“Why should I read the book if I already watched the movie?” This is a common question asked by a lot of people when told that they should read a book like Life of Pi, Ready Player One, any of the Harry Potter books or the Percy Jackson novels. It’s a “valid” question. I mean, what’s the point in reading a 300+ page book when you could watch a two hour movie and enjoy the same story with the main plot points? Well, in my opinion, there’s a lot of clear flaws in book-to-movie adaptations. Don’t get me wrong, some of them are excellent. But others fall short of being true adaptations, ruining the experience of the audience. So here’s some examples of good, and some examples of bad book-to-movie adaptations.

Good:

“Harry Potter”:

These movies are great. Of course, this is a common sentiment, but they especially soar as book-to-movie adaptations. Unfortunately, the filmmakers couldn’t include every single aspect from the novels, like Peeves the Poltergeist, and some are clearly not the best, like the Goblet of Fire movie, but they manage to bring the story of J.K. Rowling’s novels to the big screen in an engaging and faithful way, cementing it as one of the best book-to-movie adaptations. Fans of the books will not be disappointed by these if they somehow managed to avoid these films.

“The Hunger Games”:

Oh, “The Hunger Games.” The dystopian society crafted by Suzanne Collins captured the hearts of many readers, and Lionsgate succeeded in bringing these films to the silver screen faithfully and accurately. While yes, the films did cut minor characters, like Madge and Peeta’s family, the complex world and the domes in which the games are held are taken right out of the book and adapted to the screen precisely. Overall, these movies are great on their own and also stand as a good example of what a book-to-movie adaptation should be.

Bad:

“Artemis Fowl”:

The infamous “Artemis Fowl” movie serves as an example of what NOT to do when adapting a beloved book series into a movie. For starters, the writers changed Artemis’s character from a criminal mastermind antihero to a kid who only reacts to the actions of others, not doing anything to warrant the genius reputation of the book character. On top of that, they changed the ending to make Artemis look weaker, giving his big hero moment to another character. They changed several plot points, including how the whole story gets started, the relationship Artemis has with his parents, among other things. This movie was available on Disney+, but was removed in 2023. It currently has 1.3 stars on Letterboxd, showing fans do care if you absolutely butcher the story of a beloved book, and it serves as a cautionary tale.

“Percy Jackson and the Olympians”:

This is the one that makes me the most upset. I love the “Percy Jackson” series. I’ve read every book in the original series, the “Heroes of Olympus” series, and the “Trials of Apollo” series. The take on Greek mythology that Rick Riordan provides is so interesting and creative to me. Yet, the two movies based on “The Lightning Thief” and the “Sea of Monsters” missed the mark on what a good adaptation should be by an embarrassingly wide margin. First of all, the writers of the script ignored Rick Riordan’s comments and criticisms, aging the characters in the movie up and changing so many details and plot points that it doesn’t feel like Percy Jackson anymore. They change the entire story of the first book, making the main quest revolve around getting three pearls instead of going to the underworld to retrieve Zeus’s lightning bolt. They also change Hades to make him a villain, among other mind-boggling changes. These all add up to a movie that makes fans of the original story mad, and thankfully, the “Percy Jackson” series on Disney+ manages to pay more respect and attention to the source material, while also being engaging and entertaining.

So that was my two cents on these book-to-movie adaptations, highlighting which ones I thought were good, and which ones I thought sucked. Thank you for reading my ranting, and please, do yourself a favor and DON’T watch “Artemis Fowl” or “Percy Jackson” :).