Books You'd Like To See Made Into Film

[soundmotor]

I've got a quite a few rattling around but I'll start with these from my sci-fi bend -

A Wrinkle In Time -

Seems like the natural progession now that Narnia Chronicles & The Hobbit are underway, The LOTR is complete, and The Last Mimzy is coming. One of my favorite stories growing up.

Neuromancer -

Still one of my alltime Gibson favorites although "The Idoru" set comes close to displacing it.

Hyperion -

This one moved the bar for me on malevolent machine intellect.

What are your choices?

[Sandy G]

"Warday" by Whitley Strieber & Jim Kunetka. A novel set 5 years after WW3, it is done in a quasi-documentary style. New York got it, of course, Washington got turned into glass, as did the missile fields in the Dakotas. The South & California remained pretty much unscathed, except for San Antonio, Texas. The war only lasted about 1/2 an hour, after Washington & Moscow blasted each other it was over. It now seems fairly quaint, as it was written 1983 when the Soviet Union was still very much in business. Due to EMP damage, most of the solid-state electronics were rendered inoperable, most cars didn't work due to electronic ignitions being fried. Another one was "Guns of the South" which was a "What if?" novel, by Harry Turtledove. In it, white supremacists from the future go back in time, & give Gen. Rob't E. Lee & the Army of Northern Virginia AK-47s...The 1st part is pretty much fun, as Bobby Lee & Co. get to soundly thrash the Yankees-Hehehehe-but the 2nd half is kinda preachy about slavery & all that. I'd like to see 'em give Gen Patton about 5 B-52s & 2 or 3 companies' worth of M1A1 Abrams & see how fast he coulda won WW2...

[soundmotor]

Originally Posted by Sandy G

"Warday" by Whitley Strieber & Jim Kunetka. A novel set 5 years after WW3, it is done in a quasi-documentary style. New York got it, of course, Washington got turned into glass, as did the missile fields in the Dakotas. The South & California remained pretty much unscathed, except for San Antonio, Texas. The war only lasted about 1/2 an hour, after Washington & Moscow blasted each other it was over. It now seems fairly quaint, as it was written 1983 when the Soviet Union was still very much in business. Due to EMP damage, most of the solid-state electronics were rendered inoperable, most cars didn't work due to electronic ignitions being fried. Another one was "Guns of the South" which was a "What if?" novel, by Harry Turtledove. In it, white supremacists from the future go back in time, & give Gen. Rob't E. Lee & the Army of Northern Virginia AK-47s...The 1st part is pretty much fun, as Bobby Lee & Co. get to soundly thrash the Yankees-Hehehehe-but the 2nd half is kinda preachy about slavery & all that. I'd like to see 'em give Gen Patton about 5 B-52s & 2 or 3 companies' worth of M1A1 Abrams & see how fast he coulda won WW2...

I was just thinking about "Warday" today as I was reading "The Road". Nuclear hell aftermath. I'd go for "Guns of the South" too. Enjoyable read as Turtledove usually is.

[wajobu]

After London, by the Victorian era nature writer Richard Jefferies. It was one of THE first science fiction books...even before some of HG Wells' classics. The story of London (and Great Britain) after some kind of worldwide disaster...natural or manmade. Jefferies also wrote his remarkable mystic autobiography, The Story of My Heart, shortly before his death in the late 1880s.

Like many other now public domain works, it's available here at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/13944
The Victorian era writing takes some getting used to, but stick with it.

[Holst]

I'm going to have to check out Jefferiers.

I was thinking HG Wells myself.

Tono Bungay, likely his best novel and not science fiction. It's about the end of Victorian England and the rise of industrialism.

Or as it's sez here

Tono-Bungay (1909) is widely regarded as Wells's finest novel, combining futuristic science fiction and contemporary social satire. In it, George Ponderovo is apprenticed to his Uncle Edward, a dynamic chemist who invents a bogus medicine, Tono-Bungay, and earns a vast fortune. But as he witnesses Edward's spectacular rise, he also contemplates the corrupt English society that allows his uncle to wield so much power. No other writer has the breadth of Wells to encompass both George's personal breakdown and the full panorama of a degenerate imperial society.

http://www.online-literature.com/wellshg/tonobungay/

I read it here first, I now own the book. It inspired Ralph Vaughan Williams "London Symphony".

Again Victorian English is a pill but well worth it.

I'm off to read "After London", I love this era.

[wajobu]

After London is REALLY special as a First Edition, and even a late 19th C reprint. There's just something about an old book.

The Pageant of Summer is pretty special too, but not as a movie: http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/414

The Story of My Heart is here: http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/2317

[John in MA]

The complete Arkady Renko series from Martin Cruz Smith. Gorky Park was made into a so-so movie, but I bet all of them would be great with some effort.

[tentoze]

Always thought that Lovecraft's At The Mountains Of Madness would make a terrific film, in the right hands of course. Last weekend,one of my twins said some decent director (don't remember who, I'm not a follower of cinema at all) has it on his plate as a future project, finally.

[Filmboydoug]

Originally Posted by soundmotor

Neuromancer -

I swear I had this very thought a few days ago.

Originally Posted by tentoze

Always thought that Lovecraft's At The Mountains Of Madness would make a terrific film, in the right hands of course. Last weekend,one of my twins said some decent director

Not Decent, excellent is more like it. http://www.deltorofilms.com/ProjectPage.php?projectid=9

[EchoWars]

1000 Destroyed

The Life and Times of the 4th Fighter Group.

[WhiteSE]

Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov....

[70salesguy]

Atlas Shrugged

[Soundthought]

L. Ron Hubbards' "Mission Earth" dekology.

I think it would make a great 2 or 3 part movie.
Definately, one of my all time favorite stories.
Full of plot twists, action, and political controversy.
Heh.
I've read it twice.....
And i'm working on the third time.
Mostly because I gleen new information from it every time I read it as i get older.

You know.....wisdom, savvy and all.

It's a true sci-fi satire..
....and at 1.2 million words, could be edited to any given degree.
Literally.


Regards,
John.

[rickon66]

"The Earth Abides"- A plague kills 99.99% of the people on earth. The people and domestic animals have to cope with a new reality.. Great read!

[2DualsNotEnough]

Originally Posted by tentoze

Always thought that Lovecraft's At The Mountains Of Madness would make a terrific film, in the right hands of course. Last weekend,one of my twins said some decent director (don't remember who, I'm not a follower of cinema at all) has it on his plate as a future project, finally.

Del Toro is the best of all possible worlds as a choice for director of this material.But did you see the note about the studio wanting to add a love store,but the director told them to get lost.
Jimmy