THE GALLERY

The novel, one of Scott's best books, deals with the end of the age of chivalry in Europe, the rise of the new Machiavellian code of "power politics," and the attempts of young Scotsman, Quentin Durward, to live by the old rules while surviving in the new world. The movie is surprisingly faithful to the book and contains some great action scenes (particularly the climactic fight between hero Robert Taylor and villain Duncan Lamont). Robert Morley is perfect as the charming but morally bankrupt Louis XI, the key symbol––in book and movie––of the ruthless new world.Novel: 1823      Film: 1955

Based on two of Jules Verne's later novels (the title work and Robur the Conqueror), this film improves on its source material. Robur, in the two Verne books, is a genius who invents a dirigible, then an airplane, scorns ordinary humans and rarely uses his futuristic airships for anything other than impressing people in general. The movie steals from the film version of Mysterious Island and makes Robur an idealist who is bent on eliminating war in the world at any cost, with the help of his futuristic airship. The screenplay takes characters and plot elements from both books and works them into an engrossing narrative, with fine special effects work by Jim Danforth and Wah Chang.Novel: 1904      Film: 1961

Despite the altered title of the screen version, Disney's adaptation of Banner in the Sky is extremely faithful to the book. Ullman's story is a thrilling mountain-climbing story that also delves into such moral issues as whether one should place personal glory over the welfare of others, and the film follows the book very closely, getting every detail just right.Novel: 1954      Film: 1959

This movie is very popular and well-known, but it has almost nothing in common with the classic novel. The character of Allan Quartermain in the book-middle-aged, undersized, and cautious-is totally different from Stewart Granger's daredevil hero, and the other two leading characters of the book-the valiant Sir Henry Curtis and the comic Captain Goode-are not even present in the movie. The book-including as it does the lost Kukuana kingdom, the Chamber of the Dead, and the hideous witch Gagool--is a classic of fantastic adventure, while the movie is a handsomely produced but fairly realistic "jungle expedition" story.Novel: 1898      Film: 1950

One of Stevenson's lesser-known books, The Black Arrow is a lengthy but involving adventure yarn that portrays the shifting loyalties and blood-feuds that caused so much misery in England during the lengthy Wars of the Roses. The film is a solid, well-made picture, but has little in common with the book; it eliminates the novel's complexities of character and focuses on a simple "good guys vs. bad guys" swashbuckler. As a film, it is great fun, but it's only fair as an adaptation of Stevenson's book.Novel: 1888      Film: 1948

Doyle's story is the original "dinosaur adventure" classic, and the 1960 movie could have been an all-time classic dinosaur adventure movie. Unfortunately, Allen's soap-opera-ish screenplay misses Doyle's subtle characterization and dry humor, changes several of the novel's protagonists beyond recognition, and burdens the audience with far too many unlikable additional characters. Allen is also responsible for the use of cheap "dressed-up lizards" as "dinosaurs;" he scratched Willis O'Brien's elaborate stop-motion plans for the film as too expensive. This movie was and is a huge disappointment to anyone who loves Doyle's novel.Novel: 1912      Film: 1960

Langley takes an episodic 800-page book crammed full of funny incidents, picks out about a dozen of the funniest, strings them together into a sequential storyline, and still captures all the flavor of Dickens' classic story. The casting and performances are perfect, too-from James Hayter's Pickwick to Nigel Patrick's Jingle to James Donald's Mr. Winkle.Novel: 1836      Film: 1952

Wren's novel is a classic tale of adventure and self-sacrificing heroism, and the movie version is very faithful to the book, though for some reason the evil Sergeant's name is changed from Lejaune to Markoff and the villainous Boldini's to Rasinoff. Wellman's film is still a well-directed, well-cast, and respectful version of a great novel.Novel: 1924      Film: 1939

The movie is one example of a screen adaptation that vastly improves on the book. Wyss's tale is considered a classic of children's literature, but I've never met a child who could sit through his incessant sermons on industry, education, and natural history. The Disney film takes the elements of the story that appeal to everyone (the troubles of surviving and thriving on an isolated island), eliminates the lectures, and delivers a terrific adventure, chock-full of animals, beautiful scenery, and action.Novel: 1813      Film: 1960

Hitchcock was a great director and Buchan a great writer, but their styles don't entirely "match up". As a result, 39 Steps is much more a Hitchcock movie than a Buchan adaptation. Hitchcock and Buchan share an interest in the "man on the run" theme, and the scenes of Hannay (Donat) being pursued across the Scotch Highlands are quite in the spirit of the book. But Buchan's good-natured attitude towards human foibles and Hitchcock's more satirical approach are very different, and the suave, wise-cracking Hannay in the film isn't very similar to Buchan's more down-to-earth character. The movie is great and so is the book, but they're very different in tone and flavor.Novel: 1915      Film: 1935

The 1937 film is a tremendously entertaining adaptation of a classic novel that captures the book's flavor perfectly. Ronald Colman, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Madeline Carroll, Raymond Massey, C. Aubrey Smith, and David Niven make one of the best casts a movie could have, and bring Hope's characters to vivid life.Novel: 1894      Film: 1937

Wister's book is a masterful portrait of the life of the American cowboy, but perhaps its episodic nature doesn't translate well to screen. The movie version is simply an ordinary Western that takes only one of the book's themes-the Virginian's struggles against cattle rustlers-and builds the movie around it. Joel McCrea is also miscast in the title role; much as I like him, he's too articulate and serious to be the tight-lipped but whimsical hero of Wister's story.Novel: 1902      Film: 1946