Archive through November 15, 2002
MoveCloseDeleteAdmin

TV ClubHouse: archive: Library - Miscellaneous thru May 2003: Casting mistakes when books were made into movies: Archive through November 15, 2002

Hummingbird

Tuesday, October 29, 2002 - 09:28 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Richard Chamberlain in The Thornbirds -- nowhere near sexy enough!

Bruce Willis in Bondfire of the Vanities -- actually the whole thing was miscast!

Hummingbird

Tuesday, October 29, 2002 - 09:36 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Wesley Snipes in Rising Sun

Hummingbird

Tuesday, October 29, 2002 - 09:39 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Miscasting mistakes looks redundant now that I see it in print. Should have titled the thread Casting mistakes when books were made into movies.

Marysafan

Wednesday, October 30, 2002 - 06:05 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Clint Eastwood as Robert Kinkaid in the Bridges of Madison County. Unfortunately, Clint bought the rights to the book, so no one else had a chance at it....but I always thought it should have been Robert Redford in that role.

Goddessatlaw

Wednesday, October 30, 2002 - 04:06 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Robin Williams as Garp. Maybe it was the screenplay, I don't know, but that movie bummed my hide. The casting of that movie destroyed every character I'd imagined from the book, and contributed greatly toward my inability to suspend disbelief.

Hummingbird

Wednesday, October 30, 2002 - 10:15 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Loved Garp (book)and have read almost everything written by John Irving since. Because of the movie, John Lithgow will forever be Roberta Muldoon to me no matter what else he does. I agree about Williams.

Goddessatlaw

Friday, November 01, 2002 - 04:18 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Hummingbird, Garp is one of the most well-written books I've ever read, novel or non-fiction. It had a tremendous impact on my own writing style (along with all things Linda Ellerbee and Tom Wolfe), and I remember reading the book multiple times because it just made me laugh out loud. I've developed a strong aversion to seeing movies based on books I loved because of the movie version of Garp. It really and sadly destroyed the book for me.

Marysafan

Saturday, November 02, 2002 - 06:31 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Thanks you guys! I didn't like the Garp movie very much at all...so I shied away from reading the book. Now that years...(make that decades) have past and my memeory of it has faded...I will add the book to my "must read someday" list.

Goddessatlaw

Saturday, November 02, 2002 - 07:21 am EditMoveDeleteIP
It really is a must read, Marysafan - hope you love it, too.

Buttercup

Saturday, November 02, 2002 - 09:32 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Jim Carrey as Joe as an adult in the movie Simon Birch.

The movie--which definitely is worth watching--is adapted from John Irving's book A Prayer for Owen Meany, one of my all time favorite books.

I listened to Garp on audio while driving cross country last year--it sure made for an interesting drive

Buttercup

Turtletrackz

Saturday, November 02, 2002 - 03:51 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Tom Cruise as Lestat. Ugh.

Twinkie

Sunday, November 03, 2002 - 12:37 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Hummingbird, Richard Chamberlain was the main reason why i loved the movie. I'd had a huge crush on him for years. To each his own I guess.

Jasonfan

Sunday, November 03, 2002 - 07:54 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
This may be controversial, but . . .Tom Hanks as Forrest Gump. The whole movie was a mistake compared to the novel. Anyone else think so?

I had my doubts about Kevin Spacey as Quoyle in The Shipping News, but I think he made it work.

Seamonkey

Sunday, November 03, 2002 - 09:01 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Julieanne Moore in the Agent Starling role in the movie "Hannibal".. they should have made changes and gotten Jodie Foster back..

Marysafan

Monday, November 04, 2002 - 08:20 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Robert Mitchum in Herman Wouk's the "Winds of War". That part was grossly miscast. The character was short, stocky, dynamic, and had sex appeal. Mr. Mitchum was none of that and slept walked his way through the part...he totally ruined it for me....and I LOVED that book.

Lycanthrope

Thursday, November 07, 2002 - 06:18 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I thought Gary Sinise would have been a mistake as Stu in The Stand, but he pulled it off. In the book Stu was taller. I do think Molly Ringwald as Fran was miscast.

Eriq LaSalle was miscast as Lucas Davenport in the one 'Prey' novel to be turned into a movie. In every book he's a white guy, but Mr. LaSalle is definitely African American.

Hummingbird

Saturday, November 09, 2002 - 09:41 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Wesley Snipes in Rising Sun.

Lucas Davenport as an African American -- ridiculous! I missed this movie. Which "Prey" novel was it? May as well cast Keano Reeves as Mohammed Ali.

Hummingbird

Saturday, November 09, 2002 - 09:45 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Sorry, I just realized I repeated myself with Wesley. I mentioned him earlier and had forgotten.

Lycanthrope

Sunday, November 10, 2002 - 01:57 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I can't remember which 'Prey' novel it was. It was one of the ones after he met Weather, but I can't remember which one. It was a 'made for TV' movie.

Crazydog

Wednesday, November 13, 2002 - 12:13 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Ben Affleck as a youthened Jack Ryan in "The Sum of All Fears"

Ophiliasgrandma

Thursday, November 14, 2002 - 03:53 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Hummingbird, I'm afraid I have to agree with Twinkie. I read The Thornbirds long before the tv adaptation and I though Richard Chamberlain was everything I could have ever wished the character to be...right down to his sexy toes! He was so hot that I had to look at him from behind my fingers to keep from getting burned.

Hummingbird

Thursday, November 14, 2002 - 07:09 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
The book described Father Ralph as dark-haired and complectioned, and mysteriously sexy behind those priest robes. Richard Chamberlain just didn't fit the decription. Also, I have heard that Richard is a gay man which sort of ruins the image for us ladies. I know that isn't supposed to matter but I have trouble seeing gay men and women in straight love scenes. I know that the guy who plays David on Six Feet Under is a straight man playing gay and he does a good job. It should work the other way too but the guy has to be one heck of an actor to pull it off. (Forgive me, Richard if the stories aren't true, but I think they probably are.)

Sia

Thursday, November 14, 2002 - 09:06 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Pardon my just jumping in here, but I wanted to toss something funny into the mix: tonight I saw "My Best Friend's Wedding" for the first time (it was on ABC) and Julia Roberts' character's gay-friend's character said to her about his being gay, ". . .most devastatingly handsome single men my age are. . ."

I thought that was a funny line. Accurate, but amusing.

I've always loved Richard Chamberlain, since I was a little girl, even. Actually, he was a pretty good choice for the part of Father Ralph, imo, since he has that ambiguous quality which makes the viewer believe that he could be a Catholic priest fighting his sexuality and repressing it to the point of squelching it entirely--well, almost!! Oops, he did have that transgression with Meg when he fathered Dane.

Years ago I read the novel and loved it. When the book was turned into a movie, I thought it was well done. It's still a favorite minisieries of mine.

Hummingbird

Thursday, November 14, 2002 - 11:10 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
That's food for thought Sia. Never thought of his portrayal in those terms. I also loved the miniseries and except for Chamberlain, the casting was perfect.

Skypilot

Friday, November 15, 2002 - 08:44 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Re:Tom Cruise as Lestat

I always thought that Julian Sands (Gothic,Room With a View) would have made an excellent Lestat and Daniel Day Lewis would have been a better choice than Brad Pitt to play Louis.