Books to Film
Notable big-screen adaptations of staff favorites, with guest recommendations from our friends at Sleepy Hollow Cinema. Stop by Transom to browse our rotating display of BtF faves…and popcorn!
The Shining
You can’t talk about book-to-film adaptations without taking a meaningful pause at Stephen King’s classic tale of madness and supernatural mayhem, brought to life in vivid and disturbing detail by Stanley Kubrick. Diverse in their portrayals, but singular in their storytelling, this is a winning BtF combo that stands the test of time.
The Princess Bride
An absolute delight of goofy, indulgent high fantasy for genre fans and newcomers alike. The novel has all the charm and the best beats of the film, but with even more of William Goldman’s over-the-top storytelling and his quixotic book-within-a-book conceit. Watch the film first to get the iconic characters and scenes in your mind, and you’ll be doubly rewarded by the novel.
JAWS
If you’re sensing a horror theme, it’s not just because we love to read horror at Transom, but the visual, visceral, rapid-fire, no-frills nature of the horror genre translates so well to screen. JAWS is no exception. Though admittedly a better movie than a book, if you’re a fan of the film, or need something contentious to read at the beach, JAWS will sink its teeth into you.
Shy
One of the most recent additions to the list, the film was written by the author as a kind of companion to the book. Steve views the same story from a different lens, zooming out of the book’s surreal, minimalist fever-dream to focus on the heartbreaking struggle of the teachers who provide the scaffolding for Shy’s on-page story. An incredible combination, each with its own merit—but read the book first.
True Grit
The Cohen brothers risked a double-challenge with True Grit: adapt a near-perfect Charles Portis novel and improve upon a classic John Wayne shoot-’em-up. But in typical Cohen brothers fashion, their faithfulness to the source material brought this adaptation to a new level, presenting True Grit as a literary masterpiece first, and a Western second. Were this any other book, I’d say the movie was good enough to subsume the book, but Portis’ dialog is so snappy and so damned funny, the book is absolutely worth the read.
The Exorcist
I recently read this for the first time ever, and then re-watched the film for the first time in 25 years. It proves to be one of the most literal, shot-for-shot adaptations (mainly because Blatty wrote the script and produced the film), though I felt the film could have been an hour longer to retain all the incredible characterization, tension, and backstory from the book, which was surprisingly literary and emotive. This is a must-read/watch.
Erasure
Though released under a different title, American Fiction, the film adaptation of Pulitzer Prize-winning Percival Everett’s scathing satire loses absolutely none of the dry wit and gut-punching social commentary of the absolutely amazing novel.
No Country for Old Men
Joel and Ethan Cohen adapted Cormac McCarthy’s border-town thriller to the letter—anyone who had the luxury of reading the book first can attest that it felt like they’d already seen the film by the time it was released. But that’s no slight on the Cohens’ effort: bringing McCarthy’s picturesque descriptions of the American southwest is no easy task, nor is capturing the pace and sharpness of his dialog. Read it first, but watch the film soon after, and you’ll be doubly rewarded for the experience.
ABOUT SLEEPY HOLLOW CINEMA
A Home for Movies in Sleepy Hollow & Tarrytown
Sleepy Hollow Cinema is a new community-based nonprofit founded by local cinema fans with a shared mission: to create vibrant gathering spaces where residents can experience the power and art of film.