Book-to-movie adaptations are very difficult to execute, and some of the most hyped book movies completely dropped the ball. Books have long been a source of inspiration for films, with some of the greatest blockbusters getting their start as novels. While a lot of book adaptations are obscure, some popular novels have an audience long before they reach the screen.
This puts added pressure on the movie because viewers enter the theater with a lot of expectations. Though no book fan will ever be 100% satisfied with a cinematic adaptation, some projects do a decent job of boiling down their books into a film. Changes are a necessity in the process of shifting from page-to-screen, but they aren’t always welcome.
The worst book adaptations don’t just disappoint the readers, but fail to be compelling films too. That’s a ᴅᴇᴀᴅly situation for a piece of cinema because it appeals to nobody and does a disservice to its source material at the same time. Hype can make or break any movie, but the most anticipated book-to-movie adaptations couldn’t live up.
Ender’s Game (2013)
Orson Scott Card’s popular dystopian science fiction novel, Ender’s Game, is noted for its cerebral approach and complex characters. It took decades for a feature film to materialize, but when the Ender’s Game movie finally appeared, it was a hollow shell of the classic book. Gone was the heady themes, and in came copious action with no stakes.
The book’s commentary about PTSD and the dehumanizing effects of war is completely stripped away by the film’s screenplay, and the visuals do nothing to sell the story. With millions of readers excited to see Card’s world brought to life, Ender’s Game felt like a disaster. Middling reviews praised the film’s execution, but not much else.
Eragon (2006)
The Aughts were filled with book adaptations that tried to capture Harry Potter‘s popularity, and Eragon was one notable failure. Christopher Paolini’s young adult fantasy novel, Eragon, kicked off an epic cycle, but the film adaptation couldn’t capture the same spirit of adventure. In fact, it seemed as if the filmmakers skimmed the book before tossing it aside.
There are unfaithful adaptations, and then there’s Eragon. Once the basic premise is established, the movie goes off on its own tangent for its entire running time, and subjects the viewer to cheesy performances that make a mockery of Paolini’s rich world-building. It made enough money to be considered a modest success, but no sequel ever came.
Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010)
With Harry Potter riding off into the sunset soon, 2010 was the perfect time to release Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief. Unfortunately, the adaptation of the Rick Riordan bestseller made fundamental changes that undercut the purpose of the YA books. Making the characters 16 (instead of 12) might have made things easier, but it ruined the movie.
What The Lightning Thief also lacked was the same emotional depth as the book, and the dynamic between the heroes was empty. The movie falls in the awkward middle, where it keeps too much while also changing too much, so Riordan’s writing is totally lost. The sequel, Sea of Monsters, just got worse.
The Bonfire Of The Vanities (1990)
Tom Wolfe’s The Bonfire of the Vanities was one of the landmark literary achievements of the 1980s, but the 1990 film adaptation landed with a dull thud. Despite having Brian De Palma in the director’s chair, and a cast including Tom Hanks, Bruce Willis, and Melanie Griffith, The Bonfire of the Vanities was an unmitigated disaster.
Painfully unfunny, the movie ripped out all of the book’s teeth so that the witty satire was replaced with surface-level commentary. Unlike the book, the movie lacked a point of view, so the dark comedy was played way too straight for its own good. Instead of condemning the characters, the movie’s script inadvertently endorses them due to poor writing.
The Giver (2014)
In the crowded field of young adult dystopian literature, Lois Lowry’s The Giver stands head and shoulders above the rest. It took over 20 years for the subtle and scary book to get a film adaptation, and Hollywood sure did a number on its complex themes like freedom and choice. Too much gloss obscured the book’s message.
Despite following the structure of the book, the movie lacks the same atmosphere and weight as its literary counterpart. A competent cast is given a stock-standard script to work with, and the movie’s production design is unbelievably bland. The Giver isn’t the worst adaptation, but it neglects to be a good movie first and foremost.
A Wrinkle In Time (2018)
Disney has taken two stabs at Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time, and they’re both pretty bad. However, the 2018 theatrical film is much worse than its television counterpart because of the team behind the film, and its mᴀssive production budget. L’Engle’s brilliant ideas are usurped by uninspired design, and Disney’s fear of stepping on toes.
The book is undeniably political, but any messaging is thrown out in favor of a milquetoast product that can be sold to any market without ruffling too many feathers. Putting all that aside, A Wrinkle in Time is just a boring film all around, and completely wastes the talents of director Ava DuVernay and the cast.
The Dark Tower (2017)
Stephen King has seen his fair share of bad adaptations, but none fell so flat as the take on The Dark Tower. Loosely adapting books one and three, the 2017 film is also a pseudo-sequel to the entire book series. As if that muddled approach isn’t bad enough, the movie version completely misses the tone and style of King’s novels.
There are currently 8 novels in the Dark Tower series.
The casting is strong and some of the action is pretty exciting, but it feels like a generic action film and not the epic fantasy story it is meant to be. In an era of mᴀssive multimedia franchises, it’s surprising that The Dark Tower didn’t just adapt the first book, and set up potential sequels based on the others.
The Golden Compᴀss (2007)
The Golden Compᴀss is one of the most visible casualties of the Harry Potter craze, and it certainly fails to capture its source material. Philip Pullman’s young adult fantasy book is filled with commentary about religion and politics, while the 2007 movie excises all of those richer themes. This left the weaknesses of the book exposed.
Beneath the stunning visual effects and A-list cast, The Golden Compᴀss is a bland experience with little else to offer. Many of the book’s plot points were shifted around, or left for a sequel that never actually materialized. Despite its grandeur, The Golden Compᴀss feels incomplete, and is disappointing to book fans and casual moviegoers alike.
Mortal Engines (2018)
Philip Reeve’s Mortal Engines is one of the most beloved young adult books of the 21st century, so hopes were high for the movie. Sadly, the long-awaited adaptation wasn’t just a failure, but Mortal Engines went on to be one of the biggest box office bombs ever. Its success was never guaranteed, but it shouldn’t have flopped so hard.
The book’s steampunk premise is practically begging for a visually compelling film, but the 2018 movie is as middle-of-the-road as they come. On top of that, the screenplay is rigid and awkward, and much of the dialogue feels clichéd. General audiences clearly hated the film, and it was a slap in the face to dedicated readers too.
Artemis Fowl (2020)
After languishing in development hell for nearly 20 years, Disney finally released their adaptation of Artemis Fowl in 2020. Eoin Colfer’s book has been read by tons of youngsters since its publication in 2001, but the movie arrived with almost no fanfare. A straight-to-Disney+ release didn’t help, but Artemis Fowl is shockingly bad.
The book is not an easy product to adapt, but Disney’s unimaginative approach didn’t do justice to its mᴀssive budget. Director Keneth Branagh adds nothing to the finished film, and the script’s odd choices make changes for no apparent reason. Had the book-to-movie project been released in theaters, it probably would have been a notorious bomb.
