With Insurgent being released this week, we decided to take a look at other young adult novel adaptations, and see which is the best, the worst and the god awful films of the genre.
The Good:?The Hunger Games Series
This series of films should be made mandatory viewing for teens growing up today. It is what their futures are going to be thanks to our generation and the last. Hey, we’ll all be dead, right? Not only did this franchise the superstar that is Jennifer Lawrence but it was able to reach that rare blend of?financial and critical success. The Hungers Games: Mockingjay Part 1 also has a special place for us at Third Act as it was our first review on the site.
Honourable Mention:?Harry Potter Franchise
Currently the highest grossing film franchise ever, until Avengers: Age of Ultron is released, the Harry Potter franchise is a force to be reckoned?with. I’m probably most grateful to Harry Potter for giving us Emma Watson, who is finally getting?another major film in the form of Beauty and The Beast.
Honourable Mention:?The Maze Runner
This surprisingly good film from last year, The Maze Runner and its inevitable?sequels get a mention. As long as you ignore the fact they could have made a ladder to go on top of the maze, or they could have attempted to dig underneath the maze, or that guys eyebrows, this film shapes up pretty well.
Honourable Mention:?Ender’s Game
Young prodigy, check. Space, check. Aliens, check. Awesome ending, double-check! The lead Asa Butterfield gave a strong performance considering his age, and the role he was expected to play. Normally in Hollywood they give us an older actor and lie about their age, but Asa was able to hold his own against the likes of Harrison Ford. Asa’s role in this film is what had us thinking he had the acting chops to play Spider-Man.
Honourable Mention:?The Princess Bride
I personally didn’t know this was based on a book until I did the research for this article. But yeah! It is! And deserves a mention on this list. Someone did a video combing The Princess Bride with Game of Thrones, because, why not?!
Princess of Thrones (The Princess Bride/Game of Thrones Mash-up)
Honourable Mention: The Fault in Our Stars
Yes, I have this on the list! For what it was trying to be, it is excellent. Considering it was made on?a minimal budget, the two leads gave great performances in a heart-wrenching love story. Which makes the next segment even more sour…
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The Bad:?The Divergent Series
I know not everyone agrees with on this one, but wow did I dislike this film. It managed to get number one in my worse 5 of 2014. I’m yet to see the follow-up Insurgent, but I’m not hopeful.
Dishonourable Mention:?Percy Jackson Series
This series was more unappealing than bad. They focused too much on the ‘young’ part of a young-adult adaptation. I feel as though this was wasted. However, fans of True Detective would probably disagree as?it was a complete waste of?Alexandra Daddario.
Dishonourable Mention:?I Am Number Four
What was the point of this movie? Honestly, some half-decent young talent but just a poor film. So glad they didn’t do an ‘I Am Number Five’.
The Ugly:?The Twilight Saga
Who saw this coming? Of course, the Twilight series is the ugly of the young-adult book adaptation world. However the makers of the series don’t mind as it killed at the box office.
Why?Mention:?Vampire Academy
What if you took Twilight but had it all at a school, a school of vampires! Great idea right? No. Just no.
Why?Mention:?The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones
Part of the reason this film was bad was how obviously it was trying to copy the cash cows Twilight and Hunger Games. Badly acted out with a predictable story. I’m sure the book was better and the makers of the film did a disservice?as this could have been awesome.
There you have it. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of young-adult book adaptations. No real surprises in my eyes, only that I’ve shamelessly seen a bunch of these films.
Do you agree with the picks? Which films did I miss? What genre would you like to see next?
