Films better than books

[jack]

There are some very good adaptions of books[1] (LOTR, Harry Potter, Titus Groan). Are there any canonical examples of films which were better, or different but good?[2]

I've heard suggested a number of Kubric, Stephen King, Philip K Dick examples, but none where I've experienced both. The Birds? Blade Runner? Total Recall? Shawshank Redeption? Carrie? I wouldn't know. Mostly I've seen and enjoyed the films, bar Carrie where I enjoyed the book.

Running Man, maybe. It was an acceptable but unexceptional but enjoyable action film, but changed beyond recognition from the book, which was a pretty good short story by King/Bachman.

Pirates of the Carribean won my award for "Most unlikely film that turned out to be pretty good", but I'm not sure an amusement park ride is a valid comparison.

I guess someone will bring up "Starship Troopers". I quite enjoyed the film in a mindless sort of way, but I'm assured by people who liked the books it's not so much different as directly antithetical propaganda, and I'm not sure if that counts.

Several people said "Clueless", but on the grounds of not liking Jane Austen at all.

Suggestions?

[1] Or comic strips, computer games, amusement park rides, etc.
[2] I'll spare your ears a description of, for instance, the fate in hell that awaits the adaptors of Wizard of Earthsea.

Comments

[mair_in_grenderich]

Does it count when the book was written after?

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

Um. I'd be inclined to count those separately. They *generally* are rather dodgy, but I can think of a number of very good Startrek & Dr Who novels for starters.

[fanf]

Bladerunner

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

You win the succinctity award. But I haven't read the book -- what would you say about it?

[fanf]

It's a short story, rather than a book, and more weird but less interesting than the film. One of the film's strengths is the way it connects its future to our present, whereas the story (like a lot of sf of that era) doesn't really. The film has a much more convincing picture of the ways in which the artificial animals are used. The main character in the story is a typically Dickian whiny introspective nobody; much more irritating than the film.

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

Thanks. OK, sounds like we have a strong contender :)

[yrieithydd.livejournal.com]

It's a short story, rather than a book,

I think this gives an advantage to a film adaptation. The trouble I have films of books is the fact that bits get left out. This is inevitable because a book is a lot longer than a film. It will be interesting to see how HP copes with the next books as they are so much longer than the first three and they made long films as it was.

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's a good point. Of course, *some* boils down well -- a lot of beautiful description converted to beautiful landscape takes up no time[1], but still.

[1] Unless you put in all into a character describing the scene. *that*'s a problem :)

[despotliz.livejournal.com]

I thought that Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep was a novel? Amazon suggests so.

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

I couldn't find a wordcount, but it seemed to be a 'novel' nebula-awards-wise, so 40k+. But that could be a slim novel.

[despotliz.livejournal.com]

Small novel, yes, but still a novel.

"Total Recall" is based on the PKD short story "We can remember is for you wholesale", about implanting false memories, and then runs off and adds in all this stuff about Mars and three-breasted women. Not a bad film, but not really like the short story.

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

I can see that's the sort of addition that really annoys me. And for god's sake, a machine that can aerate mars -- in minutes? But I did enjoy the film, so it seems a likely contender, subject to going and actually reading the book. PKD seems to get a *lot* of this.

[ewx.livejournal.com]

Yes.

[mobbsy.livejournal.com]

The best films seem to be original scripts rather than attempts to adapt a book, it doesn't surprise me that when works get moved from one medium to another they often suffer in the transition.

Then again, I haven't read the novels that films like "The Godfather", "Psycho" , "Metropolis" and "The Pianist" are based on (picking some good films from IMDB's top 100 that are based on novels). I've a far more literary taste in films than books, but I should probably find some of the novels to make the comparison. :-)

I enjoyed Tarkovsky's "Solaris" more than I did Lem's book. (I haven't seen Soderbergh's version).

"Trainspotting" is good as both a film and a novel

[mair_in_grenderich]

oh, I didn't like the book of trainspotting. Not sure I liked the film much either, but I found it "better".

[ewx.livejournal.com]

The film is one of my favourites. The book I remember liking though it was ages ago that I read it. There's a sequel, which was quite fun though a little sad in places.

[naath.livejournal.com]

I liked Clueless, it was silly and fun. I also like Emma. I don't know that the either was 'better'.