Top 5 best movie adaptations

Directors and screenwriters have long struggled to make the jump between books and the big screen, some movies have bridged this gap more gracefully than others. Whether it be a faithful retelling or a fresh take, here are some films that can both survive on their own merit and be an excellent companion to their source material.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy: Peter Jackson’s ambitious take on the War of The Ring epic cost an estimated $300 million in production alone. The trilogy has received 17 Academy Awards with “Return of the King” tying the record of 11 Oscars won by a single film. The “Lord of the Rings” marked a resurgence in the high fantasy genre and innovated in the fields of motion capture and visual effects. Hardcore fans were disappointed that film dealt with scale rather than detail. However in the eyes of critics and audiences alike the impressive set pieces made up for the omissions of some finer themes.

No Country for Old Men: While it may not be the most critically acclaimed work of author Cormac McCarthy, “No Country for Old Men” is regarded as the best of the many movies movie adaptations of his novels. The directing duo of the Coen Brothers pulled off a highly successful adaptation of this contemporary Western in their classic film noir style. The story of a twisting string of grisly murders after a drug deal gone wrong won four Academy Awards including best picture.

The Princess Bride: This movie is a quotable cult classic that is bookended by a Grandfather reading the book “The Princess Bride” to his grandson. The book “The Princess Bride” that the movie is based upon is a real book, which comedically purports itself to be an abridgment of “True Love and High Adventures”, a fictional book. The novels delightfully cynical take on fairy tales is expertly preserved through the films frame narrative.

The Shawshank Redemption: Dozens of movies based on the work of Stephen King have been released, in the opinion of King himself the 1994 adaptation of his short story “Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption” stands as one of the best. “The Shawshank Redemption” is the story of the deep friendship formed by two prisoners and how they handle life behind bars. The dialogue and the narration by Red, played by Morgan Freeman, both come off as exceptionally authentic and true to King’s writing.

Apocalypse Now: “Apocalypse Now” may not be directors Francis Ford Coppola’s most highly regarded literary adaptation, that would be “The Godfather”, however  “Apocalypse Now” transcends adaptation. Coppola takes Joseph Conrad’s 1899 novella “The Heart of Darkness” and re-imagines it in the Vietnam War. Instead of imperialism in the Congo the film addresses American interventionism. The movies scenes are expanded beyond the scope of the novel and the chaos of Vietnam is shot beautifully.