Edmond Dantès
Dantès the White
Surpassing something can encompass many things including; commercial success, cultural impact, plaudits and rewards received, etc.
Let's concentrate on the two most fundamental aspects though; storytelling (how successful the adaptation is at telling the story) and entertainment levels (how much joy you garnered from the adaptation).
I'll start with five films that I think have surpassed their source material in terms of the criteria mentioned above.
Last of the Mohicans
The novel is a very dry read, whereas the film is an absolute thrill ride, especially the final act. Michael Mann streamlined the narrative quite successfully, with only one real loss; the characterization of Magua. You feel genuine sympathy for him in the novel, where his actions are somewhat justified, this certainly isn't evident in the film though.
Jaws
A run of the mill story by Peter Benchley that was brought to life by Steven Spielberg. The film added as sense of dread and horror that the novel just didn't have.
Fight Club
Fight Club is a very enjoyable read, but the film is on a whole different level in terms of the fleshing out the characters and the telling of the story, as well as entertainment levels.
Ben Hur
A long forgotten novel that is a challenging but ultimately rewarding read. It does drag in parts and some of the characters are very flat and wholly forgettable in comparison to William Wyler's adaptation. The film adds a sense of gravitas and grandioseness to the story as well as adding real depth to some of the characters. The film is regarded as one of the greatest epics of all time alongside Lawrence of Arabia and rightly so. The chariot race is a sight to behold on the silver screen and far surpasses the description of it in the book.
Shawshank Redemption
An obvious choice. The novella by Stephen King was thoroughly decent, but wasn't anything ground breaking. Frank Darabont took the narrative and instead of omitting or streamlining, he expand upon it to great effect. The characterization of Brooks in particular was a very thought provoking addition to the narrative.
The Prestige
The film does a better job of conveying the hatred that existed between Angier and Borden in comparison to the novel. The omission of the contemporary setting with the descendants of Angier and Borden dealing with the repercussions of their ancestors' great feud was a good decision on Christopher Nolan's part. It would have been very jarring to go back and fourth between the contemporary and period setting throughout the film and time consuming.
A pre-emptive mention of The Lord of the Rings, because I know it'll be mentioned.
Let's concentrate on the two most fundamental aspects though; storytelling (how successful the adaptation is at telling the story) and entertainment levels (how much joy you garnered from the adaptation).
I'll start with five films that I think have surpassed their source material in terms of the criteria mentioned above.
Last of the Mohicans
The novel is a very dry read, whereas the film is an absolute thrill ride, especially the final act. Michael Mann streamlined the narrative quite successfully, with only one real loss; the characterization of Magua. You feel genuine sympathy for him in the novel, where his actions are somewhat justified, this certainly isn't evident in the film though.
Jaws
A run of the mill story by Peter Benchley that was brought to life by Steven Spielberg. The film added as sense of dread and horror that the novel just didn't have.
Fight Club
Fight Club is a very enjoyable read, but the film is on a whole different level in terms of the fleshing out the characters and the telling of the story, as well as entertainment levels.
Ben Hur
A long forgotten novel that is a challenging but ultimately rewarding read. It does drag in parts and some of the characters are very flat and wholly forgettable in comparison to William Wyler's adaptation. The film adds a sense of gravitas and grandioseness to the story as well as adding real depth to some of the characters. The film is regarded as one of the greatest epics of all time alongside Lawrence of Arabia and rightly so. The chariot race is a sight to behold on the silver screen and far surpasses the description of it in the book.
Shawshank Redemption
An obvious choice. The novella by Stephen King was thoroughly decent, but wasn't anything ground breaking. Frank Darabont took the narrative and instead of omitting or streamlining, he expand upon it to great effect. The characterization of Brooks in particular was a very thought provoking addition to the narrative.
The Prestige
The film does a better job of conveying the hatred that existed between Angier and Borden in comparison to the novel. The omission of the contemporary setting with the descendants of Angier and Borden dealing with the repercussions of their ancestors' great feud was a good decision on Christopher Nolan's part. It would have been very jarring to go back and fourth between the contemporary and period setting throughout the film and time consuming.
A pre-emptive mention of The Lord of the Rings, because I know it'll be mentioned.
