It’s always very exciting when your favourite books are turned into movies or tv shows. However, it is hard to trust someone else with your favourite series of all time because they might mess it up.
And unfortunately, they can’t take every single thing out of that book. Especially if the book is 500 pages long. However, we can be fortunate and see our favourite books be turned into amazing adaptations.
This article will look into eight recent(ish) book to movie/series adaptions. Some are amazing, some are bad and some are just plain terrible.
Best – The Twilight Saga
If you’ve been living under a rock and don’t know about Twilight (books or movies) then you are missing out! Whilst everyone has their own opinions on the books, personally, I think they are great. Vampires and love stories? Always. Maybe that’s why shows like The Vampire Diaries have such a chokehold on everyone.
And in the movies? Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson? Absolutely. These two had amazing chemistry throughout the movies. And bonus the movies stick to the book really well. Of course not every little detail can be replicated (we’d all be at the cinema forever otherwise), but the producers really did the movies justice.
Furthermore, can we agree that the casting of Native Americans for the werewolf pack is spot on? Sometimes producers tend to ignore the heritage, something less seen today. However, the first Twilight movie was released in 2008, so quite a bit ago. Let’s hope that the Native American on-screen representation stays strong.
Worst – Percy Jackson and the Olympians
The fans of the book oh so wanted to love the movie. But it was just a flop let’s be honest! There is so much we could think of to list that’s kind of wrong with the movie but here are a few. This is no criticism of the actors themselves. As much as we wanted to have Logan Lerman as our Percy Jackson this was just not it. If you haven’t read the books (and you should), during book one Percy and Annabeth are meant to be 12 years old. But they looked about 16 or even older.
And none of the characters fit their book given description. Annabeth is supposed to have blonde hair, instead, her hair is brown? Black? Hard to tell. And all of a sudden she is blonde in the second movie.
Unfortunately for fans, this movie was not it. But Disney+ is trying again and we can be sure it will be epic. Fans simply cannot wait any longer.
Best – The Hunger Games (All three movies)
If you are looking for possibly the best book to movies then the Hunger Games movies are probably those. The whole casting was on point (well nearly Katniss should’ve had a bit more olive skin but we love Jennifer Lawrence so we forgive her). The plot stayed true to the books in all three of the movies.
The sets were amazing, and the directing was incredible. The movies reflected really well the splashy Capitol lifestyle compared to the grim reality of living in the districts and the games themselves. Fans are now hoping that The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is just as good. After all much of the same producing and directing team is coming back.
Worst – Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
If there was one Harry Potter movie that had to be singled out for being the worst it would have to be the Half-Blood Prince. The sixth movie in the franchise really let the fans down. The book is full of power, suspicion, and darkness. But the movie missed the mark on those key aspects.
It is possible that after having done five very nice movies the producers were a bit tired and wanted to give more to the final two instalments but it is no excuse. The movie felt like it was set in a high school with petty drama instead of the actual Harry Potter universe.
And they just butchered Harry and Ginny’s relationship. For this one stick to the books.
Best – To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
The first movie of the franchise is probably the best. Not that the other two are bad but the first one is really good. The movie is a near-perfect adaptation. Everything stayed true to what it was. And Noah Centineo and Lana Condor have the best chemistry. This was so good.
The only major change between the book and the movie is the choice of universities that Lara-Jean and Peter pick. In the movie, they are set at Stanford and NYU but in the book, they go to the University of North Carolina and the University of Virginia respectively.
Definitely not a disturbing change that’s for sure. Those three movies were so darn adorable.
Worst – The Mortal Instruments (TV series and movie)
Well, this is probably one of the worst books to screen adaptations to have ever hit the screens. And it had two chances. They tried, so hard but it was just a flop. The first movie, City of Bones, stars Lily Collins and Jamie Campbell as Clary and Jace. They were good that there is no doubt. But that movie just made no sense. And Clary is supposed to have red hair which was just the opposite. It is a shame, fans were really looking forward to getting this amazing series on the screen but it was a letdown.
And they tried again. Freeform picked up the books to adapt into series but they just made it worse. The first season was alright, with redhead Clary, a good resemblance to what you could imagine Jace to be like and the other characters of the books. However, at some point, everything went sideways.
The plot made no sense anymore and did not even stick to the books. Safe to say that fans were disappointed. After two failed attempts at adapting Cassandra Clare’s books to the screen, it’s best that they are left as books. No need to get fans’ hopes up.
Best – Little Women (2019)
A classic book and an incredible movie. Little Women has gotten quite a few adaptations (seven in total) over the years, but the 2019 one staring Saoirse Ronan, Florence Pugh, Emma Watson and Timothée Chalamet was on point. That movie by Greta Gerwing was simply a masterpiece.
The movie is so beautifully done, going back and forth between flashbacks and present times. The costumes are simply stunning and the acting is top-notch. There’s a reason the movie and its cast were nominated for so many awards during award seasons.
Gerwing adds her own little plot twist. Jo March is actually the author of the book Little Women. This movie brought tears to anyone who watched it. It was stunning.
Worst – Divergent
Now I’m very sorry to be ending on a negative note but Divergent really needs to be mentioned as one of the worst books to movie adaptations probably ever, or at least recently. The first movie was alright, well anything with Theo James is bound to be good. But then… came the second movie Allegiant and that was just downright bad. They still somehow continued the franchise with the release of Ascendant part one.
Those last few movies were so badly received that they just ended up cancelling the franchise altogether. Maybe not the best move but it would have flopped at the box office. Nothing from the books was respected. It’s a shame for the fans.