# Movies that diverged from the novel, but in a good way **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 14, 2004, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100 "2004-07-14T16:53:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tuco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tuco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuco)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2004, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/21 "2004-07-15T21:21:23Z")
> [@Spectre of Pithecanthropus](#): > > For instance, there’s no balloon scene in the novel _Around The World In 80 Days_, but no one can complain that they put the balloon scene in the movie, where they fly over the Alps. Besides being a breathtakingly beautiful sequence, it is so clearly in the spirit of Jules Verne that one wonders why he didn’t put it in the book. It wasn’t in the book because the challenge was to travel around the world in 80 days on land and sea, to go by air would be cheating. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2004, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/22 "2004-07-15T21:42:51Z")
**The Hunt for Red October** was changed slightly from the book in order to streamline the story. I think it worked pretty well. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2004, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/23 "2004-07-15T22:07:58Z")
**The Natural** improves on the book by making it a traditional, happy, including extensive fireworks Hollywood ending, instead of the depressingly realistic, all to true to life ending the novel has. Now that I think about it, the movie actually ends with a stupid scene where the guys are playing catch in a wheatfield, which is pretty stupid, given the fact that it is too easy to lose a baseball in the wheat that way, at least the way I play catch that is. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![GLWasteful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f05b48/32.png) [@GLWasteful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GLWasteful)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2004, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/24 "2004-07-15T22:12:17Z")
> [@zamboniracer](#): > > **The Natural** improves on the book by making it a traditional, happy, including extensive fireworks Hollywood ending, instead of the depressingly realistic, all to true to life ending the novel has. The movie improves on the book simply by making it accessible. Well, mostly. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/25 "2004-07-16T05:00:18Z")
_Hannibal_’s film adaptation had a much better ending than the book, although the book had a much better tone throughout. _A Clockwork Orange_: The movie omitted the coda of Alex, much later in life, having to face the ridiculousness of living as an arrested adolescent. I think Kubrick ended the story on a much stronger note. ---
**Author:** ![Soapbox\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Soapbox\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soapbox_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/26 "2004-07-16T05:40:10Z")
> [@Kilt-wearin' man](#): > > I’m opening myself up for abuse here, but… > > I thought that Peter Jackson did a good thing by having the Elves show up to bolster the defenses at Helm’s Deep in _The Two Towers_. When I read the books it didn’t make sense to me that the humans were doing all the fighting in the major battles - the elves and dwarves should have been in Rohan and Gondor helping hold back the forces of Mordor. The Elves were fighting their own battles, and even if a messenger had made it to Lorien to ask for help, there is no way in hell that the Elves would have been able to get to Helm’s Deep before the Orcs. But it’s all because Peter Jackson would rather show Man as being weak, and always being in need of rescuing. Seriously, read the books again and then watch the movies. In the books Men are strong and noble, ready to stand on their own and inherit Middle Earth for the new coming age. In the movies, they are weak little children who are fooling themselves by thinking they stand any kind of chance against Sauron. But no need to worry! The Elves will save us! And when they leave, we will have self-doubting Aragorn to rule us! :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/27 "2004-07-16T06:36:51Z")
> [@Krokodil](#): > > _A Clockwork Orange_: The movie omitted the coda of Alex, much later in life, having to face the ridiculousness of living as an arrested adolescent. I think Kubrick ended the story on a much stronger note. Actually, part of that is because Kubrick didn’t know about the last chapter. The American version of the book omitted the last chapter and that’s the version Kubrick read. He didn’t realize there was a final chapter until later. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/28 "2004-07-16T07:39:48Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > The third act of Nick Hornsby’s _About a Boy_ differed sharply in the movie version but for understandable reasons and it worked. In the book the final third revolves around an actual event from 1994, > > the suicide of Kurt Cobain and Ellie’s overreaction to same > > and while both sad and hysterically funny, it would forever consign the piece to that year. The movie ending, featuring > > Marcus & Will in the talent show > > wasn’t in the book at all but was faithful to the change in both the boy and the man (and still funny and sweet). I mentioned this myself in another recent book vs. movie thread. I personally prefered the movie’s version of events, but more importantly I think that bit of the book wouldn’t have translated well to the screen. The sequence of events was too lengthy and complicated and it focused too much on Ellie (who’s pretty minor in the movie) instead of Marcus. Also, the scene in the movie made better use of the strengths of the movie format by basing the situation more on sight and sound. > [@Krokodil](#): > > _A Clockwork Orange_: The movie omitted the coda of Alex, much later in life, having to face the ridiculousness of living as an arrested adolescent. I think Kubrick ended the story on a much stronger note. A stronger note and a more memorable ending to be sure, but I think one that contradicts the whole point of the story. I’d read the book long before seeing the movie, and after I saw the movie for the first time I turned to my friend and said “So, uh…is Kubrick’s take on this was that they were _right_ to brainwash Alex?” If he really was an irredeemably violent sociopath who would never reform, it’s hard to feel too bad about the whole mind-control experiement thing. If Alex was incapable of change on his own he didn’t really have much free will to violate, so it really would have been for the good of society to _force_ him to behave…just as the government claimed in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/29 "2004-07-16T11:35:42Z")
Among other major plot changes, in the '92 movie version of **Last of the Mohicans** , Hollywood introduced a love story between Hawkeye and Cora, which was non-existent in the book. And Cora bites the bullet while Alice lives. ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/30 "2004-07-16T13:38:20Z")
This will be met with numerous groans but: **Breakfast at Tiffanys** ---
**Author:** ![Kilt-wearin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/82dd89/32.png) [@Kilt-wearin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilt-wearin_man)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/31 "2004-07-16T13:51:40Z")
> [@Soapbox Monkey](#): > > The Elves were fighting their own battles, and even if a messenger had made it to Lorien to ask for help, there is no way in hell that the Elves would have been able to get to Helm’s Deep before the Orcs. But it’s all because Peter Jackson would rather show Man as being weak, and always being in need of rescuing. > > Seriously, read the books again and then watch the movies. In the books Men are strong and noble, ready to stand on their own and inherit Middle Earth for the new coming age. > > In the movies, they are weak little children who are fooling themselves by thinking they stand any kind of chance against Sauron. But no need to worry! The Elves will save us! And when they leave, we will have self-doubting Aragorn to rule us! :rolleyes: Yeah, it’s so much better when the elves are caught up in their own projects and are bored with Middle-earth now, “we’re going away, you humans can take care of Mordor all alone now, mmm-kay?” :dubious: Meanwhile, a total nutburger is Steward of Gondor and the Lord of Rohan is under the sway of a tool of the enemy…yeah, great time for the Elves to go off and do their own thing. I liked the cooperation better. Rather than having it mentioned in passing that the elves were fighting thier own battles, we had the elves showing up uninvited to help with a battle, practically demanding to take up their part of the ancient alliance. It felt right. No messenger was needed or mentioned - maybe Elrond is just one heck of a perceptive guy, and figured out part of Sauron and Sauruman’s strategy. I only wish a few legions of pissed off dwarves had shown up at some point. 😃 I do, however, wish that Tolkein had given the White Wizard of Isengard a name that was vastly different from that of the Lord of Mordor - it gets annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/32 "2004-07-16T19:17:47Z")
Quoth **Tuco** : > [@](#): > > It wasn’t in the book because the challenge was to travel around the world in 80 days on land and sea, to go by air would be cheating. Incorrect. In the book, Fogg et al consider taking a balloon for the last leg of the trip, over the Atlantic, but conclude that it’s too risky. All modes of transportation were fair game. But remember, at the time there was still no _powered_ air travel, so you were completely at the mercy of the winds. You can’t even tack, like you can with a sailing ship: Where the wind goes, there go you. I think that the movie included a balloon by way of conflating _Around the World in 80 Days_ with Verne’s first novel, _Six Weeks in a Balloon_, which is not read as much any more, but was very well-regarded at one time. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/33 "2004-07-16T20:11:46Z")
> [@](#): > > think that the movie included a balloon by way of conflating Around the World in 80 Days with Verne’s first novel, Six Weeks in a Balloon, which is not read as much any more, but was very well-regarded at one time. Michael Todd said that he did it in order to make the first leg visually interesting. The Verne Society, he said, gave him a medal. Certainly it’s in Verne’s style. He used a balloon not only in [B[Five Weeks in a Balloon\*\* (which was filmed shortly after ATWI80D), but in **The Mysterious Island** as well (ditto). I note that this is one of those things that, while _not_ in the original, has become iconic of it. My paperback edition of ATWI80D has a balloon on the cover, and I think ever film version since has a balloon in it. I wrote a “Teemings” piece on such things – it’s like Fu Manchu’s moustache (he doesn’t have one), or the Giant Octopus in 20,000 Leagues under the Sea (despite all filmed versions having one – or some other sea monster – not to mention a lot of film adaptations of Verne works having giant octopodes in them, he never had one in his books. Yes, I know there’s an octopus attack in the book – but read it closely again.) ---
**Author:** ![Soapbox\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Soapbox\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soapbox_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2004, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100/34 "2004-07-16T20:25:35Z")
> [@Kilt-wearin' man](#): > > Yeah, it’s so much better when the elves are caught up in their own projects and are bored with Middle-earth now, “we’re going away, you humans can take care of Mordor all alone now, mmm-kay?” :dubious: Meanwhile, a total nutburger is Steward of Gondor and the Lord of Rohan is under the sway of a tool of the enemy…yeah, great time for the Elves to go off and do their own thing. You don’t NEED Elves to help you when you have the confident Aragorn, who is the strongest man to walk Middle Earth since Elendil himself. Oh, not to mention that they had an angelic being (Gandalf, a former Maia) giving them council. The point of the Lord of the Rings is the inheritance of Middle Earth by Man. The power of the Elves has diminished and it is there time to leave. They can’t just hold Mankind’s hand forever. And clearly you haven’t read it in a long time if you think that Denethor was anywhere NEAR as big a nutcase in the book that he was portrayed to be in the movies. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-diverged-from-the-novel-but-in-a-good-way/255100.md?page=1)