New movies based on beloved books. 2009 didn't disappoint with Time Traveler's Wife, Benjamin Button, Marley and Me and Harry Potter. Of course they could have been WAY better but they were as good as I would have hoped for an adaptation. And Flash Forward is coming to TV as part of the Fall lineup.
So here goes for the future. Can't wait...
Ramona and Beezus by Beverly Cleary who is also co-writing the screen play. This was my absolute favorite book as a kid. I read every book Mrs. Cleary wrote, several times. I'm a little concerned about the casting for Romana and Beezus and unknown director Elizabeth Allen, but maybe they'll surprise me. Release date March 19, 2010. Hopefully this will be a great birthday gift. Hmmmm, at almost 2-years-old will Arin be old enough for this? Probably not screen worthy but damn I'm going to try if the commercials look even half way decent.
Water for Elephants. IMDB has this as still in development but with a release date of 2010. This book rocked. Doesn't happen very often that a book has a great pace, great characters and a decent story. And the ending rocks too. Can't wait to see who will be in the movie. Hoping it's screen worth because of the larger than life circus scenes.
Eat, Pray, Love based on the memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert. Great casting. Julia Roberts as Elizabeth. Also has great actors Richard Jenkins, Billy Crudup and maybe James Franco. Director Ryan Murphy. Probably a wait for Netflix.
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Lovely BonesBased on the book by Alice Sebold.
Directed by Peter Jackson who of course did LOTR and King Kong.
About a murdered 14 year old girl who recalls what happened from Heaven, as the incident affects those around her.
Prediction: should be very good with Jackson directing.
Peace Like a River(Without a director or actors, I'm willing to bet the release date pushes.)
Based on the book by Leif Enger.No director.Billy Bob Thorton may have been cast to play the Dad. A family tries to find their son after he is found guilty of murdering 2 bad guys who had been threatening them.Prediction: could be even better than the book.
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & ClayBased on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Michael Chabon.
Directed by Stephen Daldry who did Billy Elliot and The Hours.
The film takes place in 1930s New York and is about two young cousins who create a comic book superhero named The Escapist, who "roams the globe, performing amazing feats and coming to the aid of those who languish in tyranny's chains!" The boys help usher in the golden age of comics, and through the years, The Escapist encounters adversaries similar to real-life figures.Prediction: will have to work hard to beat the book.
The History of LoveBased on the book by Nicole Krauss.
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón who directed Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban andY tu mamá también and Children of Men. See The Memory of Running below.
A long-lost book mysteriously reappears and connects an old man searching for his son with a girl seeking a cure for her mother's loneliness.
Prediction: With Cuarón directing the movie could be as great as the book, which was an excellent read.
The Memory of RunningBased on the book by Ron McLarty.
Also directed by Alfonso Cuarón who directed Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Y tu mamá también and Children of Men. See History of Love above.
Follows an obese Vietnam vet who, still reeling from the death of his parents, finds out his sister has died in Los Angeles. He sets out on a cross-country trip on his bicycle in a bid to reclaim her body.
Prediction: Again with Cuarón directing this could be really good. Casting and screenplay are critical to capture the book's characters. This was also a decent read.
Fahrenheit 451 (must read first!)
Based on the Ray Bradbury novel.
Simply put, 451 degrees Fahrenheit is the temperature at which paper burns. In this grim look at a fascist future, firemen have taken on a new duty of starting fires as well as putting them out (complete with flame throwers), specifically with the task of burning all books, as way of suppressing independent thought and action in the public. The film's story centers around a young fireman, Guy Montag, who finds himself questioning his job, even as he encounters a beautiful young woman, and learns about an underground of rebels who each memorize the entire contents of a book, so that they can preserve it even without the use of paper.
2010Harry Potter and the Dealthly HallowsBased on the very famous books by J.K. Rowling.
The last one to end the series.
Prediction: will be as great if not better than the others; sad to see it all end.
???No mention, but these books would make outstanding movies.
Digging to AmericaBy Anne Tyler about 2 couples who meet at the Baltimore airport for the arrival of the babies they adopted from Korea. The 2 couples stay in touch and follow the families as they gather throughout the years as the girls get older. This was a great book.
The Fugitive GameBy Jonathan Littman about Kevin Mitnick the legendary hacker who broke into corporate computer systems and stole source code to satisfy his curiosity never intending harm. After a well-publicized pursuit that made him notorious, the FBI arrested Mitnick in 1995 and today helps companies protect themselves from guys like him.
Flashforward - coming to TV this Fall
By Robert J. Sawyer. What would you do if you got a glimpse of your future and it looked bleak? Try to change things, or accept that the future is unchangeable and make the best of it? A group of physicists accidentally induce a consciousness shift that flashes everyone on Earth forward 21 years, experiencing several minutes of the future. But while everyone is out of their minds, their bodies drop unconscious; then the world reawakens to what happened as a result of those few minutes. Great story that keeps you guessing until the end. One of my favorite books.
Confessions of a Jane Austen AddictBy Laurie Viera Rigler
Decent read and would make a good movie. I only hope they don't cast Keira Knightley or Reese Witherspoon.
The New YorkersBy Cathleen Schine
You don't have to like dogs to like this book which would make a really good movie.
