If you want something done right, do it yourself. It’s common forbook authors to be dissatisfied with the movie adaptationsof their work, and, to avoid such disappointments, some of them have opted to handle the cameras themselves. It’s a bold move since expertise at telling print stories doesn’t necessarily translate to expertise at telling screen stories. So far, the results have varied, with Stephen King’sMaximum Overdrivebeing the perfect warning to authors to stick to what they know best.
Some authors did a pretty good job, despite their lack of experience in filmmaking. Even so, the temporary transition from paper to screen hasn’t gone on to be a major trend. Those who make this leap are always quick to return to their comfort zones. Generally, most literature maestros are content with licensing their work and enjoying the royalties. Others sell the entire rights to producers, allowing them to do as they please.
10Hellraiser (1987)
Hellraiser
Curiosity kills the cat inHellraiser. Based on Clive Barker’s 1986 novellaThe Hellbound Heart, the film follows sexual deviant Frank Cotton (Sean Chapman), who, while touring Morocco, purchases a mystical puzzle box capable of opening a portal to a realm of unlimited pleasure. Instead of getting a ticket to the land of sweetness, he summons the Cenobites, a group of sadomasochistic beings who proceed to dismember him. From there, things get even darker.
Barker Was Learning on the Job
Clive Barker was the Jack of all trades here. He not only wrote the script but also directed the film. The author made this choice because he hated prior cinematic adaptations of his books. He would later confess that he did a lot of guesswork. In the book,The Hellraiser Films and Their Legacy, he confesses, “I didn’t know the difference between a 10-millimetre lens and a 35-millimetre lens. If you’d shown me a plate of spaghetti and said that was a lens, I might have believed you.” Thankfully, the end product turned out just fine, with thefilm spawning multiple sequels.
9Abuse of Weakness (2013)
In the early 2010s, French novelist and professor Catherine Breillat made the semi-autobiographical filmAbuse of Weakness,based on her book of the same name. The film is about Maud Shainberg (Isabelle Huppert), a salt-of-the-earth director who recovers from a cerebral hemorrhage that almost paralyzed her and makesa movie starring a con man. Soon, a shaky romance develops between her and the criminal.
Breillat Tapped Into Personal Experiences
Abuse of Weaknesswasn’t Catherine Breillat’s first dance. She had made a few movies before, but most of them had been poorly received, with some even considered softcore porn. Fortunately, this romance drama vindicated the author in the eyes of critics, who found the galvanic match-up between the two leads irresistible. Articulately realized, with negligible cinematic effects, the film examines the abuse of trust in all the ferocious poetry of Breillat’s unmatched talent. It’s no surprise that the movie turned out so good. The real story is partially based on Breillat’s own experiences. In 2007, the con man, Christophe Rocancourt, defrauded her €678,000, as per a report by French publicationLe Figaro.
8The Exorcist III (1990)
Previous adaptations had turned out just fine, yet, William Peter Blatty, the author of the originalThe Exorcistnovel, decided to makeThe Exorcist IIIhimself. The film, based on his 1983 novelLegion, sees police Lt. Kinderman (George C. Scott) struggling to keep his sanity intact, notices as he draws parallels between recent murders and the “Gemini Killer” (Brad Dourif) who was allegedly executed 15 years prior.
Blatty Didn’t Direct a Worthy Sequel
Despite having only made one movie before (The Ninth Configuration), Blatty proves himself a master of mood and rumbling suspense in this amazing throwback to the spooky,horror films of the ’70s. Sadly, the movie underperformed at the box office and George C. Scott got a Razzie nomination for Worst Actor. Blatty’s decision to direct wasn’t born out of dissatisfaction. Blatty had written the script for the third installment and tappedThe Exorcistdirector William Friedkin to do the work. When Friedkin opted to pursue other projects, Blatty turned the script into the 1983 novel before finally adapting it into a movie.
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7The Fish Child (2009)
The Fish Childstarted as a little-known novel by Argentinian author, Lucía Puenzo (Inés Efron) before she turned it into a powerful film. At the center of the story is Leila, a girl from a wealthy family who drives a supercar, lunches at high-end diners, and wears expensive outfits for martini sessions with friends. Still, she isn’t content. She is in love with the family maid, Ailín (Mariela Vitale). Aware that they won’t be allowed to be together, they hatch a plan to flee to Ailín’s home country of Paraguay.
A Tender Examination of LGBTQ Challenges in Latin America
Like the book,The Fish Childis a powerful love-on-the-run LGBTQ thriller that touches on various other serious topics like abuse and colorism. The frequent use of flashbacks also makes the story much easier to understand. Puenzo was a screenwriter first, before becoming a novelist, so the film’s perfect plot doesn’t come as a shocker. She is also quite the expert atcreating queer and intersex characters. Here’s to hoping there will be more of where this magic came from.
6Johnny Got His Gun (1971)
Dalton Trumbo isbest remembered for being part ofThe Hollywood Blacklist(a group of industry professionals banished for having Communist ties), was primarily a screenwriter, but he occasionally wrote novels. In the early ’70s, he sat in the director’s seat too, makingJohnny Got His Gun,based on his book of the same name. The story is about Joe Bonham (Timothy Bottoms), an American soldier who loses his sense of hearing, smell, and sight after being hit by an artillery shell in World War I. While in the hospital, he tries to get the government to euthanize him.
A Gripping Film From a Controversial Hollywood Director
You could predict right from the opening minute that anti-war movies would never be the same once Trumbo got through withJohnny Got His Gun. It all works because the plot matches the Hollywood legend’s beliefs. He was a pacificist and his feelings came out strongly here. The film focuses more on dialogue and dreams, and the results are first-rate. A neatly-balanced friendship arc involving Johnny and a nurse complements some of the picture’s zaniest scenes. For the dreams and memories, audiences get color scenes while the real-world moments are black and white. Watch out for the immortal scene where Johnny talks to Jesus.
5Maximum Overdrive (1986)
Maximum Overdrive
When it comes to literature, Stephen King rarely has a bad day in the office, but inMaximum Overdrivehe makes a case for himself as the worst director of all time. King’s disappointing sci-fi horror flick is based on the short storyTrucksfrom his anthology book,Night Shift.It presents a bizarre situation where machines come to life and start attacking humans when a comet hits Earth, but it’s so goofy it doesn’t bring us closer to knowing what the world would look like if such a disaster was to happen.
King Was in Over His Head
Maximum Overdrive’s concept isgood enough to warrant a remake. King, on his part, simply didn’t know how to execute it. Having hated many adaptations of his work, including the critically acclaimed,The Shining, King felt he could do a better job, but boy was he wrong. Most of the scenes defy logic and the dialogue is generally stiff. There is also a greater focus on spectacle than plot, an odd movie considering that it’s a Stephen King project. Consequently, the author got a Razzie nomination for Worst Director.
4The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Stephen Chbosky’sThe Perks of Being a Wallfloweris based on his 1999 novel of the same name. It’s about the reserved teen Charlie (Logan Lerman), who is content with watching fellow high schoolers from the sidelines until he meets two outgoing students who introduce him to the joys of the world. Meanwhile, a teacher nurtures Charlie’s writing talent.
Chbosky Dissects the Challenges of High School Life
Leisurely paced and slowly re-counted,The Perks of Being a Wallfloweris worth sticking with, as uniformly powerhouse performances carry the audience to a satisfying conclusion. Stephen Chbosky was more than qualified to direct as he had served as the showrunner of thepostapocalyptic drama,Jericho, as well as screenwriter of the movies,RentandThe Four Corners of Nowhere.The story is also based on Chbosky’s high school freshman year, so there was no person more qualified to handle it than him.
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3The Great Train Robbery (1978)
Michael Crichton basedThe Great Train Robberyon his 1975 novel. However, the story — following three Victorian Era heist masters trying to steal gold from a moving train — is based on a real-world event, the Great Gold Robbery. The heist took place on May 1855 when a stash of gold bullion and coins was stolen from a train from London Bridge Station while it was being transported to Paris.
A Mindblowing Film From a Master of Many Crafts
Crichton’s film is amasterpiece in heist mechanics. The lack of backstory emphasizes life’s unpredictability, and the robbers, reminiscent of characters appearing in other great capers, provide a leitmotif of economic turmoil. Winner of the Edgar Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay, this exceptional meditation on crime would be hard to believe if it wasn’t based on a true story. The film’s high quality was expected since Crichton was a polymath. Apart from churning out many bestselling books, he was good with the camera and tech gadgets in general. A few years earlier, he had madeWestworld,the first movie to use 2D computer-generated imagery.
2Nightbreed (1990)
Nightbreed
Adapted by Clive Barker from his 1988 novellaCabal,Nightbreedis as nuts as horror movies get. Aaron Boone (Craig Sheffer) has daily dreams characterized by a revolving door of monsters. When he tailspins into a depression, he seeks the help of the psychiatrist, Dr. Decker (David Cronenberg), who unknown to him, is a serial killer. Decker frames Boone for his crimes, causing him to be killed by the police. Shockingly, Boone gets resurrected by the monsters of his dreams, who help him stop Decker.
Another Decent Effort From Barker
After directorHellraiser, Barker was now familiar with the basics of filmmaking. Thecreature designs are, therefore, stunning, and the world-building leaves a lot to be desired. Contrarily, the subplots are slapdash and there are plenty of underdeveloped characters. Striking gold twice is indeed hard, but there is no doubt that Barker did his best here. Despite being panned by critics, the movie went on to be a cult hit in later years. With time, it has spawned a few video games and comic books.
1Tough Guys Don’t Dance (1987)
What’s the worst that could happen when someone blacks out? InTough Guys Can’t Dance,Tim Madden (Ryan O’Neal), a struggling writer, wakes up with a bad hangover, a new tattoo reading his former girlfriend’s name, the severed head of a woman in his marijuana stash, and no memory of what happened. Director Norman Mailer based the murder mystery film on his novel of the same name.
Mailer won a Razzie for Worst Director, so it could be argued that he should have left the directing to professional directors. Widely celebrated as one of the innovators of creative non-fiction, he should have perhaps stuck to what he knew best. Even so, the movie isn’t entirely unwatchable. Tough guys can’t dance, but bad films can entertain. This crime tale is buoyedby incredible cinematography, photogenic cast members, and memorable dialogue. There is also an unbelievable amount of overkill. For example, a line where the protagonist repeats “Oh man, oh god!” after learning about his wife’s affair is both heartbreaking and chucklesome.
