Movie adaptation: ‘It’ by Stephen King

itcover2 — The feature film adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘It’ opens in theaters on Friday September 8, 2017.

The last time audiences experienced Stephen King’s “It” was in 1990 by way of a television mini-series starring Tim Curry as Pennywise the Clown. The latest adaptation of the best-selling horror novel opens in theaters on Friday September 8, 2017. It is also known as It Part 1 The Losers Club because it is intended to be the first installment in a planned duology. The supernatural horror movie tells the story of seven children in Derry, Maine who are terrorized by a shapeshifting supernatural being while facing their own personal demons. This time around it is Bill Skarsgård’s turn to give life to Pennywise.

In “It,” Seven adults return to their hometown to confront a nightmare they had first live through as teenagers and it is an evil without a name so they call it ‘It.’ They are now grown men and women who have moved on with their lives and achieved success and happiness. Twenty-eight years ago, they promised to return if it ever resurfaced. Now that children are being murdered again they are back and so are their repressed memories of a terrifying summer when they battled an evil creature that preyed on the city’s children. The creature appears in the form of a clown to attract its preferred prey of young children, but it also exploits the fears and phobias of its victims to disguise itself. The story is told through alternating narratives between two time periods and recurring themes include the power of memory, childhood trauma and overcoming evil through mutual trust and sacrifice.

Movie adaptation: ‘The Glass Castle’ by Jeannette Walls

Jeannette Walls is an American author and journalist best known as former gossip columnist for msnbc.com. Her memoir, “The Glass Castle,” tells the story of her childhood nomadic family and spent years on The New York Times best seller list. It sold over 2.7 million copies and has been translated into multiple languages. The movie adaptation starring Brie Larson, Naomi Watts and Woody Harrelson opens in theaters on Friday August 11, 2017.

According to Amazon, in “The Glass Castle” Walls recounts the unconventional, poverty-stricken upbringing she and her siblings had at the hands of their dysfunctional parents. When sober, her brilliant and charismatic father captured his children’s imagination while teaching them physics, geology and how to embrace life fearlessly. As a drunk, he was dishonest and destructive. Their mother was a free spirit who disliked the idea of domesticity. Because she did not like the responsibility of raising a family, the Walls children learned to take care of themselves and eventually moved to New York. Their parents followed them but even as their children prospered, they were often homeless. It is a story of resilience, redemption and a family whose life was both dysfunctional and vibrant.

Movie adaptation: The Dark Tower series by Stephen King

darktowerposter — The movie adaptation of The Dark Tower opens in theaters this Friday August 3, 2017.

Stephen King is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, science fiction and fantasy. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and many of them have been adapted into feature films, miniseries, television shows and comic books. He is best known for “Carrie,” “It,” “The Green Mile” and the Dark Tower series. The movie adaptation of the Dark Tower series is set to be released on Friday August 4 and stars Idris Elba as Roland Deschain, a gunslinger on a quest to protect the Dark Tower, and Matthew McConaughey as his nemesis, Walter o’Dim, the ‘Man in Black.’

According to Wikipedia, the Dark Tower is a series of eight books that combines multiple genres including dark fantasy, science fantasy, horror and Western. It expands on King’s multiverse and links together many of his other novels. The story centers on a “gunslinger” and his quest to protect the Dark Tower, a mythical structure which supports all realties. The inspirations for the series includes the poem “Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came” by Robert Browning as well as The Lord of the Rings, Arthurian Legend and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. The movie is a continuation of the series and takes place in both modern-day New York City and Mid-World, Roland’s Old West-style parallel universe. Roland is on a quest to reach the Dark Tower in End-World and reach the nexus point between time and space that he hopes will save humanity from extinction. It is a sequel to the events that take place in the books.

Movie adaptation: ‘My Cousin Rachel’ by Daphne du Maurier

mycousinrachelpic1 — The movie adaptation of ‘My Cousin Rachel’ by Daphne du Maurier is now in theaters.

Daphne du Maurier was an English author and playwright whose works are described as nonconventional and moody with overtones of the paranormal despite being classified as a romantic novelist. Her works include the novels “Rebecca,” “My Cousin Rachel” and “Jamaica Inn” and the short stories “The Birds” and “Don’t Look Now/Not After Midnight.” The newest movie adaptation of “My Cousin Rachel” is now in limited release and stars Rachel Weisz, Sam Claflin, Iain Glen and Holliday Grainger. It tells the story of a young man in Cornwall who meets the wife of his older cousin and suspects her of having been responsible for his death.

According to Amazon, “My Cousin Rachel” is set in 19^th century England where Philip Ashley was orphaned at a young age and is raised by his older cousin Ambrose. Ambrose is single and loves Philip as his own and considers him his heir. Their perfect world is turned upside down when Ambrose goes on a trip to Florence where he falls in love, gets married and just as suddenly dies. The new widow, Rachel, turns up in England shortly after that. She is beautiful, sophisticated and mysterious and even though she may have had something to do with Ambrose’s death, Philip is drawn to her.

Movie adaptation: ‘The Dinner’ by Herman Koch

thedinnerpic — The movie adaptation of ‘The Dinner’ by Herman Koch is due out in theaters on Friday May 5, 2017. Photo: Barnes & Noble

Herman Koch is a Dutch actor and writer who has written short stories, novels and columns. He is best known for his 2009 international best-selling novel “The Dinner.” It has been translated into 21 languages and has been adapted into three films. The new American adaptation will be released on Friday May 5 and stars Richard Gere as Stan Lohman, Steve Coogan as Paul Lohman and Laura Linney as Claire Lohman.

According to Amazon, “The Dinner” is a suspenseful and controversial story of two families struggling to make the hardest decision of their lives all during one meal. The story is narrated by Paul Lohman, a former history teacher. His wife is Claire and they meet his older brother Serge, a politician and his wife Babette at a fashionable restaurant for dinner. Between courses the conversation at first remains polite but they are aware of the underlying topic that they will eventually have to discuss. Each couple has a fifteen-year-old son named Michael and Rick respectively who committed a crime that was filmed by a security camera and shown on TV but they have yet to be identified. The point of the meeting between the parents is for them to decide on what to do. Eventually the meal ends and politeness and friendship break down as each couple displays just how far they are willing to go to protect those they love.

The Graduate back in theaters this month

This year marks the 50^th anniversary of the 1967 comedy-drama The Graduate directed by Mike Nichols and starring Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft and Katharine Ross. It is the movie adaptation of the novel of the same name by Charles Webb who wrote it shortly after graduating from college. Dustin Hoffman stars as 21 year-old Benjamin Braddock, an aimless recent college graduate who is seduced by an older woman, Mrs. Robinson, then falls in love with her daughter. Through TCM/Fathom Events, on April 23 and 26 the nationwide theatrical premiere of the new 4K digital restoration will be out in theaters. This restoration had its World Premiere earlier this month at the TCL Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood during this year’s TCM Classic Film Festival. It will play in over 700 theaters nationwide as part of TCM and Fathom Events’ monthly “TCM Big Screen Classics” series. The Graduate was the biggest box office surprise of the decade and was nominated for seven Oscars and the Top 40 Simon & Garfunkel soundtrack paved the way for a new youthful trend in soundtrack music. (Rialto Pictures, 2017)

Charles Webb is an American novelist best known for his debut novel ‘The Graduate.’ After Benjamin Braddock graduates from a small Eastern college he moves back home with his parents and suddenly everyone wants to know what his future plans are. Disappointed by his prospects for a career, he has an affair with Mrs. Robinson, the seductive wife of his father’s business partner. When her daughter Elaine comes to visit her parents, Benjamin falls for her and has an epiphany about the direction of his life. Unfortunately, Mrs. Robinson is also a protective mother and so a battle of wits takes place with love and idealism overtaking the forces of corruption and conformity.

Movie adaptation: ‘The Circle’ by Dave Eggers

Dave Eggers is an American author, editor and publisher whose work includes “Your Fathers, Where Are They? And the Prophets, Do They Live Forever?” “Heroes of the Frontier” and “The Circle.” He is the founder of McSweeney’s, an independent publishing company in San Francisco that publishes books, a quarterly journal of new writing and a monthly magazine. The movie adaptation of “The Circle” starring Tom Hanks and Emma Watson will be out on theaters on Friday April 28, 2017. It is the bestselling dystopian novel about surveillance, privacy and the growing intrusions of technology in everyday life.

According to Amazon, “The Circle” tells the story of tech worker Mae Holland who after college starts a new job at a powerful internet company called The Circle. The Circle’s work links users’ personal emails, social media, banking and purchasing with their universal operating system resulting in one online identity. Employees enjoy open plan office spaces, impressive glass dining facilities, dorm rooms for those who spend nights at work, parties and other ammenities. Soon her life beyond the job gets smaller and her experiences at work get weirder by the day as she must deal with questions about memory, history, privacy, democracy and the limits of the human knowledge. At first, she sees it as the opportunity of a lifetime but the longer she works there the more things start to fall apart.

Movie adaptation: ‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks’ by Rebecca Skloot

immortalhenrietta — The movie adaptation of ‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks’ by Rebecca Skloot will air on HBO on Sunday April 22, 2017. Photo: Amazon

Rebecca Skloot is a science writer who specializes in science and medicine and whose articles have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, O, The Oprah Magazine and others. Her first book “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” was on the best seller list for over two years on The New York Times. It has been translated into more than twenty languages and has been adapted into an HBO produced movie by Oprah Winfrey. Set to air on Sunday April 22 it stars Oprah Winfrey as Deborah Lacks and Rose Byrne as Rebecca Skloot.

According to Amazon, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” is a nonfiction book about Henrietta Lacks and the immoral cell line known as HeLa that came from her cancer cells in 1951. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors. Her cells were taken without her knowledge and became one of the most important tools in modern medicine. They are the first “immortal” human cells grown in culture and even though she has been dead for more than sixty years these cells are still alive today. HeLa cells were vital in developing the polio vaccine and helped paved the way to such medical advances as in vitro fertilization, cloning and gene mapping. Despite all this she remains virtually unknown and is buried in an unmarked grave. The author covers everything from the “colored” ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1950s to Henrietta’s family’s lives as they struggle with the legacy of her cells. Themes include the drama of scientific discovery, the ethics of experimentation and all its human consequences.

Movie adaptation: ‘The Lost City of Z’ by David Grann

lostcityofzpic — The movie adaptation of ‘The Lost City of Z’ by David Grann will be out on Friday April 21, 2017. Photo: Barnes & Noble

David Grann is an American journalist, a staff writer for The New Yorker magazine and The New York Times’ best-selling author. His stories have appeared in several anthologies and he has written for The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and The Weekly Standard. “The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon” is his debut non-fiction book and has been translated into more than twenty-five languages. It tells the story of the British explorer Percy Fawcett who disappeared with his son in 1925 while looking for an ancient lost city. The movie adaptation starring Charlie Hunnam as Fawcett, Robert Pattinson as his fellow explorer Henry Costin and Sienna Miller as his wife Nina Fawcett will be released on Friday April 21, 2017.

According to Amazon, “The Lost City of Z” is a narrative nonfiction that centers around the legendary British explorer who went into the Amazon jungle in search of a fabled civilization and never returned. In the decades that followed, explorers and scientists have tried to find any evidence of his party and the Lost City of Oz and as many as 100 people have died or disappeared. Eventually Grann did his own investigation and discovered new evidence about how Fawcett died and the location of the missing city. He combines stories the stories about Fawcett’s quest for the city and his own journey into the deadly jungle as he unravels one of the twentieth century’s biggest mystery.

Movie adaptation: ‘The Sense of an Ending’ by Julian Barnes

Julian Barnes is an English writer who has published collections of essays, short stories, non-fiction works and nine novels. His works have been translated into more than forty languages and three of his novels have been finalists for the Booker Prize including “Flaubert’s Parrot,” “England, England” and “Arthur & George.” His book “The Sense of an Ending” won the Man Booker Prize and has been adapted into a movie which is now in limited release. It stars Jim Broadbent, Charlotte Rampling, Harriet Walter, Emily Mortimer and Michelle Dockery.

According to Amazon, “The Sense of an Ending” is narrated by a retired man named Tony Webster who is reminiscing about how he and his friends met Adrian Finn and vowed to remain friends for life. He thought he had left his past behind until those friends return, one from the grave and another from the present. His career has provided him a comfortable retirement and he has a stable relationship with his ex-wife and daughter who now has a family of her own. When presented with a mysterious legacy he is forced to confront his past and reflect on the path he and his friends have taken as well as his place in the world.

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