Hello there and welcome to Thursday Movie Picks a weekly series where you share your movie picks each Thursday. The rules are simple: based on the theme of the week pick three to five movies and tell us why you picked them. For further details and the schedule visit the series main page here.
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This week's Thursday Movie Picks is Adaptations
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Today is one of those annual themes. I'm picking once again recent watches. I haven't read any of the books they're based on, but I did enjoy their adaptations.
Enola Holmes (2020)
Based
on a children's book series - Sherlock Holme's teen sister, Enola, sets
off on her own to find her missing mother using what she thinks are
clues left by her. This was such a charming, funny and fun adventure
movie. If I was 12, I would have loved this and probably watch it
repeatedly.Based on the book of the same name - A writer forms a friendship with residents of Guernsey Island who had formed a book club during WWII where reading and talking about books became an escape from the harsh life of living under Nazi occupation. I picked this back for the Bookish theme and it's here again as it fittingly fits today's theme and because I like this charming romantic drama.
Stonehearst Asylum (2014)
Based on a short story by Edgar Allen Poe - A new graduate, the alienist Dr Newgate arrives at Stonehearst Asylum to expand his training. He soon realises something is not quite right in the asylum. Asylums are scary especially those ones in the past; if you've heard of Nellie Bly, you'd know of how terribly patients used to be treated. The ill treatment of patients plays a large role in what eventually happens in the movie. Anyway I really enjoyed this gothic psychological drama and there are two good twists in the story: one which happens quite early on and the other at the very end.
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I've only seen Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society which was good but I wish they had cast a strong more magnetic actress in the lead than Lily James. The book is one of my favorites and she just doesn't capture Juliet. Still the story was strong enough that she didn't spoil the film.
ReplyDeleteThe other two sound interesting I'll have to add them to my to see list.
I decided that since this was open to interpretation I’d go with stage to screen adaptations. I limited myself to ones where I had seen both the film and a production of the play on Broadway.
Into the Woods (2014)-Adaptation of the Sondheim musical reimaging of classic fairy tales-Rapunzel, Cinderella, the Baker & His Wife etc.-with an impressive cast (Meryl Streep, Chris Pine, Tracey Ullman among others) is enjoyable but misses the magic of the stage production despite CGI and the utilization of location shooting. I saw this in 1988 at the Martin Beck Theatre, though Phylicia Rashad had by that time replaced Bernadette Peters who had originated the role of the Witch.
Gypsy (1962)-Star powered (Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood and Karl Malden in the leads) filmization of the classic stage play based on the memoirs of ecdysiast Gypsy Rose Lee growing up in the shadow of her more talented sister June and her fearsomely aggressive stage mother Mama Rose that Ethel Merman made legendary when it opened in 1959 with a score by Jules Styne & Stephen Sondheim. I saw the 2003 revival with Bernadette Peters as Mama Rose at the St. James Theatre.
MacBeth (1948)-Moody expressionistic take on the Shakespeare “Scottish Play” about the price of unfettered ambition and lust for power by a courtier (Orson Welles) and his rapacious wife (Jeanette Nolan). I saw the production starring Christopher Plummer (he was very good) and Glenda Jackson (she was electrifying!) at the Mark Hellinger Theatre in 1988.
I didn't like Into the Woods, it has been some time since I saw it but I think it was because it felt like two movies. I suppose it would make sense on stage because of intermission, but for a movie it felt so disjointed.
DeleteOoooh I LOVE Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society!! I love the movie and it made me want to read the book now. I adore Enola Holmes too, but I haven't seen Stonehearst Asylum yet.
ReplyDeleteI'm not really a reader of historical fiction nor epistolary novel, so it's a pass on reading TGLaPPS.
DeleteI'm 0/3 on your picks this week! The last 2 are completely new to me.
ReplyDeleteI tremendously enjoyed the Enola Holmes movie!
ReplyDeleteIt is so much fun.
DeleteI keep hearing such good things about Enola Holmes. I guess I'll check it out.
ReplyDeleteI haven’t seen the first 2 which sound fun to watch but did see the last one which was better than what I thought it would be.
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked the last pick. I didn't really have any expectations, but I had already known what the first twist was coming in. The second though was a surprise.
DeleteDarn, I forgot to add my link again but yesh, I liked Enola Holmes. Didn't love love it as I wanted to but still enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteIf you're late just leave a link in your comment.
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