Top Ten Best / Worst Movie Adaptation

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish

Hi!  I have to point out that I had a discussion post about this topic a while ago (you can find it here).  I'll try to expand on my previous choices, also this list includes only the movies for which I've read the book AND seen the movie.

BEST

The Hunger Games - It had a few differences (they always do!), but it was very similar to the books and SO good.

New Moon - I actually liked all the movies in the Twilight Saga with the exception of book #1.

Pride and Prejudice - the PBS version with Colin Firth is by favorite :)

Eat Pray Love - Pretty close to the real thing and besides I love Julia Roberts.

Harry Potter series - Again, there are some differences (some major), BUT I was amazed on how it capture the essence of the characters and the setting.  These characters and places came to life on the scree, just as I imagined them to be when I read the books.

WORST

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lighting Thief - I don't even know where to start on this one, they butchered this movie so bad... I promise that books are really good.

The Spiderwick Chronicles - Not sure they read the same book that I did...

A Walk to Remember - This was my first Nicholas Sparks' read and I cried by eyes out, so good and yet the movie was, hmm, not good.

Beastly - This movie was not horrible, but it really was almost nothing like the book though. 

Twilight - NOT like the book!  It got me reading the series, so I guess it accomplished its purpose. 

I watch a lot of movies, but I haven't read all the books they're based on, such as The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Gone with the Wind, Warm Bodies, Silver Lining Playbook, and so on...

What's in your Top Ten this week? 

Please note that I'm looking for a reviewer (information here).  Please help me spread the word!

Stacking the Shelves #45

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews in which we feature all the book goodness that we received, borrowed or purchased during the previous week. All links are to Goodreads.

Hi gorgeous people!  Another busy week comes to a close.  I'm looking forward to some relaxation today (Saturday) as I'm going to the Frederick Book Festival, other Maryland bloggers are going as well and it should be fun! I'm also counting the days until BEA (12?)  Below are the new beauties stacking my shelves this week:

Purchased (or Free) for Kindle 

The Kiss of a Stranger by Sarah M. Eden - I read two books from Sarah Eden in the past few months and I loved them both, I can't wait to read this one.

Drops of Gold by Sarah M. Eden - Ditto

The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard - I participated in the cover reveal for this book and it was a great deal for Kindle.

Gifts

My wonderful babies got me these for Mothers Day last week (do they know their mama or what?):

Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris - This is the last book of the Southern Vampire series and although I can't wait for the ending, I'm a little sad to see it go.

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey - I CANNOT wait to read this one. I'm such a big fan of his Monstrumologist series!

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare - Well, I haven't read these books yet, but now I have the trilogy :)

Hunger Games Bookmark

Also from hubby I got these two movies based on books:

Safe Heaven

Silver Linings Playbook - I saw this one already and it was awesome!

I also purchased some books to get them signed at the book fair, but I'll share those with you next week :)

What's stacking your shelves this week?

Review: Movies I’ve Watched Recently

Hi gorgeous people!  I usually don’t review movies in the blog, but I've seen some really good movies lately that I want to share with all of you.

The Last Song – I’ve read my share of Nicholas Spark’s books and I have to confess to crying in every single one of them.  No kidding, I don’t know how he manages to bring tragedy or death to each plot and I still makes me want to read his books and watch his movies.  Well, I hadn’t watched this one because I wasn’t too crazy about the lead actress, but I was actually good.  I haven’t read the book, so I have nothing to compare it to, which might be a good thing.  I enjoyed the romance and I appreciate that there wasn’t a love triangle to deal with.  Did I cry?  Of course I did!

The Help – I am ashamed to say that I never read the book or watch the movie.  Hubby gifted this movie to me this Christmas and I don’t know why it took so long for me to watch it.  You know that you’ve watched something great when it sticks with you for days and days after the ending. That’s how I felt with this movie.  The plot was heartbreaking and bittersweet and the acting was sublime.  It definitely deserved all the hype it got at the Oscars a couple of years ago.  

Lincoln – Hubby and I went to see this one a few weeks back and it was good. Now, don’t think that this one was a light movie, not at all.  This movie is long, but it didn’t feel too long because I was fascinated.  Daniel Day-Lewis is an amazing actor and it deserves all the nominations and award that it got.  I’ve always liked history and time period movies (and documentaries), so this one was right up my alley.

Skyfall - I haven’t always been a James Bond fan, but rather started watching these movies when Pierce Brosnan became the handsome British spy.  I have to say that Daniel Craig makes an awesome spy and it’s one of my favorites.  This movie was amazing.  It’s dark, but not as bad as his previous two.  It’s packed with action, but also with the realization that both “M” and James are getting old.  Javier Bardiem is a really good bad guy; he’s demented, crazy, evil and has a private vendetta that knows no bounds.  We also get to see a little bit of James’ past, and I love that.  Oh, and of course the song is awesome!

Lincoln, Vampire Slayer – Again, I have to start by saying that I haven’t read this book.  I do have it because my cousin’s wife recommended it to me, but never got to it.  Of course, this is a fictional movie based on Lincoln’s life, but still it was fascinating. 

Warm Bodies – Lastly, I ‘A’, ‘B’ and I went to see Warm Bodies yesterday.  This was a really cute movie and very different to other ‘zombie’ movies, series, or books.  How? You might ask… well, it starts eight years after the zombie apocalypse and it focuses on the cure, rather than on the killing.  It’s more positive and I can’t help but love it!

I might be doing this more often, since hubby loves movies (not all of them are my cup of tea though), but if he can watch a chick flick with me I certainly can watch a bloody movie, it’s all about compromise :)

Have you watch any of these?  Have you read the books that some of these were based on?  Are you a fan of Nicholas Sparks?  James Bond?  A history buff? 

Discussion: What's the Best Movie/Book Adaptation?

Have you seen The Hunger Games movie?  ‘A’ and I did the day it came out in the States and we loved it.  I have seen quite a few posts about the movie and how some, like me, really loved it and how some others were disappointed.   

I started thinking about other movie adaptations that I enjoyed and some that I didn’t.  So here is my list of best and worst. I limited the list to books I’ve read, please don’t hate me if I didn’t add Lord of the Rings, for example, since I haven’t read the books .  Please chime in with your nominations.

Best:

Harry Potter Series – Yes, there are some discrepancies between the books and the movies, but aren’t they grand?  When I saw the first movie I was amazed on how things looked exactly like I imagined, from Hagrid to Harry to the Tolls and Hogwarts, I loved it all!

Pride & Prejudice – I love the BBS adaptation (yes, the one with Colin Firth *swoon*)

New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn (Part I) – I love the Twilight Saga and couldn’t be more happy with these movies.  Yes, a little more action was added, but they are very similar to the books.

The Huger Games – Love it!  See above J
 

Worst:

Percy Jackson and The Lighting Thief – I don’t even know where to start on this one!  I really like the series and this movie was just painful to watch.

Twilight – Now, don’t start screaming at the computer.  As you can see above I really love the Saga, but this movie is so different from the book that it’s a wonder that it did so well in the theater. 

The Spiderwick Chronicles – What on Earth was that?  I don’t even know if we read the same book!

The Opposite:

What I mean is that sometimes a movie turns out better than the book and I have one of these:  I Am Number Four – I like the movie better than the book (I still love the book though!)

What about you?  What are your favorite and your worst movie adaptations?