The following is a mix of excellent books that did not quite get the justice they deserved at the big screen and bad books made worse by Hollywood. Here's 10 films that were better off executed in our minds rather than by Hollywood.

"Alice in Wonderland"

Lewis Carroll’s "Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass" have remained indelible presences in children’s literature because they resonate with adults just as much as with kids, if not more so. The intricate, imaginative world and its unforgettable inhabitants make for a fascinating read. And, in the case of the 1951 Disney adaptation, a memorable and great film. Fast-forward to 2010. Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland” release combines elements from both of the novels but to disappointing results. Sure, the movie has some remarkable visuals and looks awesome in IMAX. Unfortunately for Mr. Burton, however, no amount of CGI can cover up sloppy and generic narrative and acting work. 

"The Cat in the Hat"

If there’s a person alive today who didn’t read/hear about/absorb through osmosis the story of "The Cat in the Hat" at a young age, please take him or her to the FBI for a serious study on this remarkable tale of cultural ignorance. This person probably has many secrets. This person also may not have been so disgraced at the 2003 film adaptation. Actually, scratch that. The horror would have still been obvious.  The film stars Mike Myers and a young Dakota Fanning with Bo Welch as director (“The Cat in the Hat” is his one directing credit next to his twenty-one stints as—an Oscar-nominated!!—production designer). The movie manages to pump endless plots into an 85-minute run time because, surprise, surprise, the 61 pages of mainly illustration don’t quite provide ample sources of story from which to draw from. What results is a painful mess of antics and uncomfortably out-of-place crude humor. 

"The Da Vinci Code"

Sometimes a movie adaptation disappoints because its source material was so good the movie forever sulks in its shadow. “The Da Vinci Code” is not that movie. The conspiracy-laden book relies on suspense and false versions of history in an attempt to hide Dan Brown’s bleak writing style, and the movie fares no better. In fact, it stumbles even farther into a pit of helplessness. A great cast (Tom Hanks, Audrey Tatou, and Ian McKellan among others) loses its appeal because the contrived twists and revelations of the book play as ridiculous jokes on screen. American audiences didn’t totally care. The poison the original novel held somehow extended to the movie version, causing “The Da Vinci Code” to hold the place as second highest grossing movie of 2006. 

"A Series of Unfortunate Events"

With much difficulty, I will refrain from making a pun about how the title of the movie creates a self-fulfilling prophecy. The book series has so much wit, imagination, and excitement (13 books worth, actually) that forcing the first three into one movie had no chance of success. All the unique characteristics of the books and their clever writing style get lost in translation. The film’s plot lacks a lot of cohesion and the characters act as ghosts of their literary equivalents. No excitement or real fun permeate the movie’s drawn out and choppy sequence of representing the first three novels. In a move of surprising intelligence, the film adaptation of the series stopped after this first incarnation.

 

"Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close"

"Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," the novel, sort of has a story. It mainly serves as a backdrop to the attempts at pithy statements and pretentious, affected musings of the book’s narrator. “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,” the movie, can’t have any more story than the novel if it wants to stay true to the adaptation. And it tries so, so hard to recreate the (arguably) emotionally wrought prose of the book. Instead of elevating the original into a smart and thoughtful piece it drags it even lower into the droppings of inappropriate 9/11 comparisons and self-absorption. For some reason no one understands, the movie was still nominated for an Academy Award (and thankfully didn’t win). 

"Twilight"

I’ve already graced this list with one example of source material so bad no movie version could redeem it. "Twilight" falls even below this category. Somehow none of the aforementioned atrocities seem as big an insult to both books and movies as the "Twilight" series does. The only answer as to why they had to mar cinema’s artistic integrity by carrying the horrendous story over from books to movies is to force equal suffering between the two media. The painful acting, cheesy plot, and terrible characters create a depressing environment for anyone hoping to watch something with any merit. There’s a reason Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson have reputations for being killjoys—none of their happiness and joie-de-vivre could have possibly survived the production of the "Twilight" movies.

"How to Lose Friends and Alienate People"

The film “How to Lose Friends and Alienate People” attempts to replicate Toby Young’s memoir of the same name. The memoir succeeds somewhat in creating a philosophical and entertaining view of American magazine and celebrity culture. It isn’t perfect, but the subject matter seems like a perfect fit for a smart and funny film adaptation. “The Devil Wears Prada” has a similar situation and it followed through fairly well. “How to Lose Friends & Alienate People”… not so much. Simon Pegg couldn’t quite bring his Edgar-Wright-movie charisma to this movie. The script focuses too much on the wrong kind of humor by eschewing the satirical commentary of the book in favor of crude, broad humor. 

 

"Gulliver’s Travels"

Jack Black has had an unfortunate career. He has such strong film beginnings with his supporting role in “High Fidelity” and starring role in “School of Rock,” among other things. His band Tenacious D has carved out a niche of aggressive comedy rock that only it can fill. The past several years have been rough for Mr. Black, with a few exceptions. “Gulliver’s Travels” ranks high up on his list of bad decisions. Retooling classics for the modern day is always a risky move. Messing with such a revered classic in favor of our current time’s accessibility usually causes the movie to lose most of its credibility. In the case of “Gulliver’s Travels,” it’s a marvel it had any credibility to begin with. The movie is a sad excuse for a humorous and fantastical epic. Whatever memorable moments it holds come only from how inarguably terrible the movie is. Jack Black seems to know he’s made a huge mistake, which only makes the mistake that much worse.

 

"Confessions of a Shopaholic"

While chick-lit (chick-literature, for the less savvy) unfortunately often spawns some truly horrible novels, this book shines through as an example of appealing, witty, and smart writing. Chick-flicks have an equally rocky reputation as their literary equivalent, and sadly the adaptation fits in on the how-could-anyone-have-thought-this-was-good pile. Despite its strong cast—which includes Isla Fisher, Krysten Ritter, and Hugh Dancy—the movie lacks all the charm and cleverness of the original novel. It doesn’t seem to understand where it stands in regards to the movie’s subject matter. Materialism and consumerism fuel the entire reason for the book’s existence, but the movie didn’t seem to comprehend why. 

"Eragon"

To anyone who hasn’t read any other fantasy series, "Eragon" is great. An intricate world with myths and magic and no shortage of maps? What more could a young reader want? For anyone who has ever read J.R.R. Tolkein’s iconic "Lord of the Rings" series or has seen “Star Wars,” the book is a sad case of unoriginality. It’s basically plagiarism. It lends itself to CGI and action-adventure, though, so of course a movie adaptation was inevitable. The similarities to better fantasy epics didn’t stop on the page—the film only made it worse. Except this time it came more from how generic the adaptation ended up. Forget "Lord of the Rings" and “Star Wars.” “Eragon” ended up no different from all the mundane fantasy adventures that preceded it. 

Reach Staff Reporter Annie Lloyd here.