I just discovered Book Blogger Hop hosted by Ramblings of a Coffee Addict Writer and decided that I want to join in. It's a weekly meme where you answer the question of the week in a post, link it to the host, and visit other participants' answers.
This week (May 18th - 24th), the question is "What were your worst movies based off of books?"
I can immediately pull out from recent memory these two books that I liked, with film adaptations that I did not like:
The Girl on the Train
I don’t understand why they have to take the setting to America from the original U.K. setting but then cast Emily Blunt with a British accent who looks nothing like the frumpy Rachel in the book. The film was flat for me. It was not able to translate the suspense from the book’s bouncing timeline and shifting points of view.
Me Before You
I want to disclose that I am aware that there are criticisms about the the fair representation of disability in both the book and the film. As an able-bodied individual, I feel that it’s not my place to say anything about it but here’s a link coming from a voice involved in the community.
So on to something that I think I have a say about: Lou’s character. All that charm from Emilia Clarke cannot save what the film has done in reducing Lou into a manic pixie dream girl. The film omitted Lou’s flashback in Chapter 12 which is the reason why she became the adventure-averse person that she is in the present. “I can tell you the exact day I stopped being fearless.”, she said. Before that incident she was not the woman who is content on living a tiny life in her hometown. “And I had ideas. Things I wanted to do.” She even booked a cheap flight to Australia to try to discover the world but she later cancelled because of the incident. Because of this tiny omission, the Lou in the film appeared like a shallow quirky girl who only became remarkable because of her relationship with the quadriplegic, Will.
And then there’s this line from Lou’s sister in the film near the ending, "You were useless before you met him.” And then Lou just smiled at her as if in agreement. There was nothing like that scene in the book. This line made it so so much worse for Lou’s character. It basically made Lou’s existence incomplete and meaningless without Will.
