Quick Thoughts On The DELIRIUM Pilot

I watched the Delirium pilot on Hulu a couple days ago. The TV show, which was rejected by Fox, is based on Lauren Oliver's Delirium trilogy. I'm a huge fan of Oliver's writing, so I had high expectations. But honestly, I can see why Fox passed on the show. 

Highlights: I liked Emma Roberts as Lena. Jeanine Mason likewise made for a great Hana - she brought the fiery personality, but kept Hana's reluctance to truly rebel. Julian Fineman's addition to the story was actually kind of interesting, although I don't think his character had too much to do. The setting isn't quite what I imagined, but I enjoyed the way everything looked. It was an interesting mix of futuristic and familiar, which works well for the story. 

Lowlights: The pilot episode is the entire first novel, with a little bit of the sequel as well. That's around 500 pages of development shoved into a limited amount of minutes, so it's understandable that quite a lot is lost. While Oliver's novel builds relationships and makes readers care about the characters, the pilot rushes everything. The conclusion is supposed to be heartbreaking (and it is in the novel), but in the pilot, there is no emotion, no grief, nothing. The pacing is too fast, and while I think Roberts and Kagasoff could potentially bring Lena and Alex to life, they couldn't make the romance believable in only one episode. Also, there are some roles that are switched / changed / lost, and I'm not sure how well that would work out in the long run. As a whole, emotion was severely lacking in the pilot, which is unfortunate since Delirium is a story about love. 

Final Thoughts: While I was underwhelmed, I wouldn't mind seeing more of the show (if only to see if there was improvement). Better yet, I'd love to see a completely redone pilot episode that fixes the problems. The source material is excellent, and in the right hands, Oliver's books could make for an interesting TV show. 

Did you watch the Delirium pilot? What are your thoughts? 

Book to Film: TRAILERS!

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS

The "Okay, Okay" part pretty much killed me. 

THE MAZE RUNNER

Very excited! This was a great novel, so hopefully it translates well to film.

IF I STAY

Yet again, this trailer made my eyes all watery...I have a feeling I'll burst into tears at the theater (for IIS and TFIOS), which is something I normally never do. Stupid emotions. 

 THE GIVER

 

I'm trying to be optimistic, but I'm concerned about the aging of the characters and some aspects of the first trailer. Fortunately, from viewing the second video, it looks like the black-and-white aspect will be present (which is key to the story). 

What are your thoughts? Which adaptations are you most excited for?

Top Ten Best & Worst Movie Adaptations

Hosted by The Broke and The Bookish!

BEST BOOK-TO-FILM ADAPTATIONS

1.   HARRY POTTER – Even with the small differences here and there, the movies still managed to keep that same charm and magic that the books had. Adore these movies!

2.   THE HUNGER GAMES – Mostly true to the book. Even with the small changes, they still brought the story and characters to life.  

3.   THE LORD OF THE RINGS – My memory is admittedly fuzzy when it comes to the books, but I'm still putting this down as one of the best adaptations. I love these movies so much!

4.   HOLES – I felt like they kept the same charm of the novel, even with the small changes. Guess it pays off to have the author write the screenplay! 

STUCK IN THE MIDDLE

5.   THE LAST SONG – I love the book, so I was a bit disappointed with the film. A handful of fantastic actors did such a great job as their characters, but even they couldn't keep all of the lesser actors from messing up certain moments. 

6.   WATER FOR ELEPHANTS – I feel like the film was very close to the novel, but I had some issues with the acting of the two lead characters. Sometimes they were good, sometimes they weren't. 

WORST BOOK-TO-FILM ADAPTATIONS

7.   THE LIGHTNING THIEF – I watched this movie before reading the books, and thought it was okay. After I read the books, however, my perspective changed quite a lot. I'm very nervous about the sequel, but I'm hoping that they'll stick to the story this time. 

8.   ELLA ENCHANTED – Oh my gosh. Thanks for ruining one of my favorite novels from my childhood. The novel is fun, charming, and whimsical. The film is not even worth your time, especially if you're a fan of the book. 

9.   THE SCARLET LETTER – I'm talking about the Demi Moore film, which was a mess. Even Gary Oldman couldn't save this film. It felt like torture when we were watching this film in school last semester! 

10.  ERAGON – I was surprised by how bad the film was. The books aren't anything special, but they're fun and perfect for film. Yet...it was bad. Saphira looked awesome, though.