Movies Based on Books That I Have Read
by karink | created - 20 Oct 2010 | updated - 02 Dec 2014 | PublicHere is a list of movies based on books that I have both read the book AND watched the movie. For series, I'll just list one of the movies in the series. I'm missing quite a few in this list; I'll have to add them later.
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1. Pride & Prejudice (2005)
PG | 129 min | Drama, Romance
Sparks fly when spirited Elizabeth Bennet meets single, rich, and proud Mr. Darcy. But Mr. Darcy reluctantly finds himself falling in love with a woman beneath his class. Can each overcome their own pride and prejudice?
Director: Joe Wright | Stars: Keira Knightley, Matthew Macfadyen, Brenda Blethyn, Donald Sutherland
Votes: 330,485 | Gross: $38.41M
Rather embarrassingly, I didn't read this until after watching the movie.
2. Wonder Boys (2000)
R | 107 min | Comedy, Drama
An English Professor tries to deal with his wife leaving him, the arrival of his editor who has been waiting for his book for seven years, and the various problems that his friends and associates involve him in.
Director: Curtis Hanson | Stars: Michael Douglas, Tobey Maguire, Frances McDormand, Robert Downey Jr.
Votes: 66,586 | Gross: $19.39M
This is a rare example of where I actually liked the movie better than the book. The book is quite good, but I don't feel like you're missing anything by just watching the movie.
3. High Fidelity (2000)
R | 113 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
Rob, a record store owner and compulsive list maker, recounts his top five breakups, including the one in progress.
Director: Stephen Frears | Stars: John Cusack, Iben Hjejle, Todd Louiso, Jack Black
Votes: 189,702 | Gross: $27.29M
Great book, great movie. Slightly different feel to them, since the book takes place in England (and they make a lot of fun of Americans); whereas the movie takes place in the US.
4. Atonement (2007)
R | 123 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
Thirteen-year-old fledgling writer Briony Tallis irrevocably changes the course of several lives when she accuses her older sister's lover of a crime he did not commit.
Director: Joe Wright | Stars: Keira Knightley, James McAvoy, Brenda Blethyn, Saoirse Ronan
Votes: 299,701 | Gross: $50.93M
Tried to read the book before watching the movie, but could only get through the first 30 pages. Watched the movie, then tried reading the book again (once you get past the first 50 or so pages, the book is amazing). I think I lost a little bit of the effect because I knew the ending/twist, but knowing that made me notice a lot of the intricacies/details throughout that make this an amazing work of literature. Book is a must read.
5. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
PG | 142 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
Harry Potter, Ron and Hermione return to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for their third year of study, where they delve into the mystery surrounding an escaped prisoner who poses a dangerous threat to the young wizard.
Director: Alfonso Cuarón | Stars: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Richard Griffiths
Votes: 691,255 | Gross: $249.36M
Arguably the best movie of the series (at least of the 3 in the series that I've watched -- I know, I know). Should I even admit that I've only read up to book 4?
6. Fight Club (1999)
R | 139 min | Drama
An insomniac office worker and a devil-may-care soap maker form an underground fight club that evolves into much more.
Director: David Fincher | Stars: Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Meat Loaf, Zach Grenier
Votes: 2,322,265 | Gross: $37.03M
Read the book after watching the movie; ended up searching high and low for a used copy with a particularly good forward by Chuck Palahniuk. His non-fiction stories are almost (if not more so) fantastically disturbing and fascinating at the same time.
7. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)
PG-13 | 112 min | Biography, Drama
The true story of Elle editor Jean-Dominique Bauby who suffers a stroke and has to live with an almost totally paralyzed body; only his left eye isn't paralyzed.
Director: Julian Schnabel | Stars: Mathieu Amalric, Emmanuelle Seigner, Marie-Josée Croze, Anne Consigny
Votes: 110,419 | Gross: $5.99M
Amazing amazing amazing book. Equally impactful movie, but holding the book that Jean-Dominique Bauby wrote in such a laborious way is incredibly powerful.
8. Julie & Julia (2009)
PG-13 | 123 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
Julia Child's story of her start in the cooking profession is intertwined with blogger Julie Powell's 2002 challenge to cook all the recipes in Child's first book.
Director: Nora Ephron | Stars: Amy Adams, Meryl Streep, Chris Messina, Stanley Tucci
Votes: 128,826 | Gross: $94.13M
When I heard they were making a movie out of this book, I bought the book. It's a fun, quick read (probably pretty similar to Julie Powell's blog). The movie was pretty enjoyable too.
9. The Hours (2002)
PG-13 | 110 min | Drama, Romance
The story of how the novel "Mrs. Dalloway" affects three generations of women, all of whom, in one way or another, have had to deal with suicide in their lives.
Director: Stephen Daldry | Stars: Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, Stephen Dillane
Votes: 138,476 | Gross: $41.68M
As Liz Lemon says "Why did they call this movie The Hours when it feels so much longer? They should have called it 'The Weeks'!" The book is actually quite good and well-written; the movie lost a bit of that in translation and yes, does feel quite long.
10. Twilight (I) (2008)
PG-13 | 122 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
When Bella Swan moves to a small town in the Pacific Northwest, she falls in love with Edward Cullen, a mysterious classmate who reveals himself to be a 108-year-old vampire.
Director: Catherine Hardwicke | Stars: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Billy Burke, Sarah Clarke
Votes: 487,408 | Gross: $192.77M
I admit, I did read the first book in the Twilight series, and I've seen all three movies to date. I did not, however, continue reading the series. Instead, I read Lucy Kinsley's comic detailing the rest of the series. (Spoilers, of course.)
11. Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)
R | 97 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Bridget Jones is determined to improve herself while she looks for love in a year in which she keeps a personal diary.
Director: Sharon Maguire | Stars: Renée Zellweger, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant, Gemma Jones
Votes: 263,357 | Gross: $71.54M
A staple of the chick-lit genre. Book is great, movie is a guilty pleasure. (Don't read/watch the second in the series though, awful.)
12. The Client (1994)
PG-13 | 119 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A young boy who witnessed the suicide of a mafia lawyer hires an attorney to protect him when the District Attorney tries to use him to take down a mob family.
Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Susan Sarandon, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Renfro, Mary-Louise Parker
Votes: 73,631 | Gross: $92.12M
I do believe this is the only John Grisham book that I've ever read, but not the only movie based on his books that I've seen. I vaguely remember enjoying the book and the movie, but I'm hard pressed to remember any particular details (aside from the soda can incident). RIP Brad Renfro, though.
13. Jurassic Park (1993)
PG-13 | 127 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
A pragmatic paleontologist touring an almost complete theme park on an island in Central America is tasked with protecting a couple of kids after a power failure causes the park's cloned dinosaurs to run loose.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, Richard Attenborough
Votes: 1,066,554 | Gross: $402.45M
We watched this movie in the John Danz theater (now converted into a Barnes and Noble, I think), and I remember pulling my feet up off the floor when the raptor jumps up at Lex. It was also probably the most gruesome book that I'd ever read at that age.
14. The Virgin Suicides (1999)
R | 97 min | Drama, Romance
A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents in suburban Detroit in the mid 1970s.
Director: Sofia Coppola | Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett, James Woods, Kathleen Turner
Votes: 169,106 | Gross: $4.86M
The book is strange in that it is incredibly interesting to read, and yet when it's all over, you don't feel like anything happened (even though, as the title indicates, there are suicides). The movie is quite good, and quite a good adaptation.
15. The Shipping News (2001)
R | 111 min | Drama
An emotionally beaten man with his young daughter moves to his ancestral home in Newfoundland to reclaim his life.
Director: Lasse Hallström | Stars: Kevin Spacey, Julianne Moore, Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett
Votes: 33,919 | Gross: $11.43M
Amazing book. Strange, but pretty decent, movie. Annie Proulx really does her research when she writes a book -- and it shows. Kevin Spacey was fantastic (although I didn't imagine him as Quoyle when I read the book), and Cate Blanchett was powerful as Petal.
16. Eat Pray Love (2010)
PG-13 | 133 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A married woman realizes how unhappy her marriage really is, and that her life needs to go in a different direction. After a painful divorce, she takes off on a round-the-world journey to "find herself".
Director: Ryan Murphy | Stars: Julia Roberts, Javier Bardem, Richard Jenkins, Viola Davis
Votes: 105,846 | Gross: $80.57M
I just recently finished reading this (wasn't that inspired to read it until I heard it was being made into a movie); the Italy section was my favorite (both in the movie and the book). Julia Roberts was fantastic in the movie, although I felt that some of the more important bits of the book were left out. And, as Josh Brolin said in his interview with us, Billy Crudup's character was amazingly well performed.
17. The Golden Compass (2007)
PG-13 | 113 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
In a parallel universe, young Lyra Belacqua journeys to the far North to save her best friend and other kidnapped children from terrible experiments by a mysterious organization.
Director: Chris Weitz | Stars: Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Dakota Blue Richards, Ben Walker
Votes: 196,796 | Gross: $70.11M
I read both The Golden Compass and The Subtle Knife back in high school, before The Amber Spyglass was published. While I really enjoyed them, I had difficulty going back to read the third in the series, and I was rather disappointed with the movie of TGC.
18. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)
PG-13 | 112 min | Action, Comedy, Fantasy
In a magically realistic version of Toronto, a young man must defeat his new girlfriend's seven evil exes one by one in order to win her heart.
Director: Edgar Wright | Stars: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Anna Kendrick
Votes: 465,163 | Gross: $31.49M
Loved the movie, read the first comic. I haven't been inspired to read the rest yet, but my friend Lance told me that he was reading them very slowly in order to be able to enjoy them longer (and was a little distraught when he was finished).
19. The Accidental Tourist (1988)
PG | 121 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
An emotionally distant writer of travel guides must carry on with his life after his son is killed and his marriage crumbles.
Director: Lawrence Kasdan | Stars: William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, Geena Davis, Amy Wright
Votes: 17,270 | Gross: $32.63M
I remember reading the book, and I remember watching the movie, but I don't really remember much about either, except bits of plot and small details like the family never answering the phone. Probably worth another view, if not another read.
20. The Help (2011)
PG-13 | 146 min | Drama
An aspiring author during the civil rights movement of the 1960s decides to write a book detailing the African American maids' point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily basis.
Director: Tate Taylor | Stars: Viola Davis, Emma Stone, Octavia Spencer, Bryce Dallas Howard
Votes: 492,598 | Gross: $169.71M
Finished reading the book the day before I went to go see the movie, so I was intimately aware of what was changed in the adaptation. I can see why the changes were made in the movie, but the book paints a more complicated picture.
21. The Hedgehog (2009)
Unrated | 100 min | Drama
The life of a determined young girl is changed when she befriends her building's concierge, a solitary woman who is more than what she seems.
Director: Mona Achache | Stars: Josiane Balasko, Garance Le Guillermic, Togo Igawa, Anne Brochet
Votes: 9,761
The book is amazing -- highly recommended. It's marketed as YA, but there are very dense sections about philosophy that most teenagers I know wouldn't want to wade through. The movie is also quite good, and not nearly as dark as the plot summary makes it out to be.
22. Heart of Darkness (1993 TV Movie)
TV-14 | 100 min | Drama
A trading company manager travels up an African river to find a missing outpost head and discovers the depth of evil in humanity's soul.
Director: Nicolas Roeg | Stars: Tim Roth, John Malkovich, Isaach De Bankolé, James Fox
Votes: 2,102
Read the book in high school, watched the movie. Re-read the book a few years back. Despite some of the standard complaints about it, there are some really amazing passages in there.
23. About a Boy (2002)
PG-13 | 101 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Will, who attends single parent meetings to woo women, meets Marcus, a troubled 12-year-old boy. As they become friends, Will learns to be responsible while he helps Marcus with his studies.
Directors: Chris Weitz, Paul Weitz | Stars: Hugh Grant, Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, Sharon Small
Votes: 191,647 | Gross: $41.39M
Good soundtrack (Badly Drawn Boy), pretty good movie. I don't remember the book that well, but I'd say it was worth the read.
24. Hamlet (1996)
PG-13 | 242 min | Drama
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, returns home to find his father murdered and his mother remarrying the murderer, his uncle. Meanwhile, war is brewing.
Director: Kenneth Branagh | Stars: Kenneth Branagh, Julie Christie, Derek Jacobi, Kate Winslet
Votes: 40,044 | Gross: $4.41M
Saw this at the Guild 45th with my parents, complete with intermission. We had Spot Bagels from the Wallingford School House. Read the play in high school.
25. Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead (1990)
PG | 117 min | Comedy, Drama
Two minor characters from the play 'Hamlet' stumble around unaware of their scripted lives and unable to deviate from them.
Director: Tom Stoppard | Stars: Gary Oldman, Tim Roth, Richard Dreyfuss, Livio Badurina
Votes: 23,841 | Gross: $0.74M
Gary Oldman and Tim Roth, awesome.
26. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
Approved | 129 min | Crime, Drama
Atticus Finch, a widowed lawyer in Depression-era Alabama, defends a Black man against an undeserved rape charge, and tries to educate his young children against prejudice.
Director: Robert Mulligan | Stars: Gregory Peck, John Megna, Frank Overton, Rosemary Murphy
Votes: 332,746
27. Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
G | 100 min | Family, Fantasy, Musical
A poor but hopeful boy seeks one of the five coveted golden tickets that will send him on a tour of Willy Wonka's mysterious chocolate factory.
Director: Mel Stuart | Stars: Gene Wilder, Jack Albertson, Peter Ostrum, Roy Kinnear
Votes: 227,195 | Gross: $4.00M
Based on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (I was a huge Roald Dahl fan as a kid).
28. The Witches (1990)
PG | 91 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
A young boy stumbles onto a witch convention and must stop them, even after he has been turned into a mouse.
Director: Nicolas Roeg | Stars: Anjelica Huston, Mai Zetterling, Jasen Fisher, Rowan Atkinson
Votes: 54,638 | Gross: $10.36M
The movie is not great, but I would watch it over and over again because this was one of my favorite Roald Dahl books (the first one I ever read, in 3rd grade).
29. Coraline (2009)
PG | 100 min | Animation, Drama, Family
Wandering her rambling old house in her boring new town, an 11-year-old Coraline discovers a hidden door to a strangely idealized version of her life. In order to stay in the fantasy, she must make a frighteningly real sacrifice.
Director: Henry Selick | Stars: Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, John Hodgman, Jennifer Saunders
Votes: 263,621 | Gross: $75.29M
I wish I'd seen this in the theater in 3D because I hear it was fantastic. The movie was okay on DVD and the book was a little more creepy than I thought it'd be.
30. Something Borrowed (2011)
PG-13 | 112 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Friendships are tested and secrets come to the surface when terminally single Rachel falls for Dex, her best friend Darcy's fiancé.
Director: Luke Greenfield | Stars: Ginnifer Goodwin, Kate Hudson, Colin Egglesfield, John Krasinski
Votes: 65,233 | Gross: $39.05M
I do not know why I read this book -- someone must have recommended it as a quick fun read. It was pretty quick (vacation-style read), the movie was kind of meh.
31. Pay It Forward (2000)
PG-13 | 123 min | Drama
A young boy attempts to make the world a better place after his teacher gives him that chance.
Director: Mimi Leder | Stars: Kevin Spacey, Haley Joel Osment, Helen Hunt, Jay Mohr
Votes: 123,864 | Gross: $33.52M
It's been a while, but I seem to remember that in the book the character played by Kevin Spacey was black, and it was at least somewhat relevant to the plot, but I think they worked around it in the movie.
32. The Client (1994)
PG-13 | 119 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A young boy who witnessed the suicide of a mafia lawyer hires an attorney to protect him when the District Attorney tries to use him to take down a mob family.
Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Susan Sarandon, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Renfro, Mary-Louise Parker
Votes: 73,631 | Gross: $92.12M
Teeny tiny Brad Renfro! I think The Client was my favorite of the John Grisham book-turned-into-a-movie movies.
33. Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)
PG-13 | 100 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A young peasant maid working in the house of painter Johannes Vermeer becomes his talented assistant and the model for one of his most famous works.
Director: Peter Webber | Stars: Scarlett Johansson, Colin Firth, Tom Wilkinson, Judy Parfitt
Votes: 82,641 | Gross: $11.63M
34. In Her Shoes (2005)
PG-13 | 130 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Strait-laced Rose breaks off relations with her party girl sister, Maggie, over an indiscretion involving Rose's boyfriend. The chilly atmosphere is broken with the arrival of Ella, the grandmother neither sister knew existed.
Director: Curtis Hanson | Stars: Toni Collette, Cameron Diaz, Shirley MacLaine, Anson Mount
Votes: 65,060 | Gross: $32.88M
35. Holes (2003)
PG | 117 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A wrongfully convicted boy is sent to a brutal desert detention camp where he joins the job of digging holes for some mysterious reason.
Director: Andrew Davis | Stars: Shia LaBeouf, Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight, Tim Blake Nelson
Votes: 100,153 | Gross: $67.41M
I think I read this around the time when there was a big campaign going on like: "What if the whole world read the same book". The movie was okay.
36. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)
PG | 119 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Four best girlfriends hatch a plan to stay connected with one another as their lives start off in different directions: they pass around a pair of secondhand jeans that fits each of their bodies perfectly.
Director: Ken Kwapis | Stars: Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel, America Ferrera, Blake Lively
Votes: 65,004 | Gross: $39.01M
Yep. Silly, both book and movie. (And the sequel.)
37. Of Mice and Men (1992)
PG-13 | 115 min | Drama, Western
A nomadic farm worker looks after his dimwitted, gentle-giant friend during the Great Depression.
Director: Gary Sinise | Stars: John Malkovich, Gary Sinise, Ray Walston, Casey Siemaszko
Votes: 47,266 | Gross: $5.10M
38. James and the Giant Peach (1996)
PG | 79 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
An orphan who lives with his two cruel aunts befriends anthropomorphic bugs who live inside a giant peach, and they embark on a journey to New York City.
Director: Henry Selick | Stars: Paul Terry, Joanna Lumley, Pete Postlethwaite, Simon Callow
Votes: 73,983 | Gross: $28.93M
There are too many Roald Dahl books turned into movies, but yes. This is another one that I've read and seen.
39. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
PG-13 | 103 min | Drama
Charlie, a 15-year-old introvert, enters high school and is nervous about his new life. When he befriends his seniors, he learns to cope with his friend's suicide and his tumultuous past.
Director: Stephen Chbosky | Stars: Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, Paul Rudd
Votes: 547,758 | Gross: $17.74M
40. Pitch Perfect (2012)
PG-13 | 112 min | Comedy, Music, Romance
Beca, a freshman at Barden University, is cajoled into joining The Bellas, her school's all-girls singing group. Injecting some much needed energy into their repertoire, The Bellas take on their male rivals in a campus competition.
Director: Jason Moore | Stars: Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, Rebel Wilson, Anna Camp
Votes: 330,586 | Gross: $65.00M
41. Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
PG | 87 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
An urbane fox cannot resist returning to his farm raiding ways and then must help his community survive the farmers' retaliation.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman
Votes: 270,104 | Gross: $21.00M
42. Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
R | 122 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
After a stint in a mental institution, former teacher Pat Solitano moves back in with his parents and tries to reconcile with his ex-wife. Things get more challenging when Pat meets Tiffany, a mysterious girl with problems of her own.
Director: David O. Russell | Stars: Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver
Votes: 742,529 | Gross: $132.09M
43. The Romantics (2010)
PG-13 | 95 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Seven close friends reunite for the wedding of two of their friends. Problems arise because the bride and the maid of honor have had a long rivalry over the groom.
Director: Galt Niederhoffer | Stars: Katie Holmes, Anna Paquin, Josh Duhamel, Malin Akerman
Votes: 12,525 | Gross: $0.10M
44. Gone Girl (2014)
R | 149 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
With his wife's disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man sees the spotlight turned on him when it's suspected that he may not be innocent.
Director: David Fincher | Stars: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, Tyler Perry
Votes: 1,066,774 | Gross: $167.77M
45. The Hunger Games (2012)
PG-13 | 142 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Katniss Everdeen voluntarily takes her younger sister's place in the Hunger Games: a televised competition in which two teenagers from each of the twelve Districts of Panem are chosen at random to fight to the death.
Director: Gary Ross | Stars: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Stanley Tucci
Votes: 1,003,287 | Gross: $408.01M
46. Gossip Girl (2007–2012)
TV-14 | 42 min | Drama, Romance
Privileged teens living on the Upper East Side of New York can hide no secret from the ruthless blogger who is always watching.
Stars: Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Penn Badgley, Ed Westwick
Votes: 193,256
47. The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
PG-13 | 109 min | Comedy, Drama
A smart but sensible new graduate lands a job as an assistant to Miranda Priestly, the demanding editor-in-chief of a high fashion magazine.
Director: David Frankel | Stars: Anne Hathaway, Meryl Streep, Adrian Grenier, Emily Blunt
Votes: 466,686 | Gross: $124.74M
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