31 Days 2014

Books to Movies: Stardust

Stardust movie

Stardust by Neil GaimanBasic info.  The novel Stardust was written by renowned author Neil Gaiman and was first published in 1999. The movie came out in 2007 with an all-star cast that includes Claire Danes, Charlie Cox, Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert de Niro, Mark Strong, and more.

What’s the story? To prove his love, Tristan, a young man from a small English village, makes a promise to Victoria, the village beauty, to retrieve a falling star. He goes beyond the wall separating the village from the forest and finds himself in an entirely different world. Not only that, the fallen star turns out to be a young woman named Yvaine and she’s also being hunted by two other parties – three witches who want her heart to make them young again and the dead king’s sons who are after the throne.

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Catching up on a little ‘books to movies’ action

Or rather, this is the “Oh, hey, I’ve failed to post for the last few days, so here are my books-to-movies posts of the past” post.

Yep, I had a list and a schedule for the 31 Days, but I did not account for how much work each post will actually take and the times when I will be out of the house and away from my computer. That was the long weekend, by the way. I managed to get a post in last Saturday and started on what was supposed to be for Sunday but I ended up publishing that on Tuesday. Oye, what a crazy thing this is.

Anyway, we’re going away again this weekend – flying out tomorrow in fact and won’t be back til Monday night – so I’m going to be behind again. I had planned to base my post on books that I have already talked about in the past, but it looks like that’s not gonna happen right now, so I just want to leave you with the links to a couple of them.

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Books to Movies: Must Love Dogs

Must Love Dogs

Must Love DogsBasic info. Must Love Dogs by Claire Cook was published in 2000. A movie of the same title came out in 2005 with Diane Lane, John Cusack, Dermot Mulroney, and a bunch of other great actors.

What’s the story? It’s about a new thirty-something divorcee named Sarah and her dating adventures. Sarah’s family is very supportive and keeps encouraging her to start dating. Her two sisters sign her up on an online dating site and she meets several men, including John Cusack’s character, also a recently divorced man.

Which one did I experience first? I saw the movie first some time after it came out. I didn’t even realize it was based on a book. I read the book in December of 2012. The Kindle version was free on Amazon for a time and I decided to get it. If it wasn’t free, I don’t think I would’ve downloaded it. Hah.

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Books to Movies: Angels and Demons

Angels and Demons

Angels and DemonsBasic info. Angels & Demons by Dan Brown was released in 2000. The movie came out in 2009, a couple of years after The Da Vinci Code came out. The movie brought back Tom Hanks and also starred Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, and Stellan Skarsgard.

What’s the story? Renowned cryptologist Robert Langdon is called to decipher a mysterious symbol that was branded on the chest of a physicist murdered inside a research facility. He discovers that the symbol points to an ancient underground brotherhood called the Illuminati. It seems the secret organization has surfaced to do some damage to their supposed adversary, which is the Catholic Church. To make things even worse, someone planted a bomb somewhere in the Vatican, where cardinals of the world are gathered to choose a new pope.

Which one did I experience first? I saw the movie first and later on I decided to read the book so, you know, I’ll know the real basis for the movie. By that time, The Da Vinci Code was already out for two years and everyone already knew the Robert Langdon character, and I think everyone was just curious about the ‘new’ Dan Brown book-based movie. So you know, me included. I wanted in on the bandwagon. Hah.

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Books to Movies: The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci CodeThe basic info. The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown was published in 2003 and became a bestseller all over the globe. Of course they decided to make a movie out of it. The movie came out in 2006 and starred Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Paul Bettany, Jean Reno, Ian McKellan, and Alfred Molina.

What’s the story? Robert Langdon, a symbologist, gets called to the scene of the murder of the curator of the Louvre. The curator left a clue that led to more clues found in the works of Leonardo Da Vinci. With the help of French cryptologist Sophie Neveu, Robert discovers that the curator was part of a secret society dedicated to protecting a religious relic. Robert and Sophie follow the clues while trying to evade an unknown danger that seems hell bent on getting their hands on whatever it is the secret society is protecting.

Which one did I experience first? I read the book first and it was during the time when it was already very popular and everyone was mostly raving about it.

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Books to Movies: Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice books to movies

Pride and Prejudice book coverThe basic info. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen was first published in 1813 and is one of the most well-loved classics. There have been several films and TV series made based on the book. In this post, I’ll be talking about the only adaptation I’ve seen (so far) and that’s the 2005 film starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen.

What’s the story? The description on Goodreads calls this a “comedy of manners” and it really is since it’s a witty and satirical novel about life in a society of different classes back in the day. The story revolves around a young independent woman, Elizabeth, her four sisters Jane, Mary, Kitty and Lydia, and the men who enter their lives, most notably Mr. Darcy and his best buddy Mr. Bingley.

Which one did I experience first? I saw the movie first on DVD and since then it’s been on my list of go-to movies. During the time when I was just starting out as a freelancer, I would watch this movie over and over. I just liked having it on while I worked on my laptop. It was also around that time when I decided that I should read the book (and I did, of course).

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31 Days of Books to Movies

I like books and I like movies and I’m not one to make a big fuss when books are made into movies. I like seeing the differences between a book and its film adaptation. Sometimes I like the book more and sometimes I like the movie version more. It’s not that big of a deal for me when a movie (or the book for that matter) fails miserably to meet expectations. Sure, I get disappointed but I try to be cool and be all “my hair don’t care” about it. Honestly, it’s much easier to move on from a bad movie than when a movie turns out to be just as epic (or more) than the book or the other way around! Now, epic things like that stay with me for a long time. You know what I mean. ;)

So, for the next 31 Days, it’s all going to be about books and their movie adaptations. Every. Single. Day. Hopefully. That’s the plan. I hope I don’t miss a day. Yayyyy..

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Books to Movies: Safe Haven

31 Days Books to Movies Safe Haven

Safe Haven bookFirst, the basic info. The book Safe Haven was written by author Nicholas Sparks. The movie came out in 2013 and starred Josh Duhamel, Julianne Hough, Cobie Smulders, and David Lyons.

What’s the story? A woman on the run finds herself in a small town and decides to stay a while. She finds a place to stay, gets a job as a waitress, and meets some of the townsfolk – including a tall handsome store owner and his two kids. Things seem to go pretty well until her past catches up with her.

Which one did I experience first? The movie, which I watched in the cinema with my sister. I didn’t even bother asking Carpet Head if he wanted to watch it with me. When I told him I was going out with my sister to watch it, he was just like, “Meh, okay. Have fun.” LOL.

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