Bad movie interpretations

pshrynk · 06-17-2008, 03:57 PM

So, what is, in your opinion, the worst movie interpretation of a book that you've come across?

Conversely, have you ever seen one where there was something gained in the translation?

I'll start: The worst disappointment I ever had was High Crusade. I believe the original was by Frederick Pohl about a group of Medieval warriors taking over a star empire by being just more clever and having more "warrior spirit."

The movie shared the title of the book and the fact that knights fought aliens. The rest sucked raw sewage.

Mindy · 06-17-2008, 04:17 PM

Clan of the Cave Bear, adaptation of Jean M. Auel's first Earth's Children book with Darryl Hannah. Oh dear. It was probably folly to even attempt it, but it was a poor effort nonetheless.

In contrast, Hitch Hiker's Guide, Memoirs of a Geisha and 'Golden Compass' (grrrr, just call it Northern Lights), some of my favourites, worked well as far as they followed the books but I felt they really lost it on the occasions where the deviated, presumably in an attempt to add 'excitement' or, more likely, more appealing to a wider audience.

101 Dalmations is a very disturbing book if you grew up with the Disney version. Probably true of a lot of Disney 'interpretations'. Give me the happy path any day.

Will doubtless think of others later.

vivaldirules · 06-17-2008, 04:20 PM

I predict this will be a very popular thread. I'll stand back and watch but want to throw in one early tidbit:

I loved the LOTR movies even though they were quite different from the books and many cool things were left out. Okay, stuphph happens, right?

tirsales · 06-17-2008, 04:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vivaldirules

I loved the LOTR movies even though they were quite different from the books and many cool things were left out.

Yeah, the LOTR movies have been fun. I love the books - they are among the best books I've ever read - but the movies are fun too.
I just dislike people watching the movie and believing they know LOTR afterwards.

MickeyC · 06-17-2008, 04:34 PM

Agree with Mindy re 'Hitchhikers Guide'. Would also add '2001 A Space Odyssey'. Okay, okay, I didn't understand the ending either but it was a lovely interpretation of the book.

DixieGal · 06-17-2008, 04:34 PM

Book AND Movie: Battlefield Earth.

Enough said.

pshrynk · 06-17-2008, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DixieGal

Book AND Movie: Battlefield Earth.

Enough said.

Well, that is yet another category of really bad movies that gained something in the translation.

spooky69 · 06-17-2008, 04:46 PM

They weren't bad, but the Lord of the Rings movies were not anywhere near as good as I thought they should be. They got some things almost exactly right, but the entire series made me feel like I was constantly being pushed along to the next plot point. For ~10 hours of movie, the non-action scenes felt very rushed to me. I also think it was a huge mistake to cast Liv Fucking Tyler, because even though she had the right look and did a decent job in the role, it's still Liv Fucking Tyler.
Another thing that bugged me were the changes they made to the plot. I can't fault them for leaving things out (like Tom Bombadil), and I know they need to make it movie-like, but changing the dynamic between Frodo/Sam/Gollum to create more drama was one thing that especially irked me...I think it irked this guy a little more, though.
Finally, and this is probably my biggest complaint (though one that's nobody's fault), is that if I went back and re-read the books now, I'd probably picture the people and scenes from the movie instead of the ones I created myself. Though a lot of the characters and scenery from the movie were almost exactly as I'd pictured them (thanks, in no small part, to Tolkein's "describe every blade of grass" style har har har), I'm actually pretty hesitant to see the new Hobbit movie since I'm worried it might spoil my own memories of the book.

Nate the great · 06-17-2008, 04:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DixieGal

Book AND Movie: Battlefield Earth.

Enough said.

This is a case of the movie being not quite so bad as the book.

I have a List:

Puppet Masters (should not have been attempted)
Starship Troopers (at least one person who worked on this had read the novel)
Sum of All Fears
Children of Men (bet you didn't know this was also a novel)

DixieGal · 06-17-2008, 04:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

Puppet Masters (should not have been attempted)
Starship Troopers (at least one person who worked on this had read the novel)
Sum of All Fears
Children of Men (bet you didn't know this was also a novel)

Oh, I'm gonna regret even reading this list! Puppet Masters is one of my first scifi experiences back in the elementary school library. The movie seemed to be made for pre-elementary level!

Elsi · 06-17-2008, 04:59 PM

Badly translated:

The Postman. The movie felt like "Dances with Wolves in an apocalyptic future".
Eragon. All special effects and the plot was ruined

pshrynk · 06-17-2008, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

This is a case of the movie being not quite so bad as the book.

I have a List:

Puppet Masters (should not have been attempted)
Starship Troopers (at least one person who worked on this had read the novel)
Sum of All Fears
Children of Men (bet you didn't know this was also a novel)

Ooh! Hadn't thought about PM and Troopers. Still, not as bad as the straight to video and should have been burned instead High Crusade. (IMHO)

Nate the great · 06-17-2008, 05:05 PM

The fourth Batman movie (with George Clooney as Batman). It was so bad, I had to leave before it was half done.

DixieGal · 06-17-2008, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pshrynk

Ooh! Hadn't thought about PM and Troopers. Still, not as bad as the straight to video and should have been burned instead High Crusade. (IMHO)

Crusader-type movies just always seem undercooked. Same for Arthurian-type movies. IMHO.

spooky69 · 06-17-2008, 05:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elsi

The Postman.

Yikes, that one really was shameful. I knew going in that the movie was supposed to be pretty bad, but I didn't expect that they'd find a way to remove all of the interesting plot points and any of the novelty, while at the same time deciding that the book only ended about halfway into the actual story. I mean, was there even a sequel to The Postman that they were basing it off of, or it was it just some script writer who decided to "punch up" the book by adding a non-existent second half?
As for Battlefield Earth, I watched it when I was about 15 and it didn't seem that bad (except for the off-kilter camera thing, which was ridiculous). I watched the Rifftrax version a couple of months ago and I now can't believe I gave that movie any sort of credit. I really do think John Travolta has a gift for playing an appropriate (a pretty important word) role convincingly, but this is one of the few times that somebody's acting has been so bad that I can barely believe I'm actually watching a real movie. I really like this line from the wikipedia article about the movie:
Travolta described the book in interviews as "like Pulp Fiction for the year 3000" and "like Star Wars, only better".

06-17-2008, 03:57 PM	#1
pshrynk Beepbeep n beebeep, yeah! Posts: 11,726 Karma: 8255450 Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: La Crosse, Wisconsin, aka America's IceBox Device: iThingie, KmkII, I miss Zelda!	Bad movie interpretations So, what is, in your opinion, the worst movie interpretation of a book that you've come across? Conversely, have you ever seen one where there was something gained in the translation? I'll start: The worst disappointment I ever had was High Crusade. I believe the original was by Frederick Pohl about a group of Medieval warriors taking over a star empire by being just more clever and having more "warrior spirit." The movie shared the title of the book and the fact that knights fought aliens. The rest sucked raw sewage.

06-17-2008, 04:59 PM	#11
Elsi Wizard Posts: 2,366 Karma: 12000 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Texas, USA Device: Kindle; Sony PRS 505; Blackberry 8700C	Badly translated: The Postman. The movie felt like "Dances with Wolves in an apocalyptic future". Eragon. All special effects and the plot was ruined Last edited by Elsi; 06-17-2008 at 05:02 PM.

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06-17-2008, 04:17 PM	#2
Mindy Away with the Faeries Posts: 483 Karma: 8459 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Edinburgh, Scotland Device: Sony PRS 650	Clan of the Cave Bear, adaptation of Jean M. Auel's first Earth's Children book with Darryl Hannah. Oh dear. It was probably folly to even attempt it, but it was a poor effort nonetheless. In contrast, Hitch Hiker's Guide, Memoirs of a Geisha and 'Golden Compass' (grrrr, just call it Northern Lights), some of my favourites, worked well as far as they followed the books but I felt they really lost it on the occasions where the deviated, presumably in an attempt to add 'excitement' or, more likely, more appealing to a wider audience. 101 Dalmations is a very disturbing book if you grew up with the Disney version. Probably true of a lot of Disney 'interpretations'. Give me the happy path any day. Will doubtless think of others later.

06-17-2008, 04:20 PM	#3
vivaldirules When's Doughnut Day? Posts: 10,059 Karma: 13675475 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Houston, TX, US Device: Sony PRS-505, iPad	I predict this will be a very popular thread. I'll stand back and watch but want to throw in one early tidbit: I loved the LOTR movies even though they were quite different from the books and many cool things were left out. Okay, stuphph happens, right?

06-17-2008, 04:34 PM	#5
MickeyC Grand Sorcerer Posts: 16,732 Karma: 12185114 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Florida Device: iPhone 6 plus, Sony T1, iPad 3	Agree with Mindy re 'Hitchhikers Guide'. Would also add '2001 A Space Odyssey'. Okay, okay, I didn't understand the ending either but it was a lovely interpretation of the book.

06-17-2008, 04:34 PM	#6
DixieGal Hi There! Posts: 7,473 Karma: 2930523 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ft Lauderdale Device: iPad	Book AND Movie: Battlefield Earth. Enough said.

06-17-2008, 04:46 PM	#8
spooky69 Stats: Posts: 233 Karma: 1189 Join Date: Nov 2007 Device: Sony PRS-505	They weren't bad, but the Lord of the Rings movies were not anywhere near as good as I thought they should be. They got some things almost exactly right, but the entire series made me feel like I was constantly being pushed along to the next plot point. For ~10 hours of movie, the non-action scenes felt very rushed to me. I also think it was a huge mistake to cast Liv Fucking Tyler, because even though she had the right look and did a decent job in the role, it's still Liv Fucking Tyler. Another thing that bugged me were the changes they made to the plot. I can't fault them for leaving things out (like Tom Bombadil), and I know they need to make it movie-like, but changing the dynamic between Frodo/Sam/Gollum to create more drama was one thing that especially irked me...I think it irked this guy a little more, though. Finally, and this is probably my biggest complaint (though one that's nobody's fault), is that if I went back and re-read the books now, I'd probably picture the people and scenes from the movie instead of the ones I created myself. Though a lot of the characters and scenery from the movie were almost exactly as I'd pictured them (thanks, in no small part, to Tolkein's "describe every blade of grass" style har har har), I'm actually pretty hesitant to see the new Hobbit movie since I'm worried it might spoil my own memories of the book.

06-17-2008, 05:05 PM	#13
Nate the great Sir Penguin of Edinburgh Posts: 12,375 Karma: 23555235 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: DC Metro area Device: Shake a stick plus 1	The fourth Batman movie (with George Clooney as Batman). It was so bad, I had to leave before it was half done.

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