# Movies that were better than books... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 14, 2010, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391 "2010-05-14T03:46:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/61 "2010-05-14T18:46:04Z")
> [@](#): > > League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, as bad as many consider it to be, is better than the graphic novel it was based on. Mina wasn’t even a vampire, ferchrissake. Quartermaine was an ugly old fart, and even so, he and Mina… I just… no. Are you being ironic here? Because if you’re serious we obviously live in two different worlds. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/62 "2010-05-14T20:19:05Z")
This is a great thread. So many posts I want to agree with (sorry for the unattributed quotes): “_ **The Day the Earth Stood Still** was better than the short story it was based on, Farewell to the Master by Harry Bates_” Far, far better than the story. It should go without saying that you mean the original movie. “\ ***No Country for Old Men** - Not because the book was bad, but because the movie is a masterpiece. The Coen brothers took a good story and brought it to another level. \*” Amen. “_ **Blade Runner** _” Top of my list. The book/story is vastly overrated, IMO. The movie is my all-time favorite SciFi, and one of my three or four favorites regardless of genre. “\ ***The Last Picture Show**. And the book was really, really good. \*” Yes. “\*I’ll confess to preferring the television version of **Shogun** to the book, although that opinion might change if I watched it again now. \*” Me too, and me too maybe too. My own contributions to “Movie Better”: **Paper Moon** is a delightful mini-masterpiece of a movie; **Addy Pray** is a very disappointing read. **Fail Safe** the book is more interesting, but the movie just works better. Earlier Mentions I disagree with: **The Shining**. The Shining is the only Steven King that really impressed me; specifically, it scared the living hell out of me like no other printed words ever have. For me, the movie was a dud. **One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest** One of my very favorite movies, one of the best ever made. But Kesey’s book is probably my all-time favorite book. As terrific as the movie is, the book is even better. And my own entry for Book better than the movie: **Deliverance**. Another great movie, but Dickey’s book is a revelation. His command of the written word is stunning. Thanks for listening. This is fun. . ---
**Author:** ![Kizarvexius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Kizarvexius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kizarvexius)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/63 "2010-05-14T20:20:33Z")
> [@ThePylon](#): > > **Patriot Games** > > Clancy’s great at the whiz-bang technical stuff, but the book had less than his usual fare and draaaaaaaged. Agreed. I came here to say the same about _Clear and Present Danger_. ---
**Author:** ![pohjonen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pohjonen/32/423_2.png) [@pohjonen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pohjonen)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/64 "2010-05-14T20:30:10Z")
Oh - I bought\*\* A Time To Kill \*\*based on liking the movie. I liked the movie a tad better. Of all the contributions thusfar, I think **Jaws** gets the prize. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/65 "2010-05-14T21:47:26Z")
Robert Bloch’s _Psycho_ is not a terrible novel by any stretch of the imagination - but I think most people would agree that the movie is _better._ ---
**Author:** ![powerjacob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f05b48/32.png) [@powerjacob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/powerjacob)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/66 "2010-05-14T21:50:59Z")
Some have been mentioned already, but _ **A River Runs Through It** _ was a better movie than the book. I kept falling asleep while trying to read it. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/67 "2010-05-14T22:18:32Z")
> [@powerjacob](#): > > Some have been mentioned already, but _ **A River Runs Through It** _ was a better movie than the book. I kept falling asleep while trying to read it. I wanted to like the book more than I did. I found the narrative hard to keep track of at times. Having now read the book, I think Pitt and Skerritt were perfectly cast (pun unintentional). . ---
**Author:** ![wedgehed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8edcca/32.png) [@wedgehed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wedgehed)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/68 "2010-05-14T23:03:58Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > I’ll confess to preferring the television version of **Shogun** to the book, although that opinion might change if I watched it again now. This is a tough one. I probably would not have read the book if I had not enjoyed the miniseries so much. When I read the book, I envisioned the characters just as they were in the miniseries. But, in the best way possible, the book gives you so much more than was possible for the miniseries. You might remember the scene where Mariko offers Blackthorne one or both of her ladies-in-waiting for sex. Blackthorne, being somewhat shocked & embarrassed, declines. Mariko then innocently asks if Blackthorne would prefer a boy. This sends him into a rage that shocks & embarrasses Mariko. On TV, this is pretty much how the scene ends. In the book, the scene continues from the point of view of the Japanese - they can’t figure out why he’s so angry. The samurai guard offers several pieces of “helpful” advice that adds fuel to fire. It’s really funny. The book is full of good stuff that didn’t make it to the screen: the killing of Ishido’s messenger, lots of pithy comments from Rodrigo, a whole lot of back-story, etc. I’ve read the book multiple times. ---
**Author:** ![Fair\_Rarity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fair_rarity/32/153_2.png) [@Fair\_Rarity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fair_Rarity)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/69 "2010-05-14T23:17:05Z")
Terms of Endearment. ---
**Author:** ![Maiira](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Maiira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maiira)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/70 "2010-05-15T05:41:33Z")
I’m going to agree with whoever said **American Psycho**. LOVED the movie, but couldn’t even finish the book, it got so distractingly ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![Grither](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grither/32/425_2.png) [@Grither](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grither)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/71 "2010-05-15T07:53:41Z")
The one I always call on when asked this question is The Wizard of Oz. The books were cute and all, but the film is a masterpiece. ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/72 "2010-05-15T08:30:59Z")
**Die Hard** is much better than the book that spawned it, **Nothing Lasts Forever**. **Trainspotting** works better in movie form. The book is… weird. I disagree about the Tom Clancy works. His books don’t translate well to film at all. Half the fun of reading them is the intricate details like the entire chapter in Sum of All Fears which describes what happens as a nuclear bomb is detonating in a process that takes an amount of time almost too small to measure. However, FWIW I think Teeth of the Tiger could be adapted into a good suspense movie because cutting it down to two hours would get rid of a lot of the filler (most of the book really) leaving us with several action scenes of two wisecracking Italian brothers jetting around Europe killing terrorists. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/73 "2010-05-15T09:52:39Z")
I haven’t read Pierre Boulle’s “Bridge on the River Kwai” in a long time but I preferred David Lean’s film ---
**Author:** ![wintertime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c68b51/32.png) [@wintertime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wintertime)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/74 "2010-05-15T12:31:45Z")
I agree with most movies mentioned here, though definitely not with _LotR_, _The Mist_ and _League of Extraordinary Gentlemen_ (the word “abomination” comes to mind). I wanted to add a) Sternberg’s _Der Blaue Engel_ (The Blue Angel); Mann’s book is a nice satire but the movie is an incredibly tense character study. b) _Jules et Jim_; Truffaut’s movie is a multilayered master piece, Roché’s novel is .. boring (had to read it for a seminar about the Nouvelle Vague). > [@Larry\_Mudd](#): > > Anthony Horowitz’ _Groosham Grange_ will likely never be adapted for film, because audiences would doubtlessly perceive it as an intolerable rip-off of _Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone_, although it was written ten years earlier and indeed won the _Prix Européen_ for children’s literature only four years before the publication of its poor imitator. Thank you. I mentioned this book in the earlier days of Rowling’s success on more than one occasion but had little success in convincing anyone to read it. ---
**Author:** ![Telperion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telperion/32/509_2.png) [@Telperion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperion)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/75 "2010-05-15T13:07:26Z")
I would put _The Abyss_ in this cathegory. It’s not a bad read, but the movie made the characters and environment come to life in a way the book didn’t quite manage to do. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/76 "2010-05-15T14:14:47Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > The winning answer: > > * * * > > The Shining\*\*\* … are you insane? The movie has the essential problem of being about a man who’s losing his mind… but for some reason cast Jack Nicholson, who has never in his life seemed sane to start with. The only tension in the movie is “when’s it gonna happen?” A really mediocre adaptation IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/77 "2010-05-15T14:20:42Z")
**The Green Mile** because of the cast… ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/78 "2010-05-15T14:43:30Z")
The Phantom of the Opera. Is the book a romance, detective, horror or mystery novel? ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/79 "2010-05-15T14:50:37Z")
> [@Jormungandr](#): > > “The Natural.” In the novel at the end is a combination of Casey at the Bat and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson. The movie had that amazing home run. The movie has grown on me–I really enjoy it now. But I was pissed at first with how they Hollywoodized the ending of a novel I loved. Malamud was writing a re-working of the tragic hero, ultimately defeated by his own fatal flaw, set in the modern world. Baseball replaced the mythic circumstance of this classic tale–his team, the Knights; his “sword,” Wonderboy; the Holy Grail of the pennant; are all references to one variation of this genre, the chivalrous, super-human heroes of Camelot. Malamud loosely used real-life people (Eddie Waitkus, Joe Jackson) and their experiences to make the story real without losing the link to the mythology he was referencing, while simultaneously examining its relevance to the present, and the conflict between myth and reality. The novel specifically owes allegiance to the tale of Sir Perceval and the Fisher King. I first read it in high school, and it was fun picking out the references to the mythology that Malamud was evoking, with our teacher’s help, of course. I’ve read it several times since. Anyway, the whole arc of Malamud’s story required Roy to fail at the end, the victim of his own fatal choices. So, when I first saw the film, my reaction to the ending was disgust–“Uh, guys, I think you _really_ missed the point.” I have since grown to enjoy the film for its own vision, but I still feel that way to a certain extent. The references and metaphors that the film co-opts don’t make sense, they aren’t cohesive, with a Hollywood ending where Redford hits one over the fence. I’ll just add that the novel is wonderfully written. So I will respectfully disagree that this is an example of a movie improving upon the book. ---
**Author:** ![banjopatterson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@banjopatterson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/banjopatterson)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391/80 "2010-05-15T15:09:07Z")
I don’t think I’ve seen a lot of movies I preferred to the book. Jaw’s would be one, some of Kings novellas maybe. I like sub-plots, movies, by limitations of time can’t have them all. Couldn’t believe it when Melony was left out of Cider House Rules. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-were-better-than-books/539391.md?page=5)