#Best Movies Based on Classic Literature

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“#Best Movies Based on Classic Literature”

Whether you’re a fan of reading or not, classic literature appears in everyday life in different ways. From Shakespeare’s language becoming common words in the English language to quotable content slapped on the front of a mug, books are here to stay. The movie industry realized this almost immediately. Indeed, the first film adaptation of a book was Trilby and Little Billee in 1896, a 45-second sequence that is now lost. Adaptations from contemporaneous books were staples for silent films, but as filmmaking evolved with new technology, a renewed interest in classic literature on the screen remade some of the greatest stories.

George Méliès, the filmmaker behind the 1902 silent film A Trip to the Moon, is one of the earliest creators to make films inspired by classics. It is important to note that many works now considered classic literature today weren’t classics when they were released: they were merely popular books, the hottest craze that critics loved (or hated). But the studios knew what stories could sell, and if they could make it in the literary world, then there was a strong possibility that the movie would also be successful. Gone With the Wind, Alice and Wonderland (1903), and Casablanca are early examples of popular novels that were turned into movies before the novels themselves were considered classics. Without further ado, here are the best movies based on classic literature.

8 Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Five women with elbows on a railing; all are wearing white dresses — Universal Pictures

Before Atonement and Anna Karenina, Joe Wright made his directorial debut with Pride & Prejudice. Keira Knightley takes on Jane Austen’s Elizabeth Bennett, while Matthew MacFadyen is the aloof Mr. Darcy. Wright’s Pride & Prejudice isn’t a faithful adaptation to Austen’s beloved 1812 novel, as it chose to stray from the rigid nature of the Regency era and created a more youthful film. And perhaps this is why the film was so successful: it came out when Austen’s work was actively being revisited and remodeled for contemporary audiences. While it may not have been 100% faithful, it created a movie geared to make Jane Austen more mainstream. Based on its costuming, the garments alone are enough to suggest it’s not a perfect Regency-era film, as it lacks the trademark high-waisted and modest gowns of that period. Nevertheless, the film was a success, earning Knightley her first Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.

7 Emma (2020)

Young woman and old man in early 1800s clothing stand side-by-side. — Perfect World Pictures

Emma is another Jane Austen adaptation that the world didn’t know it needed. Released in 2020, Anya Taylor-Joy stars as twenty-one-year-old Emma Woodhouse, who is searching for a new governess after her previous one marries. Screenwriter Eleanor Catton admitted she had never actually read the novel version, but, in this case, her script works well. This Emma is visually appealing, a stark contrast to the muted, soft colors associated with Austen’s life in Regency-era England. While the world was exhausted with Jane Austen’s content, this refreshing update to the classic tale presented a new take that hit just right.

Related: Here Are Anya Taylor-Joy’s Best Performances, Ranked

6 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Old man with beard crouches while young man in the far right corner looks at him — New Line Cinema

Almost fifty years after J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring launched the first part of The Lord of the Rings, it was finally made into a movie. A Hobbit named Frodo inherits one of the ancient Rings from his cousin, leading to an epic journey where he needs to destroy it so the Dark Lord Sauron can be taken down permanently. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring is merely one movie of a well-beloved series, one that helped bring sci-fi high-fantasy movies into a more mainstream conversation about what movies could and couldn’t be.

5 Romeo + Juliet

Shakespeare’s doomed lovers have graced the stage for centuries, but it was Baz Luhrmann who gave them an electrifying update in Romeo + Juliet. Set in Verona Beach, Luhrmann makes the Montagues and the Capulets two business empires with a penchant for shooting guns, fast cars, and acting like the mafia. Romeo (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Juliet (Claire Danes) meet at a party at the Capulet’s mansion, but, as history has said, again and again, their romance is doomed. Luhrmann’s use of the original Shakespearean dialogue is a nod to the story’s roots, but the gritty coloring and quick pacing immediately grab one’s eye and attention span.

Related: Best Leonardo DiCaprio Movies, Ranked

4 To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

Man stands in front of court with arms behind his back — Universal Pictures

To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the best movies ever released, but it was based on Harper Lee’s 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird. In the early 1930s, Scott Finch and her brother Jem live in a small Alabama town with their father Atticus Finch, a lawyer. He is selected to be the lawyer for a young Black man accused of the rape of a white woman, exposing the town for its racist attitudes and discriminatory practices. The movie was released before America reached its boiling point, finally presenting the change that the characters would have loved to see.

3 12 Years a Slave

Man and woman hold each other's hands in the dark — Regency Enterprises

12 Years a Slave originally was a memoir by Solomon Northup, a free man kidnapped in Washington D.C., taken to New Orleans, and forced to be a slave until he escaped. The 2013 film adaptation was so realistic in describing the conditions that historians were amazed at the amount of accuracy involved. It’s an unflinching look at America’s dark past, one that refuses to look away even in the ugliest moments, and a reminder of the cruelty humanity has inflicted upon one another. Although this is just one man’s tale out of millions of survivors, it still offers a glimpse into the horrific conditions slaves faced.

2 If Beale Street Could Talk

Man and woman face each other on street while under an umbrella — Annapurna Pictures

James Baldwin was one of the most influential Black writers of his time, and, in 2018, his novel If Beale Street Could Talk was finally adapted into a movie. Barry Jenkins, the director of Moonlight, directed a tour de force that shed light on the New York City that Baldwin once fled to Paris from. A young couple must grapple with the racism of the 1970s, but it all suddenly becomes too real when Fonny (Stephen James), the boyfriend, is falsely accused of rape and sent to jail. Jenkins’ adaptation is heavy-handed in its lush visuals and creates an immersive world, bringing Baldwin’s words into a poetic movie for the first time.

Related: The Top 10 Black Movies of 2021

1 One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Group of men in white t-shirts stand around — Fantasy Films

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was adapted from Ken Kesey’s 1962 novel, and it was only the second film to ever win all five major Oscars at the Academy Awards. Randle McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) is transferred to a mental institution after the rape of a fifteen-year-old girl. This movie is absolutely brilliant as Randle rebels against the head nurse nad rallies his fellow patients together to fight against the poor treatment they’re receiving. Despite the past of these men, they’re still mistreated because of how they’re seen as mentally ill, creating a powerful narrative that is timeless and still quite relevant today.