm a rabid Harry Potter fan--I even stood in line at midnight for the last 3 books, along with the tired little kids and the excited teenagers. Do tell us how your marathon goes, and whether you get indigestion reading them close together. And if you don't already know it, don't let anyone tell you how the series ends. Of course a fanatic can pick holes in the movies, but they're very good. It fries me that the next one has been finished for some time and is being held back for reasons of commercial timing.

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #229 on:** June 16, 2009, 11:04:32 AM »

I think, but am not sure, that Jim Broadbent was in "In The Bedroom" with Sissy Spacek, and may have had a nomination for that role. Again, I THINK. I'm almost never SURE! lol

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #230 on:** June 16, 2009, 11:12:56 AM »

No, correcting myself, In the Bedroom was Tom Wilkinson. Another actor in supporting roles who is star quality!

pedln · « **Reply #231 on:** June 16, 2009, 07:43:41 PM »

Jackie, thanks for the link. I see Broadbent is in Vanity Fair -- which is on my shelf, still unseen, even tho I picked it up on sale about two years ago.

PatH, you were probably in line with my grandkids. I don't plan to read the Potters right now, but would like to see all the films in order. But have too many other books to read right now, what with the PBS Agatha Christie series coming up -- just picked up two from the library today. And also a couple Henning Mankells, but not the three Wallendars shown recently on PBS. My two Seattle grandkids have a very kind next door neighbor, a retired gentleman. When the last book came out he knew that they had only one copy between them and that one of the kids wanted to read it at sleep away camp. He lent them his copy, before he even had a chance to read it.

Babi · « **Reply #232 on:** June 17, 2009, 09:06:21 AM »

You'll have to form you own opinion, PEDLN, but I found the movie "Iris" to be most unpleasant and depressing. Then, reading one of her books, I found I didn't like that either.

Gumtree · « **Reply #233 on:** June 17, 2009, 10:46:57 AM »

I found the film Iris to be very moving and brilliantly acted. Of course the subject matter - a brilliant woman suffering with Alzheimer's Disease - was harrowing and unpleasant. I've read several of her books and find I sometimes have to work at the philosophy they embody but they are worth it in the end. She won many literary prizes for her work. One of my plans is to read all the fiction she wrote in the order she wrote them - but not this week

JoanP · « **Reply #234 on:** July 05, 2009, 01:30:30 PM »

You might want to look in on tonight's episode on PBS Masterpiece - A number of us are enjoying the comparison between Agathie Christie' novels and the film adaptations.

We're all looking forward to the new Miss Marple in Agatha Christie's Pocketful of Rye.- an all new production with a new Miss Marple. Here is an interview with Julia McKenzie, talking of her role as Miss Marple - If you are hard of hearing, you will probably have some trouble hearing it - her voice is quite soft - If you can turn up your audio, you will probably have to do so.

Interview with Julia McKenzie - Miss Marple

Join the discussion here in

PBS MASTERPIECE

pedln · « **Reply #235 on:** July 07, 2009, 02:16:57 PM »

I've got 'em set to record, Joan and am hoping there are no momentary power outages while I'm away from home. It'll be fun to compare Pocketful with the book, and I look forward to seeing a new Miss Marple.

Has anyone seen Jodi Picoult's MMy Sister's Keeper, which has just recently come out? What did you think of it? I havben't seen it yet.

Or, The Stoning of Soroya M I'm not sure of the details, but I think it's based on a journalist's porttrayal.

Babi · « **Reply #236 on:** July 08, 2009, 08:21:07 AM »

I haven't seen the movie, JOAN, but I did see an article the other day that the
family is greatly upset because the filmmakers changed the ending. Whatever that was.
Do you see a similarity between film writers and reporters. If you can't get a good quote...make one up? Whatever will sell.

pedln · « **Reply #237 on:** July 08, 2009, 05:46:25 PM »

Babi, are you saying tne Christie family was upset about the changes? That's surprising, because there have been so many changes and adaptations over the years. Look at what they did to the ones with Geraldine McEwan.

has anyone seen UP, an animated film by Pixar? I wasn't planning to, but after reading an article in the Seattle Times. There was an elderly (86 years) woman living in Ballard, what used to be the Scandinavian area of Seattle. All she wanted to do was live her life in her little house. And so, when the developers came she turned down their offers of $1 million, and stayed in her house while on three sides of her were built 5 story buildings. It became the Little House that Could. She had a good friend who did kind things for her and when she died her will bequeathed the house to him. Now the house has been sold to a man who has a motivational speaking business and he is going to raise the house up to the level of its surrounding buildings and will have his offices there with public access in the floors below.

In UP, the article stated, an old man tied balloons to his house, to keep it from the developers, and then floated away to adventures in other lands. Sounds like fun.

Babi · « **Reply #238 on:** July 09, 2009, 08:22:48 AM »

Oh, no, Pedln. I'm referring to the one you mentioned:

Quote

Has anyone seen Jodi Picoult's My Sister's Keeper, which has just recently come out? What did you think of it? I havben't seen it yet.

JoanP · « **Reply #239 on:** July 15, 2009, 08:54:31 AM »

Babi, Pedln - have you read the book? I've got about 100 pages left - cannot put it down. I'm told that those who didn't care for the way the book ended will like the movie ending better. Can't comment because I haven't finished the book yet. Must say, I can't put the thing down.

BUT - I do have to take care of business - and came in with this announcement this morning - Several months ago we had a vote for Individual Book Discussion Titles - and you all voted for Dickens' Mystery of Edwin Drood, which we hope to discuss in September - and Geraldine Brooks' People of the Book, which starts - TODAY!
Hope you didn't forget - we're waiting to hear what you think of Brooks' protagonist - Hanna Heath. If you haven't started the book yet, that's okay too. The author is travelling abroad on an international book tour this month, but promises to try to respond to your questions via email if she can. Please do come over and say hello -

People of the Book.

News:

Author Topic: Movies & Books Into Movies (Read 588669 times)