Cloudy With A Chance of Adaptation

Last weekend, the top-grossing movie in the country was Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. It made more than $30 million.

Thirty. Million. Dollars. Worth. Of. Meatballs.

Coupled with the enormous anticipation accompanying the forthcoming release of Spike Jonze's adaptation of Where The Wild Things Are, this signals what we can only presume will be an absurd stampede of film versions of children's classics rushed to the screen in a bald-faced attempt to cash in on nostalgia and/or a great and largely untapped source of creativity.

Of course, Cloudy is by no means the first adaptation to come to the big screen — and while some have been tremendous artistic successes... others have been nightmarish disasters of apocalyptic proportions. It is with this in mind that the good people of MamaPop bring you a brief overview of the good, the bad, and the dear-sweet-god-what-were-you-thinking of kids' lit adaptation cinema.

• Jumanji
Hey, I've got a great idea: let's take a beloved work by visionary illustrator Chris Van Allsburg and turn it into an opportunity to enjoy the staggering body hair of Robin Williams. Why? Because kids love it when hairy men embrace their inner child. And do you know what else kids love? Gigantic, completely fucking terrifying blood-sucking mosquitoes that wouldn't be a bit out of place in The Mist. Put it together and what do you get? An expensive-looking SFX mess with a couple of briefly amusing moments, guaranteed nightmares for the little ones, and Robin Williams - surprise - smiling through the tears.

• How The Grinch Stole Christmas!
Jim Carrey deserves to be punched in the throat for this.

• The Iron Giant
Before Brad Bird became one of the most successful and (justifiably) critically-acclaimed flimmakers in the world with The Incredibles and Ratatouille, he adapted Ted Hughes' 1968 novel/fairy tale The Iron Man into the animated film The Iron Giant. The result - largely ignored at the time - is one of the best movies you've never seen. The storyline is relatively simple: a young boy, living with his mother in coastal Maine in the paranoid, post-Sputnik 1950s, forges a friendship with the massive, metal man of the title. In a lot of ways, the plot is similar to ET — the missing father figure, the strange visitor from beyond, the moments of unexpected and very real humor balanced by great sorrow and tragedy, all anchored by terrific writing and characters you instinctively understand and care about from the first time you see them. 

I never would have dreamed in a million years that I might be moved to tears by a film climaxing with a cartoon robot saying in a low, steady voice, with great reverence and what can only be called love, the single word "Superman." But I am, each and every time I see this movie. And if it's not already a part of your life... it should be.

• Coraline
Fact 1: Neil Gaiman's Coraline is, quite simply, one of the most unnerving books I've ever read. Fact 2: Despite the fact that's it's characterized as "children's literature," I wouldn't dream of exposing my kids to this at their current ages of 4, 4 and 6. If the book scared me, I can only imagine how it'd scar them. Fact 3: The film adaptation... well, it's gorgeous. It's one of the most visually fascinating things I've ever seen, and offers a clear rationale for why filmmaker Henry Selick - who was also responsible for Nightmare Before Christmas - is worthy of the term "visionary." Fact 4: Having said that, I have NO doubt the film would warp my kids even more than living with me is already warping them. Think I'll hold off on exposing them for a few years. Fact 5: Kids excepted, this is a stunning piece of work, and well worth your time.

•The Cat In The Hat
Mike Meyers deserves to be punched in the groin for this. Repeatedly. Then tied to a tree, covered in maple syrup - the fake kind - and fed to pissed-off fire ants.

Comments

[mstiegirl23]

The first time I watched the Iron Giant was with some friends in college. Everyone was dozing off except for me, and my violent tears at the end of the movie woke everyone up. I still haven't lived that down.

[Peggasus]

I love the Iron Giant, I always buy it if I need a kid's birthday gift, and they end up loving it too.

I couldn't wait for Coraline to come out on DVD! I even saved (stole?) the special 3d glassed from the theatre in anticipation. It is truly one of the most amazing movies I've ever seen.

I am in total agreement with you on those other two, though. I'm not sure how I feel about 'Cloudy' yet, or if I will see it, because the drawings were my favorite part of that book, and from what I've seen, they don't capture anything close to that same look.

[KatieC]

Personally I loved Jumanji as a kid. Loved it! But even then I had a weird crush on Robin Williams. So.. I still enjoy it.

I agree 100% about Iron Giant. My younger brother liked it when it came out. My daughter loves it. Anything with robots and she's in. She was not quite 2 1/2 fist time we watched it. I hid the tears, unsuccessfully, from my husband. Love it. I love the voices as well, Harry Connick Jr? Love! I always forget the Vin Diesel is the giant.

Maybe I just have a weird kid, but she loves Coraline as well. Which is good, because I want to watch it all the time. She likes James and the Giant Peach as well, but I won't even let her near Nightmare Before Christmas.. Gah, I was 18 when I first saw that one. Scared the crap out of me. Oogy man? *shudders*

Seuss? I prefer the originals. Always.

[Alison]

The trailer for "Where the Wild Things Are" made me feel so many things, all at once. I can't remember the last time I was so affected by a movie trailer, of all things. If I have to sit through a couple stinkers for a movie like "Wild Things" to be made, then so be it.

Also, my 7 year old absolutely loved "Coraline" (both the movie and the book). She thought it was spooky but she wasn't remotely as disturbed as I thought she would be. I think one of the beautiful things about really great children's literature is that we can see it from an adult's perspective and still be moved. Or freaked out.

[Jett]

I can't believe you forgot Matilda! auuuugh.

[Angela]

LOL, Tom brought Coraline home last night and planned for us all to watch it, in 3-D, with my THREE year old.

Yeah, I ixnay'd that pretty damn quick. Although I can't wait to see it myself. AFTER the 3 year old is asleep.

[Accidental Housewife]

Matilda! Yes! It's was my favorite movie to watch with my nieces, and now that they're teens it's their fave to watch with my four year old when they babysit! The music, the shenanigans, the books, I loved it all...

[Accidental Housewife]

Or how about James and the Giant Peach, or Holes, or Desperaux?

[TwoBusy]

First off, I'm THRILLED to hear that I'm not the only one with great love for The Iron Giant. Looks like there's a little Hogarth Hughes in all of us.

Second, if you enjoyed the movie version of Coraline, definitely seek out the book. You won't be disappointed.

Third... I've never seen Matilda. (ducking the napkin dispenser Jett just threw at me) Guess I'll have to rectify that.

Fourth, thanks for the other great adaptation ideas. I'd forgotten all about James and the Giant Peach, as well as Holes (although I think of Holes more as a young adult thing, which is why I considered but ultimately didn't include the Harry Potters or The Golden Compass here).

[Pamela]

FYI, for anyone who has Netflix and hasn't seen the Iron Giant, it is available in their online instant streaming section. We have watched it a whole bunch of times and really enjoyed it.