Can you think of any movies that are better than the book they are based on?

[jakeofalltrades]

I think the hobbit movies are better than the book. the book was almost silly at times

[themomo84]

Schindler's List

[Electric_Dreams]

The Godfather (1972)

The Shining (1980)

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Rumble Fish (1983)

The Warriors (1979)

The trick is to watch films adapted from literature that are actually great, not just good. Sure it's relative but watch films with their own unique identity. A lot of films adapted from literature don't have much of an individual identity. They are quite generic.

These are all great source materials. Rumble Fish one of the greatest things I ever read but the film is one of the greatest films I've ever seen. It's Coppola, early '80s so still on it at that time. The thing about Coppola's Rumble Fish is that it stayed so wonderfully true to the source material. He took SE Hinton's fantastic novel, maintained the ultimate truth of the story and the characters, the dialogue is even mostly the same, he took SE Hinton's fantastic work and just visualised it. He didn't over adapt it, he didn't manipulate it. He just put the visuals with what was all ready there and it is such a powerfully visual film, despite being black and white. This for me has to be the greatest novel to screen ever. It helps that the novel is short.

I could talk about the others, but I talked enough about Rumble Fish I'm all talked out. Each of the novels I named has strengths over the film. The Godfather provides more background and context to the wealth of characters extending to smaller roles such as Sollozzo, McCloskey, Neri, Rocco, Brasi, which is satisfying.

The Shining novel allows greater depth and exploration of the Overlook Hotels identity, its history, its character as it is a character itself, and the people who are trapped there in one way or another. Much greater sense of mystery.

A Clockwork Orange has a more sensible, more justifiable resolution, whereas in the film the protagonist's journey appears to have been pointless in the end.

The Warriors is the same story but with different characters. Sure Lunkface becomes Ajax, Hinton becomes Rembrandt.. there are some characters in the film quite easily identifiable in the novel.. but truly it's only the core narrative which remains the same. The setting is literally the same (NYC), but it's not truly the same as in the novel it is the real NYC whereas in the film it is an imagined dystopian NYC absolutely overrun by eccentrically stylised street gangs. What is better about the novel is that it is more true, more brutally real and hard hitting. It is social realism whereas the film is much more subtextual and interpretive in that way.

.. all right I went and talked about all the others anyway. How then are the movies better than the books? Given that I've just named one thing better in each novel. Well, it's because the films are visual and audible, they take the great story and characters from the page and adapt them to the screen so tremendously well that each film has a uniquely stylised identity not so abundantly present in the source material. These films are immersive, because of how visually, aurally and atmospherically powerful and engaging they are. The Shining is a prime example. Sure the identity and the mystery of the Overlook Hotel is fascinating.. but Kubrick and his crew MADE the Overlook hotel, and filled it with the mysteries written in the novel. To actually see the eery corridors, little Danny riding around on his go-kart watching his dad gradually go insane. Sound and music are used tremendously well in this film too. Understated, not much obvious particularly music, but it's there, it contributes to the immersive atmosphere. Besides the novel cannot truly be better than the film because of how it ends. Silly Stephen King. Anything he wrote that has anything supernatural in the slightest in it, just goes over the top in third act.

[I_smell_Ducky]

how the grinch stole Christmas. The original cartoon. The only one that matters.

[Bishop-Brennan]

Any James bond movie. The books aren't exactly rubbish but nowhere close to the movies.

[humanearth]

War and peace and Schindler's List. Both books of these are so big that they take forever.

[Waffles731]

Jaws, the book is absolute shit and The Movie Jaws is one of the greatest films of all time.

[Royalsarcasist]

Harry Potter

[Dbdkfofnf]

The Shinning.

[MlleCake]

Practical Magic.

[Massageman]

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

[Iron_Man]

Jaws

?

[Dkc123]

It's kinda funny story.

[Anonymous]

Fight Club.