Top Ten Tuesday

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday, brought to us by the Broke and the Bookish, asks us to list our Top Ten Best/Worst Movie Adaptations.  I must have a thing for blanking out bad movies (or maybe just bad things in general).  I'm sure there are bad adaptations of books I've read out there....but I can't think of one at the moment.  So here's my feel-good list of best adaptations.....




1. The African Queen

Katharine Hepburn is perfect as the proper British Missionary Rose Sayer thrown into contact with Humphrey Bogart's pragmatic, down-to-earth mechanic-cum-riverman, Charlie Allnutt.  And both Rosie and Charlie go through transformations on their journey down the river that might seem rushed in the hands of lesser actors.  The book allows for more time and description of the events and interactions that bring about the transformations--the film, of course, has to keep the action moving.



 

2. Around the World in 80 Days (Brosnan version)

Although I have a fondness for David Niven and his version of the Jules Verne classic, I have a passion for Pierce Brosnan. I love him as the proper English gentleman who has to keep his word on the bet. I also like the transformation he goes through as Princess Aouda influences his thinking.





3. The Great Train Robbery

The play between the Sean Connery & Donald Sutherland characters is great. This is an instance where I like the movie better than the book. And it's one of the few heist movies that I really like. Probably because it's set in the Victorian era.








4. War of the Worlds

This is one of my favorites by Wells. And I don't care how many times they remake it, you can't beat the 1953 version.







5. Hound of the Baskervilles (Jeremy Brett)

Much as I love the Basil Rathbone version which is actually true to period--unlike most of the Holmes movies with Rathbone, Jeremy Brett lived and breathed the essence of Holmes. He read the original stories and was a stickler for making sure the writers stayed true to the canon. Absolutely the best Holmes ever!





6. The Thin Man

I have to agree with Lady Scribbles on this one...the movie is absolutely better than the book. Myrna Loy and William Powell play Nick & Nora to perfection. And I love the screwball comedy. The series of movies gets a little out of control towards the end, but they're all fun.



7. Gone with the Wind

Love Vivien Leigh as Scarlett and Clark Gable as Rhett. She's feisty and determined. I just wish she'd figure out sooner who she really loves. Ashley is such a waste of her time....













8. Rebecca (1940)

Alfred Hitchcock certainly knew what he was doing with suspense. The casting is perfect. Dame Judith Anderson is wonderful as the woman you love to hate, Mrs. Danvers. I love the old classics.





9. Gettysburg (Killer Angels by Michael Shaara)

I'm not usually a war movie buff. There are just a few that I've seen that I actually like. I love this movie and have watched it over and over again. It would be worth it just for the visuals and the music. But I like the way it follows characters from both sides of the war. I enjoyed learning more about Joshua Chamberlain (one of my favorite personalities from the Civil War) and General John Buford. Two officers who made a difference by holding their ground when it counted.




10. The Maltese Falcon

I love it when a movie takes a genre I don't usually like (like private eye/hard-boiled) and turns it into something I like to watch. Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade--can't be beat!