The problem with transferring good SF from the book to the screen is that, usually good SF involves thinking. Thinking doesn’t go over well in the movies or on TV. (Please feel free to correct me with your favorite movies that involve serious thinking…I’m sure they’re out there.) For a movie I fear the best we can do is a more sci-fi turn, with an interesting plot and colorful action. Three that haven’t been suggested yet:
1632 by Eric Flint. Lots of blood & thunder, special effects, and the costumes are straight off the rack in Hollywood. And hey, it might get people to thinking about history!
Hunting Party by Elizabeth Moon. Horses…in spaaaaaaaaaaace!
Any of the Hoka stories by Poul Anderson and Gordon Dickson. I would LOVE to see the hoka version of Return of the Jedi…
Wouldn’t have to be fixed on one side, LOTR bounces back and forth alot. If anything it should probably focus on inner sphere. The audience would probably have a much easier time associating with the inner sphere charachters anyway.
David Drake’s Hammer’s Slammers could make a kickass action movie, with giant hightech tanks and lots of political intrigue. Keith Laumer’s Retief stories could be made into a very funny scifi spoof of multiculturalism and diplomacy, but the script would have to be very carefully written.
Keith Laumer! Wonderful writer! Yes, the Retief series could be great, perhaps as a high budget TV series. His Lafayette O’Leary alternate world novels would also make fantastic movies.
A lot of Mike Resnick’s stuff could do well as film, I think. Santiago, for example. All those vivid, showy characters would film well, and there’s plenty of action.