LITERARY TV AND FILM ADAPTATIONS
Releasing Normal People to the small screen in the current climate has either been a stroke of genius by the BBC to keep us glued to our televisions or a subtle way to torture anyone who has been locked up alone or with their parents. Only you know which camp you’re in. Normal People is based on Sally Rooney’s incredibly popular 2018 novel that focuses on the impossibility of a healthy relationship when class and status are ever present. It follows the lives and romance of Connell and Marianne from their schooldays in Sligo, Northern Ireland to their university days, delving into the complexities that they face as adolescents navigating growing up, relationships, sex, fitting in and communication. The BBC’s adaptation takes the spare prose and faithfully translates it to the screen through careful camerawork that captures the characters’ desire and tenderness. At times it makes for uncomfortable viewing as the narrative explores Marianne and Connell’s uncommon and magnetic bond.
Watching the excellent series got me thinking about some of the other book-based film and TV adaptations I’ve enjoyed over the years, as there’s a very specific pleasure to be had in watching a text you love come alive on the big and small screen alike. The following list is by no means exhaustive — we simply want to share some adaptations that we found as enjoyable to watch as we did to read.
The Handmaid’s Tale
Dystopia meets feminism in Margaret Atwood’s classic The Handmaid’s Tale. I read the book as a teenager and it left a lasting impression, especially when I read Atwood say that the atrocities experienced by women in the novel were taken from history and contemporary culture. The novel imagines a world where patriarchy is the law of the land following a disaster that leaves some women infertile, forcing the ones that are into reproductive slavery. The TV adaptation, starring the inimitable Elizabeth Moss, envisions this dark new reality through graphic costumes, claustrophobic sets, and subtle elements of horror. It’s not an easy watch and one I found best to not ‘binge’, letting myself digest and reflect on each episode.
The Night Manager
John le Carré’s writing is a frequent source of inspiration for film and TV makers, so much so that you’re very likely to have seen at least one out of the following: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, The Constant Gardener or A Most Wanted Man, which are all based on his novels. The Night Manager is one of the more fantastical stories, asking its reader to suspend disbelief in favour of great entertainment. The plot follows a former soldier, played by Tom Hiddleston, working as a hotel employee in Cairo as he’s recruited to locate and capture a notorious arms dealer, played by Hugh Laurie. The TV adaptation brings le Carré’s world to life in serious style with fantastic performances from all the actors. It’s a great watch if you’re after intrigue, romance, and a thrilling plot.
Big Little Lies
Liane Moriarty’s 2014 novel made a huge splash upon release, swiftly topping the New York Times Bestseller List. The plot follows three women who meet at their children’s prestigious private school and gives us a glimpse into the complex lives underneath the shiny and well-manicured exterior. The adaptation stars some of Hollywood's biggest stars — Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern, Zoe Kravits, and Shailene Woodley. Each of the three main characters has secrets she’s keeping close to her chest, making life behind closed doors something she has to hide with a smile at the school gates. Big Little Lies explores how trauma affects the lives of these women and what happens when one of them is pushed to the brink.
Sex and The City
I rewatch Sex and The City once every couple of years, it’s a truly iconic show with a lot more to offer on further rewatches. So much of today’s television about women is indebted to this show as it dared to portray women over thirty (a big deal on its debut in 1998) as happy, thriving, often single and not in competition with each other. I highly recommend Emily Nussbaum’s essay for The New Yorker if you’d like to read an analysis of the show and its heroines. And of course there would be no TV show without Candace Bushnell’s funny and brilliantly observed book of the same name, which is full to the brim of gossip, cocktails, the New York social scene, and wry insights into dating, sex, careers and marriage that are still relevant today.
the Talented Mr Ripley
The film version of Talented Mr Ripley is known and loved by many. Who wouldn’t trade a little murder and deceit for a cold Negroni and a sing-along in an Italian bar? Starring Matt Damon, Jude Law, and Gwyneth Paltrow, the film takes us from the sun-drenched Italian coast to Rome’s historical piazzas with a tightly woven plot that keeps tensions high. The titular Mr Ripley was first conceived by writer Patricia Highsmith and the novel is considered one of the greatest examples of 20th century crime writing. In the novel, Tom Ripley works hard to seduce you, the reader, eliciting empathy against your will. His downfall begins the minute he sets foot in Italy and falls in love with the beauty and lifestyle on offer, which creates a truly gripping crime narrative that’s impossible to put down. And the film, directed by Anthony Minghella is equally thrilling and is also very aesthetically pleasing, with the outfits to match.
A Single Man
Many will be familiar with A Single Man thanks to Tom Ford’s 2010 film. It’s a gorgeously shot drama starring Colin Firth as a grieving and heartbroken English professor residing in an enviably stylish home in a Californian suburb. Ford adapted his screenplay from Christopher Isherwood’s perfectly contained novel of the same name and it’s one I recommend often for its poignancy and insightfulness. There’s a lot to gain from the novel even if you have already seen the film (and if you haven’t I would urge you to read the novel first, then indulge in the film). The sobering style of the prose succinctly communicates beauty and love, alienation and loneliness. It’s also one of the only instances where I enjoyed reading the book just as much as watching the film, without compromise. Ford adapted the novel faithfully while dressing the actors and the set with utmost style.
Call Me by your name
One of the most heart-wrenching and exquisitely-written books about homosexual love and adolescent love for that matter that addresses the pain, suffering and also beauty that can go hand in hand with falling in love for the first time. The film won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, so we couldn’t write a list of adaptations without including it and the Director, Luca Guadagnino (best known for I Am Love and A Bigger Splash, both starring Tilda Swindon), truly does it justice with his signature visually sensual filming style that’s drenched with nostalgia. He perfectly captures the raw innocence of Elio and Oliver’s complicated love story as well as the romance and allure associated with the Italian countryside.
Little Women
I was very excited, but also a little apprehensive when going to see Greta Gerwig’s recent adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women earlier this year, as I loved the first film adaptation starring Winona Ryder and Christian Bale. But I needn’t have been worried as Gerwig puts her astute and unique spin on the late 19th century novel that remains faithful to its narrative, whilst enhancing the books colourful characters, to the point that I even preferred it to the original.
Words by Zhenya Tsenzharyk & Marissa Cox.
