50 Best Movies Based on Books

Classic novel "Forrest Gump" book cover with bold yellow and green lettering.

Movies are one of the best options people would like to do to relax.

But sometimes, the most sought after movies are those that people can reflect to and have the best story outline. Some of those movies come from well-written books, and since not a lot of people are fond of reading books, it was then adapted to hit the big screen. Here are the best movies based on books that you might want to know.

1. To Kill a Mockingbird

Released: 

  • Book: 1960
  • Movie: 1962
Classic novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" book cover by Harper Lee.
via theragblog.blogspot.com / Amazon

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”

2. Gone Girl

Released: 

  • Book: 2012
  • Movie: 2014
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via heliterarylawyer.ca / literarytraveler.com

“There’s a difference between really loving someone and loving the idea of her.”

3. Divergent

Released: 

  • Book: 2011
  • Movie: 2014
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via divergent.wikia.com / impawards.com

“Becoming fearless isn’t the point. That’s impossible. It’s learning how to control your fear, and how to be free from it.”

4. The Hobbit

Released: 

  • Book: 1937
  • Movie: 2012
Iconic book cover of The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, featuring a green design and title.
via raptisrarebooks.com / cityonfire.com

“The world is not in your books and maps, it’s out there.”

5. The Hunger Games

Released: 

  • Book: 2008
  • Movie: 2012
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via inkflash.com / impawards.com

“Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor.”

6. The Fault in our Stars

Released: 

  • Book: 2012
  • Movie: 2014
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via themissinformation.com / impawards.com

“But, Gus, my love, I cannot tell you how thankful I am for our little infinity. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I’m grateful.”

7. Still Alice

Released: 

  • Book: 2007
  • Movie: 2014
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via abebooks.com / impawards.com

“Be creative, be useful, be practical, be generous, and finish big.”

8. The Devil Wears Prada

Released: 

  • Book: 2003
  • Movie: 2006
Elegant book and movie poster images showcasing fashion and literary adaptations.
via bookstellyouwhy.com / trinemalde.wordpress.com

“Oh, don’t be silly – EVERYONE wants this. Everyone wants to be ‘us’.”

9. The Reader

Released: 

  • Book: 1995
  • Movie: 2008
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via bookstellyouwhy.com / tribute.ca

“Now to escape involves not just running away, but arriving somewhere.”

10. Revolutionary Road

Released: 

  • Book: 1961
  • Movie: 2008
Revolutionary Road movie poster featuring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, based on the novel, ex.
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“If you don’t try at anything, you can’t fail” – It takes backbone to lead the life you want.”

11. The Godfather

Released: 

  • Book: 1969
  • Movie: 1972
Cover of "The Godfather" novel by Mario Puzo, iconic black and white design.
via theworldsgreatbooks.com / balls.ie

“Great men are not born great, they grow great.”

12. The Wizard of Oz

Released: 

  • Book: 1900
  • Movie: 1939
Classic The Wizard of Oz book cover with lion and girl illustration.
via doullbooks.com / movieposter.com

“There is no place like home.”

13. Bridget Jones’s Diary

Released: 

  • Book: 1996
  • Movie: 2001
An image of the cover for Bridget Jones's Diary, featuring Bridget and two men, highlighting the nov.
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“It is a truth universally acknowledged that when one part of your life starts going okay, another falls spectacularly to pieces.”

14. Jaws

Released: 

  • Book: 1974
  • Movie: 1975
Jaws movie poster featuring a giant shark and the title in bold red letters.
via liveauctioneers.com / wallpaper222.com

“The great fish moved silently through the night water.”

15. Forrest Gump

Released: 

  • Book: 1986
  • Movie: 1994
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via daily-dose-of-art.com / impawards.com

“I may not be a smart man, but I know what love is.”

16. Million Dollar Baby

Released: 

  • Book: 2000
  • Movie: 2004
Stay At Home Mum
via opionator.wordpress.com / impawards.com

“I just hope he went someplace where he could find a little peace… Somewhere between nowhere and goodbye…”

17. Charlotte’s Web

Released: 

  • Book: 1952
  • Movie: 2006
Stay At Home Mum
via liveauctioneers.com / impawards.com

“Never hurry and never worry!”

18. Brokeback Mountain

Released: 

  • Book: 1997
  • Movie: 2005
Brokeback Mountain film poster featuring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal.
via books.google.com / impawards.com

“I wish I knew how to quit you.”

19. The Last King of Scotland

Released: 

  • Book: 1998
  • Movie: 2006
The Last King of Scotland movie poster featuring Forest Whitaker.
via Ebay / joblo.com

“They thought it was an enemy but it was only their own reflection.”

20. The Chronicles of Narnia

Released: 

  • Book: 1950
  • Movie: 2005
Enchanted wardrobe leading to Narnia from the classic children's book.
via blueriderpress.tumblr.com / impawards.com

“Peter did not feel very brave; indeed, he felt he was going to be sick. But that made no difference to what he had to do.”

21. The Green Mile

Released: 

  • Book: 1996
  • Movie: 1999
Green Mile book cover and movie poster for The Green Mile.
via ramonrangelsr.tumblr.com / csfd.cz

“Time takes it all, whether you want it to or not.”

22. The Notebook

Released: 

  • Book: 1996
  • Movie: 2004
Romantic movie poster for "The Notebook" based on a novel, featuring a couple sharing a kiss outdoor.
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“I am nothing special, of this I am sure. I am a common man with common thoughts and I’ve led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten, but I’ve loved another with all my heart and soul, and to me, this has always been enough.”

23. Girl, Interrupted

Released: 

  • Book: 1993
  • Movie: 1999
Girl Interrupted movie poster with close-up of actress Winona Ryder and Angelina Jolie.
via abebooks.com / angiesrainbow.com

“The only way to stay sane is to go a little crazy.”

24. The Silence of the Lambs

Released: 

  • Book: 1988
  • Movie: 1991
Classic movie poster featuring a moth on a woman's face.
via en.wikipedia.org / awesomenator.com

“I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti.”

25. Jurassic Park

Released: 

  • Book: 1990
  • Movie: 1993
Classic Jurassic Park book cover featuring T-Rex silhouette.
via en.wikipedia.org / moviepostershop.com

“The planet has survived everything, in its time. It will certainly survive us.”

26. The Talented Mr. Ripley

Released: 

  • Book: 1955
  • Movie: 1999
Cover of "The Talented Mr. Ripley" book and movie poster featuring Matt Damon.
via great-republic.com / movieposter.com

“I always thought it would be better, to be a fake somebody… than a real nobody.”

27. L.A. Confidential

Released: 

  • Book: 1990
  • Movie: 1997
L.A. Confidential movie poster with classic noir style and main characters.
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“I wouldn’t trade places with Edmund Exley right now for all the whiskey in Ireland.”

28. Memoirs of a Geisha

Released: 

  • Book: 1997
  • Movie: 2005
Cover of Memoirs of a Geisha book with a woman's face and red lipstick.
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“The heart dies a slow death. Shedding each hope like leaves, until one day there are none. No hopes. Nothing remains.”

29. Legends of the Fall

Released: 

  • Book: 1979
  • Movie: 1994
Book cover of "Legends of the Fall" by Jim Harrison, featuring a mountain landscape illustration.
via bookfever.com / impawards.com

“Some people hear their own inner voices with great clearness and they live by what they hear. Such people become crazy, or they become legends.”

30. Cold Mountain

Released: 

  • Book: 1997
  • Movie: 2003
Stay At Home Mum
via library.sc.edu / impawards.com

“If you are fighting, stop fighting. If you are marching, stop marching. Come back to me. Come back to me is my request.”

31. The Exorcist

Released: 

  • Book: 1971
  • Movie: 1973
Stay At Home Mum
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“The Power of Christ compels you!”

32. The Last of the Mohicans

Released: 

  • Book: 1826
  • Movie: 1992
Stay At Home Mum
via wretchedrichardsalmanac.wordpress.com / impawards.com

“You’ve done everything you can do. Save yourself! If the worst happens, and only one of us survives, something of the other does, too.”

33. Empire of the Sun

Released: 

  • Book: 1984
  • Movie: 1987
Empire of the Sun film poster with book cover and movie details.
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“It’s at the beginning and end of war that we have to watch out. In between, it’s like a country club.”

34. Confessions of a Shopaholic

Released: 

  • Book: 2001
  • Movie: 2009
Confessions of a Shopaholic - Romantic comedy based on a book, featuring a woman with shopping bags.
via goodreads.com / impawards.com

“And all I would say, is that you never hear anyone say, “There goes a zebra with a small ass.”

35. Trainspotting

Released: 

  • Book: 1993
  • Movie: 1996
Trainspotting movie poster with cast and book cover image.
via videtteonline.com / impawards.com

“Personality, I mean that’s what counts, right? That’s what keeps a relationship going through the years. Like heroin, I mean heroin’s got a great fucking personality.”

36. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Released: 

  • Book: 2005
  • Movie: 2011
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via abebooks.com / impawards.com

“It’s hard to believe that the fear of offending can be stronger than the fear of pain, but you know what? It is.”

37. Lord of the Flies

Released: 

  • Book: 1954
  • Movie: 1990
Stay At Home Mum
via en.wikipedia.org / joblo.com

“I don’t care what [you] call me so long as . . . [it’s not] what they used to call me in school . . . They used to call me Piggy!”

38. Fight Club

Released: 

  • Book: 1996
  • Movie: 1999
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via en.wikipedia.org / moviepostershop.com

“It’s only after we’ve lost everything that we’re free to do anything.”

39. The Social Network

Released: 

  • Book: 2009
  • Movie: 2010
Book cover of "The Accidental Billionaires" by Ben Mezrich.
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“You know, you really don’t need a forensics team to get to the bottom of this. If you guys were the inventors of Facebook, you’d have invented Facebook.”

40. Precious

Released: 

  • Book: 1996
  • Movie: 2009
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“Please don’t lie to me, Ms. Rain! Love ain’t done nothing for me… but beat me… rape me… call me an animal! Make me feel worthless! Make me sick!”

41. The Princess Bride

Released: 

  • Book: 1973
  • Movie: 1987
Classic movie poster for The Princess Bride film adaptation.
via en.wikipedia.org / princessbridetweasure.com

“Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.”

42. Where the Wild Things Are

Released: 

  • Book: 1963
  • Movie: 2009
Stay At Home Mum
via baumanrarebooks.com / impawards.com

“Happiness isn’t always the best way to be happy.”

43. Mrs. Doubtfire

Released: 

  • Book: 1987
  • Movie: 1993
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via en.wikipedia.org

“Did you ever wish you could sometimes freeze frame a moment in your day, look at it and say “this is not my life”?”

44. Interview with a Vampire

Released: 

  • Book: 1976
  • Movie: 1994
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via lwcurrey.com / impawards.com

“Her blood coursed through my veins, sweeter than life itself. And as it did, Lestat’s words made sense to me. I knew peace only when I killed and when I heard her heart in that terrible rhythm, I knew again what peace could be.”

45. The Shawshank Redemption

Released: 

  • Book: 1982
  • Movie: 1994
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via iowabob.com / impawards.com

“Let me tell you something my friend. Hope is a dangerous thing. Hope can drive a man insane.

46. The Lord of the Rings

Released: 

  • Book: 1954
  • Movie: 2001
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via peterharrington.co.uk / comicvine.com

“You cannot pass! I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the Flame of Anor. The dark fire will not avail you, Flame of Udun! Go back to the shadow. You shall not pass!”

47. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Released: 

  • Book: 1964
  • Movie: 2005
Stay At Home Mum
via en.wikipedia.org / impawards.com

“Everything in this room is eatable, even I’m eatable! But that is called “cannibalism”, my dear children, and is in fact frowned upon in most societies.

48. Die Hard

Released: 

  • Book: 1979
  • Movie: 1988
Classic movies adapted from popular books for film enthusiasts.
via en.wikipedia.org / movieposter.com

“And when Alexander saw the breadth of his domain, he wept, for there were no more worlds to conquer.” Benefits of a classical education.”

49. The Harry Potter Series

Released: 

  • Book: 1997
  • Movie: 2001
Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum
via bookwormbase.wordpress.com / whatanerdgirlsays.com

“It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends.”

50. Water for Elephants

Released: 

  • Book: 2006
  • Movie: 2011
Water for Elephants movie poster with romantic scene.
via Amazon UK / impawards.com

“I’m not running away, I’m coming home.”

If you don’t love the idea of reading, then you have all the options for watching!

Have you ever watched any of these movies? Well, I’m pretty sure you do!

Movies Based on Books | Stay At Home Mum

author avatar
Clare Whitfield Chief Editor
Clare Whitfield is the Editor of Stay at Home Mum and a recognised voice in practical home management for Australian families. Based in the northern suburbs of Sydney, she balances editorial leadership with life as a stay at home mum to two school age children. Her background in home economics and more than a decade of experience in recipe development, family budgeting, and household systems inform her work.

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