Books turned into movies, movies turned into books.

There are some movies that are well known to be based on books or short stories; Lord of the Rings, 2001, Harry Potter, Bridget Jones Diary, various Stephen King based movies. There are also bunches of books that have sprung up as a result of movies, noteably the vast universe of Star Wars and Star Trek novels, as well as cash in novelisations of plenty of other movies.

My question is, are there any obscure movies (ie, the kind of things Brad reviews as the Snob) which originated as books? Or any weird novelisations of Cannibal Holocaust, Silent Night, Deadly Night or the like? I ask purely out of interest, and because I think it would be hilarious to have a copy of something like "The Class of Nuke'em High" sitting on my shelf both in VHS and Paperback.

The decent Tobe Hooper slasher flick "The Funhouse" had a novelization written by Dean Koontz under a pseudonym. It's apparently pretty terrible.
I also heard that around the time it was first released in Japan, "Hausu" had a novelization. Imagine that.

Most of my friends who regularly read Dean Koontz have told me his novels are either really freakin good, or really freakin bad, nothing in between...

The new movie by Sacha Baron Cohen was supposedly inspired by Saddam's Hussein novel "Zabiba and the king" which is about a woman of low class befriending and teaching the king. For middle eastern standards it's pretty feminist. In the western world Saddam Hussein's feminist side has always been neglected.

And of course the movie "Slugs" that was reviewed was originally a book.

well i love "Dean Koontz" & his books are like that they are either fucking great or fucking terrible. that's any author though. stephen king has even done some shitty ones as well. no matter what era the book is in. i fucking HATED

"The Girl who loved tom gordon" i was bored out my mind on that. anyways, ladies & gents if there are any ladies on here that is. if ya want a great "Dean Koontz" book to read 'Strangers' is one "Survivor" i think is the name of it? is another one. where it's about a plane crash. that's a great thriller. not a horror one by any means neither of these are.

i've been reading 'One For The Money" as of late & it's a decent book. nothing great by any means but 1st books in series for me aren't always great books either. to be fair. i haven't finished it yet though to be fair.

Jeevesie wrote:

I ask purely out of interest, and because I think it would be hilarious to have a copy of something like "The Class of Nuke'em High" sitting on my shelf both in VHS and Paperback.

They actually did make a novelization of 'The Toxic Avenger'...although it was only a couple of years ago, so it was far more of a tongue-in-cheek parody than an earnest translation of film to book form.

It did, however, boast probably the greatest tagline for any novel: "The Bible is now the second greatest story ever told!".

i downloaded the unrated version of 'The Toxic Avenger" a couple years back & honestly the film was shit until he turned into him. the acting was fucking awful. than after he turned into him the dude who played him was the only one who gave a decent performance!

i didn't know anyone wrote a book about it. will wonders never cease? my guess since they did the remake of "Mother's Day' another film i downloaded but i have yet to watch. mostly out of curiosity really. this was a couple years back as well. then i watched the review brad did here. & i have really no reason to want to watch it.

since i know what to expect. anyways, since they did the remake which actually looks pretty good. i'm sure a book came out on that too.

I finally gotten my hands on American Psycho (the book) I love the movie to death, and reading the book, all I can say is that the book is way, way worse. And Dune so far is a better book than a movie.

EvilWaffle wrote:

I finally gotten my hands on American Psycho (the book) I love the movie to death, and reading the book, all I can say is that the book is way, way worse. And Dune so far is a better book than a movie.

I agree with Dune being a better book than movie but I strongly disagree with your point about American Psycho. Don't get me wrong, I think the movie is great and an unlikely success considering the near-unfilmable content of the book. But in my opinion the novel itself is absolutely fantastic. The juxtaposition of ridiculously over the top gore with the incredibly vapid, mundanity of the socialite lifestyle. The alarming extent to which Patrick Bateman and most of the other characters rely on materialism for validation. The surrealist apathy that culminates in a scathing indictment of 80's yuppie culture. The sheer hilariousness of it all. There's so much there that just wouldn't fit into a feature film and that elevates the book to a modern masterpiece.

really? i thought the film american psycho was shit. but i did like Christian Bale in the role he was good in it i'm not denying that. i just hated the film. i never read the book and i don't intend to. but i love Dune the film both versions the (1984) version and the (2000) version. i have the book but i've never read it. i've really only read a few pages of it cause it's hard to get into cause of the way it's written.

I liked AMERICAN PSYCHO, didn't love it, haven't read the book and I go back and forth about wanting to. I like the idea (apathy & materialism turning into sociopathy) but in another forum I saw someone declare that people who call the book misogynistic are stupid b/c Bateman also kills men. That kind of turned me off it: not so much the thought that misogyny appears in the book but that its fans would use such an inane argument to defend it.

Fun fact: DIE HARD was based on the novel "Nothing Lasts Forever" which was actually a sequel to "The Detective" - which had also been made into a movie many years prior starring Frank Sinatra. (The studio even offered the role to Sinatra but he turned it down - as did Arnie, Sly, Mel Gibson, Richard Gere, and Burt Reynolds).
In "seriously?" news, NIGHT OF THE LEPUS was based on a book called "The Year of the Angry Rabbit" by Russell Braddon. I haven't read it but I love that title.

For movies turned into books, I used to see a lot of this, and mostly for action movies: TERMINATOR 2, CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK, TRUE LIES, etc. The last one I remember seeing was XMEN: THE LAST STAND. That was a strange trend.

ChaosTheory wrote:

I liked AMERICAN PSYCHO, didn't love it, haven't read the book and I go back and forth about wanting to. I like the idea (apathy & materialism turning into sociopathy) but in another forum I saw someone declare that people who call the book misogynistic are stupid b/c Bateman also kills men. That kind of turned me off it: not so much the thought that misogyny appears in the book but that its fans would use such an inane argument to defend it.

I sure hope it wasn't me that said that! I've defended that book against what I've felt have been misinterpretations of its message before but I hope I didn't say anything that stupid.

The violence against women in American Psycho is definitely more brutal, pronounced and sexualised than the violence against men and I'd imagine some people would find it a very uncomfortable read because of that. The violence is so extreme that I can't deny it comes across as celebratory but at the same time I took it as a caricature of the hedonism, misogyny and objectification that was rife in that 80's Wall street culture. That's certainly not an excuse though, more just a contextualisation. I think part of why I enjoy the book so much is because of the paradox created by it being a simultaneously enjoyable and very uncomfortable read. It takes things to such an extreme that it really makes you ask yourself some questions. Like any of Ellis' work it's definitely not for everyone though.

Don't worry, it wasn't you! Your argument makes sense and that's kind of what I'd figured the book actually was. It's still one of those on-the-fence books for me.

Curiously I've seen more people complain about Patrick Bateman's extensive lists of gourmet menu items and designer attire than I have his penchant for horribly torturous murders. To me the combination of such banality and such gruesomeness is a big part of why the book works.

i have long since finished One for the Money, and have in fact read the next 2 books in the series. for the film which i still haven't seen all of it, to be fair, the book wasn't very good, but it had it's moments that i liked i'm not going to deny that. and than there's the film which i also haven't seen all of yet either. and it wasn't very good either. but than i think that levels out too. that's one of those cases where the book it's based off of isn't very good and neither is the film. both aren't terrible i don't think but they aren't very good either. now if they did a film for "Two For the Dough' which is the name of the 2nd book the book i think is a vast improvement over the 1st one and there's no doubt the film will be better too.

i'm a huge James Patterson Fan.and i really love his Alex Cross Series. in fact i'm currently reading one. it's (2004)"s 'London Bridges' which is the 10th novel in the series. for those of you who don't know, if you count the one that comes out in i assume and guess November that's the 23rd book in the series. anyways, Kiss The Girls is the best film in the series. Along Came a Spider is a medicore film at best. i don't hate it though, it's just got a lousy script. and the fact that they kill off the main villian in the film i fucking hate, cuz with Patterson's books he has some of them return in sometimes 2 or 3 books. 'The Mastermind for example who i won't say who that is, is in a great number of books after he is caught. and i think he's killed in the film Along Came a Spider even though why that wasn't done 1st i have no idea. it's the 1st book with Kiss The Girls the 2nd Novel.

and i still have yet to see the last Alex Cross Novel. i've seen some of it and Brad is right Tyler Perry is fucking terrible in it. i do get why that one flopped to be honest. i hope they do another Alex Cross film but NOT with Tyler Perry!

To more directly address the OP's question. There very well could be. I'd say check amazon with the title of your favorite exploitation movie under the books category. Stranger things have happened.

On a tangential point, Ready Player One by Ernest Cline has been greenlit for a movie adaptation and Steven Spielberg has signed on as director. I read the book and while I enjoyed it, I'm not sure if it'd be the best book to adapt to a movie.

ChaosTheory wrote:

Fun fact: DIE HARD was based on the novel "Nothing Lasts Forever" which was actually a sequel to "The Detective" - which had also been made into a movie many years prior starring Frank Sinatra. (The studio even offered the role to Sinatra but he turned it down - as did Arnie, Sly, Mel Gibson, Richard Gere, and Burt Reynolds).

Am reading that NOTHING LAST FOREVER, re-titled as DIE HARD. Re-issued around the time the movie came out I guess. Great book, too.

Never read or saw THE DETECTIVE. Will have to look for it.

Recently I picked up a five books, and one of them was a novelization of AIRPORT '77, the one about the plane crashed in the Bermuda Triangle. The film has Christopher Lee and James Stewart. The first movie was based on a book. AIRPORT '77 might be my favorite of the four films, though.

really Sean there's a book based off that? i have that film on dvd actually. and i think Airport '75 is my favorite one it's also the 1st one in that series i ever saw as well.

wildhoney66 wrote:

really Sean there's a book based off that? i have that film on dvd actually. and i think Airport '75 is my favorite one it's also the 1st one in that series i ever saw as well.

Yes, even comes with stills from the movie. Also recently picked up a novelization of LICENSE TO KILL by Bond author John Gardner, as well as the books FIRST BLOOD, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, and Peter Benchley's THE ISLAND. All of which are movies now too.

Even found a copy of DR. NO by Bond creator Ian Fleming. Never thought I'd find one of the Fleming books. Old copy too, released back when the Connery films were still being made. I have Gardner's LICENSE RENEWED and SCORPIUS but have yet to read them. I'll start with DR. NO and see where things go.

I just recently picked up and finished 'Who Censored Roger Rabbit'. The book is what the film was based on, and with some major alterations I can see it. Namely, the book is much more Noire than the film. Roger actually was a murderer in the book, he was also murdered. The majority of the book is about trying to solve Roger's murder. Without getting to convoluted, it has the satisfying twists and turns in any good noire story, was well as ending on a very dower tone. Highly recommended if you'd like to be slightly depressed after a good read. Think more Chinatown, less LA Confidential... only with cartoons.

that would have made an interesting film to be honest, had they went the way of the actual book. i'd say it was Disney but i remember it was Touchstone pictures if memory serves me right. i am guessing Disney owns it now since Touchstone i don't think is even still around. ok i looked it up and they are still around and they are owned by Disney, anyways getting that out of the way,

the bone collector was a brilliant book and anyone who hasn't read it MUST read it. and the film is also a brilliant film. for those who have seen the film and not read the book, they do change a little bit but not much. what's left out is and i can't remember if this is in the film or not is Rhyme's desire to die. and there's a shit load of victims to i forget how many are in the film too. an FBI agent named Fred Dellray who more or less took the case away from Lincoln company. and than got his ass handed to him and had to give it back. he wasn't really in the book at all after that cept through mentioning him numerous times. unlike the film where you can prolly figure out who did it since it's a character that is on the screen a good portion of the film. in the book his name is changed and so is certain characters too. so some of them don't have the same name as in the film. even the killer's name is different too.

the film may be easy to figure out for some, but the book however is brillantly written and it's not revealed until very late in the book. you also learn where got the idea to be well the bone collector too. and he's got a history of sorts with Rhyme. that's all i'm saying, i only add that because i can't remember if that's in the film or not. and it's got a final twist in the book that isn't in the film either. that i'm not going to reveal here. in short both are really fantastic readings/films and a must watch and read.

now i'm reading 'The Thin Man by "Dashell Hammett i absolutely LOVE the (1934) film and most of the sequels are great but the last one which is a medicore film. but 1 meh film out of 5 others isn't too bad i think. anyways i am reading the (1934) book the film is based of it. no joke it came out the same year as the 1st film. it must have been a HUGE fucking hit at the time. and i'm on Chapter 9 in it and honestly it's pretty faithful to it so to it so far well the film anyways. leaving out swearing and a couple remarks with Nora Calling a character a bastard that i doubt is in the film.

so the book has certain elements in it that weren't in the film because of the haye's code that was around at the time. either way the book is honestly pretty damn good so far. it took me awhile to get used to his writing as his style is different than what i'm used to but oh well ya know?

that's 2 books that have great films and great books so it does indeed and can happen

i have since Finished The Thin Man and it was a really damn good book. it was pretty faithful to the film but like i said a tiny bit of it was changed.
but like i said the hayes code was prolly the reason. had it been made 30 years later i think it would have been done more like the book. but than in the 60's William Powell had retired from films by than. and he's perfectly cast in the role as is Myrna Loy as well.

anyways i'd love to see Piers Anthony's books into films those would be a really damn good films if done right. i'm Currently reading the 2nd book Called 'The Source of Magic from (1979) i've read i think over 20 of them. this one i read back in the 90's and so would be my 2nd read.

i'm reading them all in order as well. there's over 40 of them now and so each film would have a different cast a lot of the time. but the first two books have almost the same cast. but the thing about this series is if you look at each book most of them have different leads with only a select few that have the same character in 2 books in a row. than it follows their kids or someone else's kids... i dunno how an audience would take to that. i mean hell the Narnia films that i do love weren't big hits like the 1st one cause most people i think know the 1st book the most as i do for example.

and while the kids from the 1st book as kids and later adults are in other books in the series such as the last book in the series for example.
the audience was used to i think the original cast hence why those didn't make the kind of money the 1st one did.

Currently reading Invisble by James Patterson he's a favorite of mine even if 99% of the time these days he puts out books that he didn't put out himself. he never should have turned his named into a brand and what he ended up doing and instead just stayed a writer nobody would have complained. well nobody but the ones who can't stand him or his style i mean. unless of course his books are shit much like really any author i think.