1. Hidden Figures (2016)

Cujo (1983)

In Cujo a mother and her young son are held hostage in a hot, broken car by a massive, rabid St. Bernard — but first, there’s a whole lot of domestic drama to get through! The characters in Lewis Teague’s film version aren’t quite as fleshed out as they are in King’s claustrophobic 1981 novel, nor are their actions always understandable. Not to mention the fact that the film’s moody approach to the story makes one miss the devil-may-care sleaziness of the book. Despite all that, this dog-eat-person tale works: The central set piece of Dee Wallace v. killer canine is wonderfully tense and despairing — a terrified mother trying to protect herself and her fragile young son in the most surreal and terrifying of circumstances.

The Green Mile (1999)

A spiritual cousin to The Shawshank Redemption, this adaptation of King’s serialized prison novel focuses on Paul Edgecomb, a guard who heads up a Louisiana correction facility’s Death Row. Edgecomb witnesses the unique healing powers of an illiterate inmate named John Coffey (Oscar-nominated Michael Clarke Duncan), and this straightforward story soon turns into a tale of magical realism. Helmed by Shawshank director Frank Daranbont it stars Tom Hanks as a death row prison guard during the Great Depression who witnesses supernatural events following the arrival of an enigmatic convict (Michael Clarke Duncan) at his facility. David Morse, Barry Pepper, Graham Greene, Bonnie Hunt, Patricia Clarkson, William Sadler, Doug Hutchison and James Cromwell appear in supporting roles.

1408 (2007)

1408 is a 2007 American psychological horror film based on Stephen King’s 1999 short story of the same name. It is directed by Mikael Håfström and stars John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson. The film was released in the United States on June 22, 2007. The film follows Cusack as Mike Enslin, an author who investigates allegedly haunted houses and rents the titular room 1408 at a New York City hotel. Although skeptical of the paranormal, he is soon trapped in the room where he experiences bizarre events. Reviews were mostly positive and the film performed positively at the box office. Jackson plays the hotel manager who tries to discourage him.

Silver Bullet (1985)

As far as lycanthrope movies go, this is a cult classic. Silver Bullet is a 1985 American horror thriller film based on the 1983 Stephen King novella Cycle of the Werewolf. It stars Corey Haim, Gary Busey, Everett McGill, Megan Follows & Terry O’Quinn. The film is directed by Dan Attias, written by King and produced by Martha De Laurentiis. Its tale of a small Maine town plagued by bark-at-the-moon beast on the loose is a solid B-movie, complete with flying decapitated heads and a young Corey Haim. The workman-like approach actually fits King’s prose and tone from the 127-page novella, as well as forcing everything to adhere to a forward momentum that amps up the tension.

The Shining’ (1980)

The Shining is a 1980 psychological horror film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick and co-written with novelist Diane Johnson. The film is based on Stephen King’s 1977 novel of the same name and stars Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Scatman Crothers, and Danny Lloyd. The film’s central character is Jack Torrance (Nicholson), an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic who accepts a position as the off-season caretaker of an isolated hotel in the Colorado Rockies, with his wife, Wendy Torrance (Duvall), and young son, Danny Torrance (Lloyd). Danny is gifted with psychic abilities named “shining”. After a winter storm leaves the Torrances snowbound, Jack’s sanity deteriorates due to the influence of the supernatural forces that inhabit the hotel and Wendy must save her son & herself from him.

Congo is a 1995 American science fiction action-adventure film loosely based on Michael Crichton’s 1980 novel of the same name. The picture was directed by Frank Marshall starring Laura Linney, Dylan Walsh, Ernie Hudson, Grant Heslov, Joe Don Baker, and Tim Curry. The film was released on June 9, 1995, by Paramount Pictures. A Tech & communications giant company’s employees discover the ruins of a lost city near a volcanic site in a remote part of the Congo jungle. When their camp looks to be destroyed, Karen Ross is sent to find out what happened to them.

Meanwhile a primatologist and his assistant are looking for funds to take the sign language proficient female gorilla, Amy, back to the jungles in Zaire, which is she was found as a baby, as she is having trouble sleeping and having nightmares. When their Romanian benefactor’s funds fail, Ross gives them the money needed for the fuel & other costs to fly to Central Africa. What they end up finding there is the Lost City of Zinj and her diamonds.

The Andromeda Strain (1971) : An oldie but a goodie, an alien virus kills people in a town and scientists are brought in to investigate and try to contain it. This came out in the ‘70s, but you could already see Crichton’s clinical, scientific approach that would make Jurassic Park a hard-science fiction hit for the ‘90s. The acting in The Andromeda Strain is top notch, and the story is riveting, just like in the book. But the movie is kind of slow. As mentioned before, this would be a good example of hard science fiction in that the science is the star attraction here. It’s an accessible film, sure, but there’s a reason why The Andromeda Strain wasn’t the ‘70s version of Jurassic Park. It’s just not as interesting a concept as cloning dinosaurs.

The Terminal Man (1974): Based on Crichton’s 1972 novel by the same title, The Terminal Man is a thriller about mind control. The main character, Henry Benson, is scheduled for an operation to have electrodes and a mini-computer implanted in his brain to control his seizures. But what does that really mean for Henry? He ends up having even worse blackouts after the surgery where he gets really violent, and even likes it. It’s fun for the whole family!

The First Great Train Robbery (1979) : Crichton directed The First Great Train Robbery and wrote the screenplay, which was based on his 1975 book with the same title. The First Great Train Robbery is about the Great Gold Robbery of 1855 and takes place in London. Sean Connery and Donald Sutherland star in this really fun caper where two thieves rob a train full of gold. The whole film is basically them figuring out how to do it, and then they do it.

Jurassic Park (1993) : Based on Crichton’s 1990 novel with the same title, Jurassic Park is a science fiction thriller about dinosaurs who are recreated through DNA to populate an amusement park. Unfortunately, some of the safety measures fail, and people find themselves in danger. Jurassic Park is part thriller, part horror, part animatronic magic. It’s one of Steven Spielberg’s greatest movies, and it’s a crowd-pleaser, through and through. Jurassic Park is pretty much what made Michael Crichton a household name, and this is one movie that I think is far better than its source material.

Rising Sun (1993) : In this crime thriller starring Sean Connery and Wesley Snipes, a Japanese prostitute is killed and two detectives (Snipes and Connery) have to solve the case. A disc is in play that may or may not contain the murder on it, and tangled thrills ensue. Rising Sun is another book that is much better than the movie. The story, which concerns Japanese businessmen, is a lot more racially charged in the novel, and the movie is a bit racist, too, in some regards. But the culture clash is intertwined much better in the book, and the movie kind of starts to run in circles, making it a little clumsy as it stumbles to its conclusion. Still, as a story that doesn’t rely on any of the Crichton tropes of technology run amok, it’s still fully engaging, even though Wesley Snipes feels way underused.

Disclosure (1994) : Based on a novel Crichton published the same year, Disclosure is about Tom Sanders, who works in a high-tech company just before the beginning of the dot-com economic boom and is wrongly accused of sexual harassment.

Congo (1995) : Based on Crichton’s 1980 novel, Congo is about a diamond expedition in the rain forest of Congo that is attacked by killer gorillas. Starring Laura Linney, Dylan Walsh, Tim Curry (with a ridiculous accent), Ernie Hudson, and BRUCE FREAKING CAMPBELL (ok, he’s in the movie but he’s not “starring” in it), and even a “talking” gorilla, Congo is about a team that goes into the heart of the jungle to locate a missing team of diamond hunters.

The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) : The Lost World is the sequel to Jurassic Park. It takes place six years after the original story and involves the search for “Site B,” the place where the dinosaurs for Jurassic Park were hatched. The movie is based on Crichton’s 1995 book with the same title. You’ve likely seen The Lost World, and if you have, then you know it’s not as good as the original. As a follow-up, it’s actually really enjoyable.

Sphere (1998) : Sphere, which was based on Crichton’s 1987 novel with the same title, is the story of a psychologist who is called by U.S. Navy to join a team of scientists to examine an enormous spacecraft discovered on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Dustin Hoffman, and Sharon Stone, Sphere is about a team finding an alien ship underwater. Or so they think. Mysteries abound, and the conclusion is that the book is way better than the movie, despite it’s star power.

The 13th Warrior (1999) : Based on Crichton’s 1976 novel Eaters of the Dead, The 13th Warrior is about a Muslim in the 10th century who travels with a group of Vikings to their settlement. It is largely a retelling of Beowulf. Antonio Banderas stars as the Muslim who ends up with the Vikings who are at war with Grendel (yes, Beowulf’s, Grendel). That said, it turns out that the bad guys are really just cannibals who like to live with bears. It’s…interesting.

Timeline (2003) : Based on Crichton’s 1999 novel, Timeline is about a team of historians that travels to the Middle Ages to retrieve a fellow historian who is trapped there. Paul Walker, Gerard Butler, and Francis O’ Connor star in this time traveling adventure film about some archaeological students who go back to medieval times to save their professor. The action and adventure is all there, but people didn’t turn out to see it, as it was a box office bomb.

———->Bonus : A tv mini-series<———-

The Andromeda Strain (2008) : The 2008 TV mini-series of The Andromeda Strain is a remake of the 1971 movie with the same title. Both are based on Crichton’s novel about a team of scientists who are investigating a deadly extraterrestrial microorganism that rapidly and fatally clots human blood.

The Firm (1993): The Firm is a 1993 American legal thriller film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Tom Cruise, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Gene Hackman, Ed Harris, Holly Hunter, Hal Holbrook, David Strathairn and Gary Busey in a critically acclaimed role. The film is based on the 1991 novel The Firm by author John Grisham. The Firm was one of two films released in 1993 that were adapted from a Grisham novel, the other being The Pelican Brief. Released on June 30, 1993, the film was a major commercial success, grossing $270.2 million against a budget of $42 million, making it the highest grossing film adapted from a Grisham novel and the highest-grossing R-rated film of 1993, and received positive reviews for the performances (particularly from Cruise and Hunter), although the screenplay received some criticism. Holly Hunter was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance, while Dave Grusin was nominated for Best Original Score.

A Time To Kill (1996): A Time to Kill is a 1996 American legal drama film based on John Grisham’s 1989 novel of the same name. Matthew McConaughey, Sandra Bullock, and Samuel L. Jackson star with Donald and Kiefer Sutherland appearing in supporting roles. The film received mixed to positive reviews and was a commercial success, making $152 million at the worldwide box office. It is the second of two films based on Grisham’s novels directed by Joel Schumacher, with the other being The Client released two years prior.

The Client (1994): The Client is a 1994 American legal thriller film directed by Joel Schumacher, and starring Susan Sarandon, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Renfro (his acting film debut), Mary-Louise Parker, Anthony LaPaglia, Anthony Edwards, and Ossie Davis. It is based on the 1993 novel by John Grisham. It was filmed in Memphis, Tennessee. The Client was theatrically released in the United States on July 20, 1994 and was a box-office hit, grossing $117.6 million against a $45 million budget. It received positive reviews from critics, with Sarandon’s, Jones’ and Renfro’s performance in particular earning high praise.

The Pelican Brief (1993): The Pelican Brief is a 1993 American legal thriller film based on the 1992 novel by John Grisham. Directed by Alan J. Pakula, the film stars Julia Roberts in the role of young law student Darby Shaw and Denzel Washington as Washington Herald reporter Gray Grantham. The film, which features music composed by James Horner, was the last film that featured Pakula as both writer and director before his death.

The Rainmaker (1997): The Rainmaker is a 1997 American legal drama film written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola based on John Grisham’s 1995 novel of the same name in which a poor, struggling young lawyer who hustled for a job, ends up fighting a big insurance company who denied the claim of a leukemia struck 22 year old dying young man. It stars Matt Damon, Claire Danes, Jon Voight, Mary Kay Place, Mickey Rourke, Danny DeVito, Danny Glover, Roy Scheider, Virginia Madsen, and Teresa Wright in her final film role.

Runaway Jury (2003): Runaway Jury is a 2003 American legal thriller film directed by Gary Fleder and starring John Cusack, Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, and Rachel Weisz. An adaptation of John Grisham’s 1996 novel The Runaway Jury, the film pits lawyer Wendell Rohr (Hoffman) against shady jury consultant Rankin Fitch (Hackman), who uses illegal means to stack the jury with people sympathetic to the defense. Meanwhile, a high-stakes cat-and-mouse game begins when juror Nicholas Easter (Cusack) and his girlfriend Marlee (Weisz) appear to be able to sway the jury into delivering any verdict they want in a trial against a gun manufacturer. The film was released October 17, 2003.

Here Are My Top 5 movies based on books

1. The Godfather Trilogy : Needless to say that this one will be on almost everyone’s list if they have watched the films and read the book. I read the book  way, way back for the first time at the age of 18 or 19. I used to read a lot and I wanted to get some Mario Puzo books for a while after I had heard about the Godfather films. It would take me another 26 years before I actually watched the films. I’d still say that the book is way better.

2. It Chapters 1 & 2 : Ok this is a given if you know me. It by Stephen King is my fav novel of all time. I live & die by that book. It’s the novel that I have read the most – atleast 20 times. I watched the 1990 miniseries at around the age of 14 or 15 (in 1991) and loved it. I hunted the book down in a local library and read the book over a weekend. Then processed to read it many times over, got my own copy (3 times). The new movies that came out recently are amazing, especially Chapter 1.

3. The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy : Oh this is a massive one. If you are movie fan, I don’t care if you do not normally watch fantasy films or period styled films – you just have to watch these films. And watch the extended editions. No way can you not marvel at these early 21st century classic. So much great stuff in these films and I honestly believe that you can rewatch them every year and not be bored.

4. Jurassic Park : To ignite the fertile imaginations of kids everywhere and to stun and make you gawk in awe whether you are a kid or adult – no one has done it as well as Stephen Spielberg. To see dinosaurs on the big screen looking like real animals – that was amazing. I honestly believe that this is the ultimate family film, if you kids are above the age of say 7 or 8. Perfect to show any generation.

5. Congo : This one may not be high on other people’s list but I love the movie and I love the book. There are some differences in the movie but not that much. I still can’t decide which one I love more but I don’t have a problem in watching the film any day of the week. It’s a fun thrilling ride and the book is a great read as well. I love some of Michael Chrichton novels and this one is a really good one.

Prompt from 30 Blog Post Ideas & Calendars | March from Elaine Howlin