I Rank Popular Book to Film Adaptations

We meet again!

I hope that everyone's October's have been treating them splendidly. I was brainstorming fun posts and thought that giving my opinion on some book-to-film adaptations could be a fun one. I will put a disclaimer here saying that I have some strong opinions on these, so hang tight. Here we go :)

#1: Harry Potter. I mean, I have four different Harry Potter tattoos, so it can't come as much of a surprise that these films are the first on this list. HOWEVER, what may come as a surprise is that I'm going to give them a 7/10. I think that I have been more pleased with the casting than a lot of people have, but as one of those Potterheads that re-read the series once a year (no shame in my HP game) I just can't be in full support of a series of films that seriously misses some of the more important parts that help you understand not only the storyline as a whole, but better understand some of the characters and the decisions that they make or don't make. And don't even get me started on Ronald Bilius Weasley, because nobody hates on him around me ;)

#2: Percy Jackson. I know, I know, these are waaaay more aimed toward a younger reader set. I remember a handful of years back I was listening to some fifth graders talk about them and thinking "I'm a full-grown adult that reads the same book as fifth graders" but Percy Jackson is great and I'm not even sorry about it. But the movies were god-freaking-awful. I liked the first one pretty alright, but by about halfway through the second one, I realized what they were doing and I was so letdown. You CANNOT tell five books worth of a story in two movies and it is just pitiful that they even attempted it. I am giving these films a 5/10, and only that high due to the first one.

#3: The Maze Runner. I want to preface this by stating that I am also a HUGE fan of the show Teen Wolf and, therefore, love Dylan O'Brien very much. I was nervous about watching the Maze Runner just because Stiles and Thomas are very different people and I didn't know what to think about it. Alas, I give the Maze Runner movies a solid 9/10 because I LOVE THEM. I can definitely watch these ones over and over again and there aren't many things in them that blatantly tick me off as far as inconsistencies go. I think that they did a good job really setting the environment of the novels and Thomas's struggle to remember what his part in WICKED was/is. I highly recommend these ones.

#4: The Hunger Games. And here we are, we have found ourselves at what I easily say is my favorite book-to-film adaption thus far. Hunger Games (all of them) get a resounding 10/10 score for me. The casting is great (IMO), the storyline is really spot-on, not considering leaving out some characters all together and that whole thing with Peeta's leg in the first arena...? I find myself watching these often and wanting to watch them again. My husband also really enjoys them and he's honestly somewhat hard to please when it comes to films such as these. I would be genuinely curious what someone's argument was against these other than "Oh, I just don't like Jennifer Lawrence" because I can truly sit and watch these films again and again.

#5: Beautiful Creatures. I adore the Beautiful Creatures novels and have definitely read all of them more than once. With that in mind, I would like to say that one of my best friends and I (she is my fellow bookworm pal) literally stood up and left the movie theatre before this movie was over. I give this film a 1/10. It bummed me out so bad because I was excited about the casting and really had high hopes, but we were both just astounded with how... not awesome it was. I hate it when directors and screenwriters take the base IDEA of a novel and just turn it into something completely different. I understand there will be liberties. This was... not that.

#6: The Mortal Instruments. How have I made as many blog posts as I have before and haven't talked about the Shadowhunter world yet!? The Shadowhunter world is 1000% one of my favorite and it also a series that I read, in its entirety, each year. Which, when you have that much of a love for something, they do say that it is easier for it to let you down. This movie did just that for me. While I did not walk out of the theatre when I watched this one, I did walk away feeling... really let down. And as time went on that feeling grew until I just felt like the assignment was truly not understood for this adaption. I give this a 2/10 and recommend any and all to PLEASE read the books instead. Because damn, they good.

#7: Perks of Being a Wallflower. Oh, oh, oh. I couldn't not put this one on the list and I have said for years that any other adaptation needs to follow in this one's footsteps, because how GENIUS is it to have the director literally just write the screenplay? I'd say that it is fool-proof and it is something that should have happened years and years ago. This book is such an intense ride anyway and it's something that should definitely come with a disclaimer before it is watched, but it's so darkly beautiful and if it had been made any other way I think that I would have been really upset. I give it an 8.5/10.

#8: Shadow and Bone (or the Grishaverse, if you will). When I first started watching this one on Netflix, I was about halfway, maybe a little more, through the second book. However, quite a while ago I had already read the Six Of Crows duology. So I'm sitting there... and imagine my total shock (and absolute glee) when Kaz and crew show up on the screen. I had NOT been expecting to see them included but oh was I so happy. It's nothing against Shadow and Bone, because I do really love the story, but I just liked the whole Six Of Crows vibe better and it doesn't feel like it should make sense, but having them in the show just... *Chefs Kiss*. 8/10.

#9: The Host. Ahh yes, and oldie but a goodie. I feel like The Host is that underrated sibling in a rom-com that nobody looks at because the other sibling is just such a ~hottie~ but when that one person gets to know the underrated one, they realize that they are just so much better. That is what The Host is for me in comparison to Twilight. And before you look at me like that, NO, I'm not a Twilight hater. I've actually read those books many, many times. I just didn't like the movies, and I connected with the story in The Host more. This movie surprised me by also being really accurate and really good for a book that I just feel like did not get the hype that it has always deserved. Though a lot of the conversation takes place as an inner dialogue I liked how they played it out, and the relationship between Wanderer and Melanie will always be one of my favorite. 8.5/10.

#10: Divergent. As I said before, I absolutely hate it when directors take liberties. I read somewhere (so it could be wrong, I don't know, it just always stuck with me) that the director said something along the lines of "Yeah, we were accurate with the first one, but with the other ones we're just going to take the story and kind of do what we want with it" and I just knew at that point that I was done. I liked Divergent. I do not care for the others for many, many reasons, including just how... not accurate to the books it is. YES, I acknowledge that it will happen, but it shouldn't happen so drastically. 4/10.

So there you have it! Check out my Goodreads (Traci Bishop) to see what I’m currently reading and to see a good chunk of the books I have already read. My Instagram can be found on the home page and I will share whenever a new post is up as well!

Until next time <3