# What book would you make into a movie? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 17, 2008, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187 "2008-11-17T22:09:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/41 "2008-11-18T12:59:44Z")
•_Anno Dracula_ •_The Mad Scientists’ Club_ (Probably unfilmable, as a motion picture…besides, any screen depiction of Mammoth Falls just wouldn’t measure up to the vague picture I’ve had in my head since I was a kid…I think something close to the town from “Calvin and Hobbes,” crossed with the Gold Country) •_Paradise Lost_ ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/42 "2008-11-18T12:59:59Z")
_The Arsonist’s Guide to Writers’ Homes in New England_ by Brock Clarke. David Fincher could do this one. _Cat’s Cradle_ by Kurt Vonnegut, plus that one about the guy who befriends the billionaire woman and accidentally takes over the nation’s industries. (ETA: _Jailbird_, also by Kurt Vonnegut.) _The Stranger_ by Albert Camus could make a stunningly beautiful film, both visually and emotionally, but it would have to be French, IMO. Alternatively, it could be done by the folks who brought you _The Wackness_. And I think _The Culture of Fear_ by Barry Glassner can and should inspire a brilliant documentary, hopefully done after the Obama administration to take into account the progress we will (or will not?) have made re the subject matter. ETA: Somebody should really do _The Yellow Wallpaper_ right. Please, don’t let the BBC get their hands on this one! ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/43 "2008-11-18T13:12:29Z")
I’d like to make a do-over of _The Dark is Rising_, starting with one of the books that isn’t so cerebral. I think it’d make a good movie if done right, but I’d hook the kids into the franchise with the action packed misadventures of the Drew children, first. I’d also love to see a quality version of [del]My Little Pony Goes to War[/del] _Magic’s Pawn_ et al from Mercedes Lackey. Any of the sets, really, but The Last Herald Mage trilogy is my favorite. I wanna see me some luscious Tylendel on Vanyel action, baby! ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/44 "2008-11-18T13:39:58Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > I always thought Zalazny’s _Lord of Light_ would be cool, but I’m probably the only one. It is a complex book. I think it would be very difficult to do well. ---
**Author:** ![schnuckiputzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecb155/32.png) [@schnuckiputzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/schnuckiputzi)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/45 "2008-11-18T15:09:08Z")
> [@phouka](#): > > _Bride of the Rat God_ by Barbara Hambly. I am dead serious. > > Hollywood 1923, a silent movie vamp, a young English widow, a Jewish photographer, a Chinese sorcerer, and a cursed sacrificial necklace! > > What more could you want? EXACTLY! One of my favorites, from a favorite author. Or how about her Silicon Mage books? Combine magic and computers!! ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/46 "2008-11-18T15:16:41Z")
> [@Stauderhorse](#): > > Elie Wiesel’s _Night_. > > I can’t understand why it hasn’t been made into a movie, considering how widely it’s been read. Probably BECAUSE how widely it’s been read. :eek: I’m not sure how much box office the Holocaust can bring in. I read the book in college 20+ years ago & I still remember enough that I don’t have to re-read it. Great book! Just not one I want to keep returning to. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/47 "2008-11-18T15:37:58Z")
Ditto for- The ANNO DRACULA series. Btw, Google up a short story called “Tim Burton’s RED REIGN” for a fun look at a possible filming. ILLUMINATUS! OWEN MEANY WAR OF THE WORLDS- 1890s/1900s era (It was done but this time, do it good!) Ones not named yet- Bram Stoker’s DRACULA- and do the actual novel! Not a tragic/romantic mega-Freudian absinthe dream! (and I loved the Coppola version but it was NOT Bram Stoker’s story.) C.S. Lewis’s THE LAST BATTLE (Narnia VII), TILL WE HAVE FACES, PERELANDRA and THAT HIDEOUS STRENGTH (tho for the latter two, I guess they’ll have to make OUT OF THE SILENT PLANET). Brian Caldwell’s WE ALL FALL DOWN (the most horrifying Rapture novel ever written) Mark Rogers’ THE DEAD (the second most horrifying Rapture novel ever written) Alan Moore’s LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN Vol II- The LEG vs the HG Wells Martians (and Hyde vs Griffin :eek::eek::eek:) Kurt Vonnegut’s SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE - as good as the first one, a remake is needed- especially with Kilgore Trout. Also perhaps GOD BLESS YOU, MR. ROSEWATER. A BRIDE PREPARED- my own story about how Ioshua BarDavid and Maria Magdala conquered the Nephilim that afflicted her. A TASTE OF ETERNITY- also my own story- how a lunatic overcame his own personal AntiChrist, said lunatic being R. M. Renfield. Also, there was something else… an epic novel… probably needs a TV miniseries or 2 or 3 films to do it justice- written by a Russian woman… Alissa Rosenbaum, I think… Wish I could recall the title. ---
**Author:** ![Furious\_Marmot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dfb087/32.png) [@Furious\_Marmot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Furious_Marmot)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/48 "2008-11-18T16:17:30Z")
William Gibson’s Neuromancer. Reasonably compact, noir-ish plot, great visuals. A few thought-provoking bits. Done right, it could be so much better than the action-explosion crap that sci-fi generally gets turned into. I’ve thought about it for years and I’m convinced I could do it, even though I have absolutely no clue how to make a movie. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/49 "2008-11-18T16:20:13Z")
**Outlander** by Diana Gabaldon Kate Beckinsale in the lead. I just don’t know who to cast as Jamie. Gerard Butler as Dougal ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/50 "2008-11-18T16:22:27Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > I’d like to see a series based on Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch series, but based on what Eastwood did to _Blood Work_, I’m loathe to wish that on Connelly’s bread and butter character. Ack! What are you doing in my head? > [@squeegee](#): > > I always thought Zalazny’s _Lord of Light_ would be cool, but I’m probably the only one. Oh no! There’re two of you! ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/51 "2008-11-18T16:52:39Z")
Heinlein’s \*Time Enough for Love \*done as a movie trilogy. ---
**Author:** ![SuntanTigerTamer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e5b9ba/32.png) [@SuntanTigerTamer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanTigerTamer)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/52 "2008-11-18T19:45:47Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > Brian Caldwell’s WE ALL FALL DOWN (the most horrifying Rapture novel ever written) Eli Roth would HAVE to direct this. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/53 "2008-11-18T20:42:08Z")
I think Pixar could do a nice job visually on Watership Down, but it must not be made into or marketed as a cute funny bunny movie! ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/54 "2008-11-18T21:01:31Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I think Pixar could do a nice job visually on Watership Down, but it must not be made into or marketed as a cute funny bunny movie! I posted in the current thread about great book/movie combos that the 1978 \*Watership Down \*movie is very good and holds well to the darker themes and tone of the book. It is definitely not a cute funny bunny movie. But I agree it would be awesome to see a computer animated version that holds true to the book. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/55 "2008-11-18T21:15:22Z")
The Danny Dunn novels set as a series on Sci-Fi. Nine Princes in Amber. Emergence, by David R. Palmer. City of Gold and Lead, and the other books in the series. Watchmen, done as a 12-episode miniseries rather than the movie. I’m sure the movie will be cool, but I’d rather they took the time. Telempath, by Spider Robinson. ---
**Author:** ![Rapier42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/90db22/32.png) [@Rapier42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rapier42)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/56 "2008-11-18T21:45:06Z")
The Phoenix Legacy, by M.K. Wren. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/57 "2008-11-18T21:56:58Z")
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress would make a great movie done properly. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/58 "2008-11-19T00:19:33Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > A BRIDE PREPARED- my own story about how Ioshua BarDavid and Maria Magdala > conquered the Nephilim that afflicted her. How’d you ever come up with the main characters’ names? 😉 > [@FriarTed](#): > > A TASTE OF ETERNITY- also my own story- how a lunatic overcame his own personal AntiChrist, said lunatic being R. M. Renfield. That sounds fascinating, actually. Can I read it? > [@Furious\_Marmot](#): > > William Gibson’s Neuromancer. > > Reasonably compact, noir-ish plot, great visuals. A few thought-provoking bits. Done right, it could be so much better than the action-explosion crap that sci-fi generally gets turned into. So a remake of The Matrix, then? ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2008, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/59 "2008-11-20T14:10:38Z")
> [@Hostile\_Dialect](#): > > _The Arsonist’s Guide to Writers’ Homes in New England_ETA: Somebody should really do _The Yellow Wallpaper_ right. Please, don’t let the BBC get their hands on this one! Don’t know if this’ll make you happy or sad, but there’s [a new movie version](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0790788/) in the works. I think this is the third filmed version. I’ll have to look up that story. I remember finding it very creepy thirty years ago. ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2008, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187/60 "2008-11-20T18:51:25Z")
Another Barbara Hambly suggestion - _A Free Man of Color_. First, the setting would make anyone drool with anticipation - New Orleans during the 1830s. Second, the characters - a mix of African-American, Anglo-Irish, French, Spanish, Creole, and Kaintuck from every socio-economic level of the time. The demimonde of free colored women and the choices they had to make so their children could grow up free as well. The main character? Benjamin Janvier, 3/4’s African and dark as a Kenyan, a musician and a doctor. He can find work as the former, but not the latter. He has to find out who strangled the flower of the demimonde, a vicious, grasping woman, or he’s the one who’ll hang for her death. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-book-would-you-make-into-a-movie/473187.md?page=4)