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The 300 is an example of a movie made from a book, a graphic novel, that I’ve heard some people say is better than the original novel it’s based on.  That doesn’t happen often (and is probably pretty debatable for the 300).  I can come up with a bunch of movies where the movie was as good as the book, but not that many where it was better.

With some thought, I came up with a short list of movies that I thought you could make a pretty good case for being better than the book that they came from.  Anyone else have any other ideas (or disagree with these)?

- Apocalypse Now
- High Fidelity
- Mary Poppins
- The Neverending Story
- A Room With a View
- Schindler’s List

I never read A Room with a View, but I read Maurice, which is by the same author, and I liked the book better.  Same with Howards End.  To be fair, I hate Merchant-Ivory movies.  It’s like they’re trying to bore you on purpose.

Your Pal Eric - 12 March 2007 04:24 PM

I never read A Room with a View, but I read Maurice, which is by the same author, and I liked the book better.  Same with Howards End.  To be fair, I hate Merchant-Ivory movies.  It’s like they’re trying to bore you on purpose.

I agree that Maurice and Howards End are better as books (although I loved both as movies).  With A Room With A View, I think the movie works better just because there’s a level of bitterness to the humor in the book that isn’t present in the movie, and I think the movie works better as a result (and would for most people).

Fight Club and The Hours...books so complex they came across better in “real life”.

HP I and II came across the same as the book I think.

HowTaoBrownCow - 12 March 2007 07:04 PM

Your Pal Eric - 12 March 2007 04:24 PM

I never read A Room with a View, but I read Maurice, which is by the same author, and I liked the book better.  Same with Howards End.  To be fair, I hate Merchant-Ivory movies.  It’s like they’re trying to bore you on purpose.

I agree that Maurice and Howards End are better as books (although I loved both as movies).  With A Room With A View, I think the movie works better just because there’s a level of bitterness to the humor in the book that isn’t present in the movie, and I think the movie works better as a result (and would for most people).

Also, you want to be reincarnated as Julian Sands’ underpants.

Your Pal Eric - 12 March 2007 09:11 PM

Also, you want to be reincarnated as Julian Sands’ underpants.

No way, man.  Are ya daft?

Rupert Graves, all the way!

American Psycho.  I think the book is a completely masturbatory piece of excrement (I really want to say shit here, can I say shit?) and a damned good argument for censorship.  The movie took the themes of the book (that are only there in the most ephemeral way, really) and fashioned a very black, very funny comedy.  Who knew that, under all the nail guns and vaginal mutilation, Ellis was trying to be funny?

Bladerunner is another example.  Not that the Dick story wasn’t good, but the movie was inspired.