36 On-Screen Adaptations That Managed To Live Up To The Expectations Of The Book Fans

"There's only one answer and it's Holes."

—google_112706733778149358688

"It's the closest reflection of source material I've ever seen and both the book and movie are soooo good."

—amandac4103107d2

"I really loved the book and movie equally, I thought they used the perfect actors."

—chasingrabbits

"It's amazing how good book-to-movie adaptations turn out when the author is heavily involved (or in this case wrote the screenplay)."

—megank1499

"It is one of the few on-screen adaptations where the book and the series actually complement each other. Whatever makes you feel like it was missing in the book, the adaptation gives us the closure needed, plus don’t even get me started with the chemistry between Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar Jones."

—giovanapaesm

"It's my favourite book, and the film did so well at sticking to the material despite the fact it can’t have been an easy job."

—teashirt

"The book by S.E. Hinton was amazing and the movie was so well done!"

—onedirection822

"In my opinion, this version was much better than the film, and much more faithful to the book."

—alicebloom1

"This was the perfect adaptation."

—deviahappy

"Great book, beautiful and perfect movie. Scarlet Johansson looks just like the real picture that the fictional book was written about."

—stormwatcher

"This television show is SPOT ON with the book."

—angelaf4c3acf0ac

"It's based on the All Souls book series. There are a few changes and some beautiful additions. I've read the series I don't know how many times, watched the first season a few times, and the consensus is that they're wonderfully matched. I gotta agree. I highly recommend both!"

—kawthara

"The seasons based on the books were amazing."

—emilyf4a6fb358d

"It's got to be on this list!"

—sarahquinney

"I feel like it perfectly illustrated the book – there were really only a couple of tiny things that were left out. Also, the actors all did such an amazing job. It was a beautiful movie."

—bree-nb

"There are some big changes from the book, but I am 100% fine with it because the essence remains the same, John Irving wrote the screenplay, and there were some things in the book that work in a book, but would not have worked in a movie."

—wasteoftime149

"John Irving totally deserved the Oscar for the screenplay; he made such great editing choices to pare the book and its subplots and cast of characters down into a digestible, not-overly-complicated film that still captures the heart of the story."

—melissan40168c557

"If Gregory Peck isn't a perfect Atticus Finch....."

—vickys7

"I love that book and there could not be a better movie adaptation. Gregory Peck WAS the perfect Atticus."

—stormwatcher

"The movies crammed in the storylines, but the show does it justice. It’s funny, it’s dark, and is arguably better than the books."

—vivilehner

"It is by far one of the best book-to-movie adaptations!"

—lisay431ca7184

"I watched the film, then a friend gave me the book to read when I was in hospital. Every single scene did the book justice."

—daniellec4f6bc201e

"Perfection."

—itswisa

"I thought was absolutely perfect. I watched it for the first time not long after reading the book and I just thought it was all exactly as I had imagined it."

—emmanwilliamson

“There are loads of adaptations of Les Mis, but I feel like this series managed to tell the interwoven stories in a detailed way that’s often missed from other versions. Victor Hugo’s original novel is so long and so intricate, but I think this version did a great job of knowing which parts to focus on. Plus, the cast was great!” 

–hanifahrahman

"It's an overwhelming, perfume-filled poem of a movie that completely grabs the essence of the book."

—jsitdig16

"The cast was perfect, everything looked almost precisely like I’d imagined while reading the book, and the depth they added to side characters like Dr Hyde and the Eagle made it even better. The soundtrack also slaps."

—vsoldf

"The screen adaptation was so good. I read the book multiple times, and when I saw they were making a show from it I was excited, but I didn't get my hopes up in case it went bad. But that ending made me cry so much harder than the book did – even though I knew it was coming, it still hurt so badly. It was so beautifully done and did what happened (no spoilers here) so much justice in making it so impactful."

—hamburgler

"I wasn't sure about Emilia Clarke as Louisa but I fell in love with the way she played her, she fit the character exactly."

—staceyleighk

"I thought the movie was very good, I even liked the ending of the movie better than the book ending."

—a43920c533

"It’s one of the best books I’ve ever read and the movie was beautifully done. It would be impossible to perfectly capture the lyricism of the book, but they did bring the story and characters to life."

—chrisa443ec9017

"Seeing that Italian summer and scenery and the tension and chemistry between Elio and Oliver brought the intensity of the characters in the book to life. The book and movie complement each other so much!"

—androidwithelectricsheep

"It made me tear up like no other book and movie has ever done. Luca Guadagnino did an amazing job casting Elio and Oliver. Surely I'd have loved to see when they meet some years later, but damn the details and the place and everything about the movie was awesome."

—sonali3000

“The writing and casting were perfect, and even though there were some big changes, I felt like it generally stayed true to the original novel and paid a great homage to Dickens.”

–hanifahrahman

"It's a classic film for a reason. I expected the book to be miles better, like books so often are, and I was surprised to find myself thinking that as good as the book was, the film was easily its equal, and possibly even superior. The film captures the characters and the tone of the book so perfectly that I would almost say not to bother reading the book."

—alanamuir

"Not as many people know that it was actually a book first. In the book, the author interrupts the story with a bunch of asides, and the movie translated that flawlessly into the scenes with the kid and his grandpa telling him the story."

—elcie27

"It's such a great book-to-film translation. It didn't remove a lot, but the parts it did omit were justified. The casting was perfect. The screenplay was perfect. It was loyal to the book while still being its own project."

—colleend9

"It was so good and I never see it mentioned anywhere!"

—PHM8

"There were some big changes here and there, but I think they make the on-screen translation work even better, especially as the series was written by Neil Gaiman too. It perfectly captured the essence of the novel and it made me laugh just as much."

–hanifahrahman

"It's been very well done, and the books are fantastic. I’m so glad they made it a series instead of editing it into a movie. It’s cast pretty well, too. Claire is perfection!"

—amysmith1

"It's sooooooo good. Definitely the best book-to-screen adaptation I’ve ever seen, but I don’t see many people talk about it!"

—katestruthers

"Those films are complete cinematic masterpieces that hold up incredibly well 20 years later. They stay mainly true to the books and add to the story and imagery that Tolkien created."

—lauram403c29da7

"It was surprisingly accurate to the books, and combining it with Six of Crows really elevated the original Shadow and Bone story."

—sankta-alina

"Even though there are a lot of scenes they didn’t include in the movies, i feel like the ones they did include were really extraordinary and with the outstanding performances of Josh Hutcherson and Jennifer Lawrence, (especially in Mockingjay 2) they were able to portray the Capitol, the games, and the messed up society they lived in perfectly."

—aranzadelapuente

"Might be oversaid at this point, but I think Catching Fire is one of the best book-to-movie adaptations out there."

—dxdavis888

"I think the movie is better than the book."

—CallMeCrazy

"It does a fantastic job of bringing The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman to life!"

—jessicam459241a60

"The cast is perfect, they’ve kept true to the story and the main themes, and the soundtrack/locations/CGI are all amazing!"

—nightfury123

"My favourite book series of all time. The adaptation is been flawless."

—keeperk21