...partly because I noticed my last post was my 13th and that seemed dangerous, but mostly because it's a realllllly interesting question.

The listener email I'm going to respond to on POH #29 asked:

<<What's the best horror book you've ever read that you
think would be utterly impossible to adapt as a film,
and why?>>

I DEFINITELY know my answer - would be interested in hearing anyone else's answers and maybe reading them as part of my segment (no super-long replies, please! )

Cheers!

SB

Hi Scott,

With technology being what it is and the advancements in computer graphics, there's no world, creature, or mythology that Hollywood can't bring to life...if they could bring LOTR and Narnia to the screen, they can do anything.

If a book was impossible to adapt into a film, it would have to be because the concept was so intricate that there wouldn't be enough time to explain the concept and also fit the storyline into a two or two-and-a-half-hour block of time. The only book that comes to mind for me is Brian Lumley's The Necroscope.

There are three separate storylines woven together through this book: the story of Harry and his powers, the espionage story, and the vampire story. I doubt any director could do them all justice in one sitting.

Ken Crooker

_________________
Ken

Tough one, Scott.

Hmm.

House of Leaves has to be my first shot. Let me think about this one a little more.

_________________
Now Available:
INTO THE CRUEL SEA: A Tale of Abuse, Bermuda, and Mer-Man Violence!

http://www.skullvines.com/main/page_bookstore.html

Though, I say House of Leaves for only the impossibility factor.

_________________
Now Available:
INTO THE CRUEL SEA: A Tale of Abuse, Bermuda, and Mer-Man Violence!

http://www.skullvines.com/main/page_bookstore.html

I also have to say, the film adaptations of Shirley Jackson and Angela Carter have not gone all that well.

And speaking of horror and not horror at the same time, Joyce Carol Oates is just as prolific as Stephen King, and she's hardly ever adapted for the screen too.

Many movies today are mostly lame, anyway. Mostly carnage and special effects with little emphasis on mood and atmosphere.

_________________
Now Available:
INTO THE CRUEL SEA: A Tale of Abuse, Bermuda, and Mer-Man Violence!

http://www.skullvines.com/main/page_bookstore.html

I always thought that Rick Hautala's Night Stone would be an awesome movie, because it felt like one as I read it. I think it would be doable though so I guess it wouldn't count here. So here are a few that are great stories but wouldn't necessarily work as a movie and why.

1- Summer of Night by Dan Simmons- Too long.

2- A Winter Haunting- by Dan Simmons- This is a great story but alot of what makes it great is the mood of isolation and the inner thought process of the main character. There is nothing that couldn't be done as far as special effects or anything, as this book doesn't have much of that sort of thing, but the feel of the book would be lost on film.

3- Incarnate by Ramsey Campbell (the greatest writer of all time)- Mr. Campbell is so good with his descriptions, and the way he uses his words, that most of his novels would be hard to convert. This is the same as above. Nothing here you couldn't do with CGI, but the loss of the writers amazing ability to convey his scenery and characters, as well as a sense of forbidding dread in the same sentence, simply do to the to the words they choose, would render the story a shadow of it's written existance.

Guys, thank you SO MUCH for your feedback on this question - I'm putting together my POH segment, and I'll definitely be weaving your comments into it and crediting each of you!

This is gonna be fun - be sure to listen to POH #29!

Cheers,

SB

Always happy to help out, Scott.

_________________
Ken