my top 5 movies, that are based on books

i like to read, and i like movies. and i quite enjoy movies that are based on books. there arnt many good ones, some of them totally ruined what they were trying to do, which is make the book come to life. one of those is The Ruins which came out i think in '06. It was ok, but it messed everything up that the book did so well. and there are also so many good ones, like the lord of the rings series (the greatest series of movies i have ever seem), stand by me which was a stephen king book, of mice and men, the Gary Sinise version. There are tons more, and i do like most of them that i have seen. So here is my top 5, (and these are all i have seen, there are lots of other good ones out there i am sure, but these are one that i have seen, and comics count also).

5. Lord of the Rings (series): by J.R.R Tolkien, directed by Peter Jackson
ok so this made a lot of guys careers. by that i mean, they were famous actors, but when i think of them i will always remember them for there role in this movie. Im sure most if not all of you have seen these movies. they are based on J.R.R Tolkien books, that were written back in the 50's, which isnt all that long ago. He said his insperation for the lord of the rings was beowulf, which is a great book, and you can sense a little influence in them. the films star Elijah Wood as Frodo (the hero of the books and movie), though in the movies, it doesnt make him to be a hero that much. they expained on his flaws so much, and i have only read a little of books so i dont know if it is the same. Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn. and Sean Astin as Samwise. and i think this was Seans best movies, yes Rudy was good, but he really seemed like a great actor in these movies. so now that i said that, heres my thoughts of the movies. They are good, Return of the King i think is the best in the series. and they are all very well acted, im really looking forward to Del Toros Hobbit movie, hes my favorite director so im stoked.

4.The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford: by Ron Hansen, directed by Andrew Dominik
im not a huge fan of westerns, i only like a hand full, and one of them will be coming up on the list. the assassination of jesse james by the coward robert ford is a long movie, close to 3hours. but i really never thought it was boring. its about Robert Ford (casey affleck) who becomes obsessed with Jesse James (brad pitt). he is constently trying to be in his gang, and to be close to him. it seems as if Robert was in some way in love with Jesse. but not in that way, more like he idolize him to the point of stalking maybe. this movie is extremely well acted, casey won best supporting actor for it. again i havnt read the book, but from what i have heard it is one of the most accurate books about Jesse James and Robert Ford. the obsession robert has with jesse leds to the very good ending. yes its long, but if you sit and just watch what is going on, you will see a great modern western.

3. 3:10 to Yuma by Elmore Leonard, directed by James Mangold
so heres the other western.  this isnt the 1957 version of Elmore Leonard's short story, the one i am talking about is the 2007 version. it stares Christian Bale (this is my favorite movie with him in it), as Dan Evens, a down on the luck farmer who cant pay his debt. and Russell Crowe as Ben Wade, a outlaw who is a badass. So basicly Ben Wade is captured, and no one will take him to his 3:10 to Yuma train. Dan Evens agrees to do it, he does it so he can pay his debt. as he goes along doing it, Wades gang tries to kill Evens and his group to get Wade back. after that, there is a good amount of action, some great shootouts, including the last scene which is done so well, and really shows the respect Evens has gotten from Wade. It ends with a big moral choice by Wade, and its good stuff. I really like the way it was shot, its dirty and grimmy, just like the west should be. while it tells a great story, it goes away from like The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford, which had no action, and 3:10 to Yuma has a far share of it.

2. Watchmen by Alan Moore, directed by Zack Snyder
so heres the first one on the list that i actually read. its about an alternate timeline, where masked men and woman fight crime. it takes place aroud the cold war. its about The Comedian (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), who was killed by someone, and that sparks Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) to reunite with his group to find out who is killing them off. its a very very deep comic and the movies does a great job with it. a ton of people said that it cant be made into a movie because of its complexity, but Zack Snyder does the best job with it then anyone could. he stays sooooo true with that comic. for about half of the 2:45 hour movie its almost word for word with the comic, and shows identical scenes as well. the acting is amazing as well, and Jackie Earle Haley better win an award of his role as Rorschach, no one could have done it better. and i think he makes Rorschach a more insane guy then Heath Ledger did with the Joker. the art style is fantastic, and i still think the ending of both are still chilling.

1. Gone Baby Gone by Dennis Lehane, directed by Ben Affleck
and here we are my favorite movie that was based on a book, and its Gone Baby Gone. Ben Afflecks directoral debut. and he does a great job, even if i hate him. but casey affleck is my favorite actor so i had to give it a look. and i was shocked. this is so well done, the acting is great. its great by Casey and its great all the way down to Edi Gathegi who plays a man named Cheese. so its about Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck) and his girlfriend Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan) who are kinda like detectives, they really dont go into detail about it, but they are called to look for a little girl who has went missing. Patrick is kinda a badass, he knows how to get info. but he is also a flawed character, he has morals, and those morals come in big time at the end of the movie. hes constently clashing with Detective Sergeant Remy Bressant (Ed Harris), says they are "kids playing cop". so in the end result, this movie has a great story that is told great, it really shows how peoples morals come through even in the worst of times. and probaby my favortie line from the movie, its what Cheese says when Patrick asks him if he has the kid, "I don't fuck with no kids. And if that girl only hope is you, well, I pray for her, because she's gone, baby. Gone." you gotta love when they use the title of the movie in the movie itself.

so thats my list, yes i know its a odd thing to write about, but most of my favorite movies are based on books, so id thought id share. and soon ill be writting a blog about my favorite movies, that arnt based on books.

thanks for reading
-trevor

i like to read, and i like movies. and i quite enjoy movies that are based on books. there arnt many good ones, some of them totally ruined what they were trying to do, which is make the book come to life. one of those is The Ruins which came out i think in '06. It was ok, but it messed everything up that the book did so well. and there are also so many good ones, like the lord of the rings series (the greatest series of movies i have ever seem), stand by me which was a stephen king book, of mice and men, the Gary Sinise version. There are tons more, and i do like most of them that i have seen. So here is my top 5, (and these are all i have seen, there are lots of other good ones out there i am sure, but these are one that i have seen, and comics count also).

5. Lord of the Rings (series): by J.R.R Tolkien, directed by Peter Jackson
ok so this made a lot of guys careers. by that i mean, they were famous actors, but when i think of them i will always remember them for there role in this movie. Im sure most if not all of you have seen these movies. they are based on J.R.R Tolkien books, that were written back in the 50's, which isnt all that long ago. He said his insperation for the lord of the rings was beowulf, which is a great book, and you can sense a little influence in them. the films star Elijah Wood as Frodo (the hero of the books and movie), though in the movies, it doesnt make him to be a hero that much. they expained on his flaws so much, and i have only read a little of books so i dont know if it is the same. Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn. and Sean Astin as Samwise. and i think this was Seans best movies, yes Rudy was good, but he really seemed like a great actor in these movies. so now that i said that, heres my thoughts of the movies. They are good, Return of the King i think is the best in the series. and they are all very well acted, im really looking forward to Del Toros Hobbit movie, hes my favorite director so im stoked.

4.The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford: by Ron Hansen, directed by Andrew Dominik
im not a huge fan of westerns, i only like a hand full, and one of them will be coming up on the list. the assassination of jesse james by the coward robert ford is a long movie, close to 3hours. but i really never thought it was boring. its about Robert Ford (casey affleck) who becomes obsessed with Jesse James (brad pitt). he is constently trying to be in his gang, and to be close to him. it seems as if Robert was in some way in love with Jesse. but not in that way, more like he idolize him to the point of stalking maybe. this movie is extremely well acted, casey won best supporting actor for it. again i havnt read the book, but from what i have heard it is one of the most accurate books about Jesse James and Robert Ford. the obsession robert has with jesse leds to the very good ending. yes its long, but if you sit and just watch what is going on, you will see a great modern western.

3. 3:10 to Yuma by Elmore Leonard, directed by James Mangold
so heres the other western.  this isnt the 1957 version of Elmore Leonard's short story, the one i am talking about is the 2007 version. it stares Christian Bale (this is my favorite movie with him in it), as Dan Evens, a down on the luck farmer who cant pay his debt. and Russell Crowe as Ben Wade, a outlaw who is a badass. So basicly Ben Wade is captured, and no one will take him to his 3:10 to Yuma train. Dan Evens agrees to do it, he does it so he can pay his debt. as he goes along doing it, Wades gang tries to kill Evens and his group to get Wade back. after that, there is a good amount of action, some great shootouts, including the last scene which is done so well, and really shows the respect Evens has gotten from Wade. It ends with a big moral choice by Wade, and its good stuff. I really like the way it was shot, its dirty and grimmy, just like the west should be. while it tells a great story, it goes away from like The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford, which had no action, and 3:10 to Yuma has a far share of it.

2. Watchmen by Alan Moore, directed by Zack Snyder
so heres the first one on the list that i actually read. its about an alternate timeline, where masked men and woman fight crime. it takes place aroud the cold war. its about The Comedian (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), who was killed by someone, and that sparks Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) to reunite with his group to find out who is killing them off. its a very very deep comic and the movies does a great job with it. a ton of people said that it cant be made into a movie because of its complexity, but Zack Snyder does the best job with it then anyone could. he stays sooooo true with that comic. for about half of the 2:45 hour movie its almost word for word with the comic, and shows identical scenes as well. the acting is amazing as well, and Jackie Earle Haley better win an award of his role as Rorschach, no one could have done it better. and i think he makes Rorschach a more insane guy then Heath Ledger did with the Joker. the art style is fantastic, and i still think the ending of both are still chilling.

1. Gone Baby Gone by Dennis Lehane, directed by Ben Affleck
and here we are my favorite movie that was based on a book, and its Gone Baby Gone. Ben Afflecks directoral debut. and he does a great job, even if i hate him. but casey affleck is my favorite actor so i had to give it a look. and i was shocked. this is so well done, the acting is great. its great by Casey and its great all the way down to Edi Gathegi who plays a man named Cheese. so its about Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck) and his girlfriend Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan) who are kinda like detectives, they really dont go into detail about it, but they are called to look for a little girl who has went missing. Patrick is kinda a badass, he knows how to get info. but he is also a flawed character, he has morals, and those morals come in big time at the end of the movie. hes constently clashing with Detective Sergeant Remy Bressant (Ed Harris), says they are "kids playing cop". so in the end result, this movie has a great story that is told great, it really shows how peoples morals come through even in the worst of times. and probaby my favortie line from the movie, its what Cheese says when Patrick asks him if he has the kid, "I don't fuck with no kids. And if that girl only hope is you, well, I pray for her, because she's gone, baby. Gone." you gotta love when they use the title of the movie in the movie itself.

so thats my list, yes i know its a odd thing to write about, but most of my favorite movies are based on books, so id thought id share. and soon ill be writting a blog about my favorite movies, that arnt based on books.

thanks for reading
-trevor

Watchmen and Gone Baby Gone are two of my favorite films of all time. Nice list.

No "no country for old men" or "There Will be blood"? Regardless, a very nice list. 

Hmm, those are some pretty good picks. I'm not a fan of the Lord of the Rings series but I did love 3:10 to Yuma. My favorites would probably be (in no particular order):
1. Let the Right One In (or Låt den rätte komma in)
2. Memoirs of a Geisha
3. A Clockwork Orange
4. The Shawshank Redemption
5. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

Wow, there are many to choose from.  Your list is pretty good, even if all the movies are pretty modern. I have a mix, honestly:

No Country For Old Men - A great film and it truly stuck very close to the source material. I loved the book, and this improved upon its grim setting and plot line in marvelous ways. A true shocker of a film, honestly.

Into the Wild - I am currently reading the book for a report but I have to say the movie improves on the book in many, many ways. The book is very interesting but it isn't a true, sprawling adventure as the movie is. Emile Hirsch did wonders in his role, and Sean Penn did some of his most impressive work yet as the director. Props to Eddie Vedder as well for the excellent soundtrack.

The Godfather - An obvious choice, and a smart one. I have never read the book, but it sounds like the movie (first one at least) stuck with a few of the story lines of the novel but strayed off when necessary. I like that in a good book to film adaptation. And, let's face it, The Godfather is beyond good. It's legendary.

One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest - This is my true, favorite film adaptation of a novel. The book is one of the best pieces of literature I have ever read, and the movie takes its cues from the source material but isn't afraid to make it's own with it. Jack Nicholson is perfect in his role of McMurphy, and Milos Forman did his best directing ever. The character of Cheswick (played by Sydney Lassick) remains one of the characters I really bonded to in a film, and his character is much better developed here than in the movie (SPOILER - they killed him off in the book! dumb idea). The climax of the film and the ultimate conclusion is probably my favorite ending....ever. McMurphy's final revolt and Bromden's triumphant escape kept me bolted to me seat both physically and emotionally until a few minutes into the credits. A damn fine movie, all in all.

A good list but in my opinion you missed something crucial:

To Kill a Mocking Bird. I don't think a list like this should be missing that. But that's just me.

"No "no country for old men" or "There Will be blood"? Regardless, a very nice list. 

I hope that "The Road" will be worthy of this list

"

1. Fight Club
2. The Prestige
3. The Neverending Story
4. The Fellowship of the Ring
5. The Phantom of the Opera (1933)

I forgot about Cuckoo's Nest and to Kill a Mocking Bird, by far two of the best books I've ever had to read for school.

"I forgot about Cuckoo's Nest and to Kill a Mocking Bird, by far two of the best books I've ever had to read for school."