Eat, Pray, Love from the book by the same name by Elizabeth Gilbert will be out in U.S. theaters on 13 August 2010.

Here is the January 2010 update on the current status of the “books to film” projects that have been mentioned on this blog to this point. I will try to do this once a month in order to follow each film until it reaches DVD. Please remember that release dates are subject to change, and that sometimes “Announced” films never get made.

As always, if you have any news about an upcoming book to film adaptation, please comment and let me know.

The current “books to film” list:

1776: In development with a release date sometime in 2011.

The Adjustment Bureau: In post production with a 2010 release date.

Airborn: In pre-production with a 2011 release date.

Airman: In development with a release date in 2011.

Alice in Wonderland: This Tim Burton film is due in U.S. theaters on 5 March 2010.

The Alchemyst: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel: In development with a 2012 release date.

Anita Blake: No IMDB information as yet, nor do we know what they will be calling the project. Personally, I want to know who will be playing Edward. (more info here)

Atlas Shrugged: This project is now listed as “Announced” again. Release date is still listed as 2011.

Beastly: In post-production, with a U.S. release date of 30 July 2010.

The Bell Jar: The status for this project is currently listed as in development with a theoretical release date listed as 2011.

The Boggart: In development. US theatrical release sometime in 2011.

Born to Rock: Announced with a release date sometime in 2010.

The Box of Delights: In development with a theoretical release date in 2011.

Breaking Dawn: In development with a theoretical 2011 release date.

The Camel Bookmobile: In development with a 2012 release date.

Chariots of the Gods?: In development with a tentative 2012 release date.

Chocky: In development with a theoretical release date in 2010. (I’ll be very interested to see this one as I saw the old TV miniseries of this title.)

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader: In post-production with a U.S. release date of 10 December 2010.

City of the Beasts: In development with a 2011 release date.

Curveball: In development with a 2013 release date.

Deal Breaker: Announced with a release date sometime in 2011.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: In post-production with a U. S. Release date of 2 April 2010.

Dinotrux: In development with a 2012 release date.

Discipline: In development with a 2010 release date.

The Doubtful Guest: In development. U.S. theatrical release expected sometime in 2010.

Dragonriders of Pern: In development with a theoretical release date sometime in 2011.

Dune: (Yes, another version of Dune.) Announced with a theoretical release date in 2010.

Eat, Pray, Love: In post-production with a U.S. release date of 13 August 2010.

Eclipse: In post-production with a release date of 30 June 2010.

The Eye of the World: In development with a release date in 2011.

Fahrenheit 451: In development with a release date in 2012 sometime.

Far from the Madding Crowd: In development with a theoretical release date in 2010.

Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said: In development with a 2011 release date.

Flowers for Algernon: In development with a 2013 release date.

Game of Thrones: This TV series looks to be appearing on HBO in 2010.

Gimme a Call: In development with a 2011 release date.

The Giver: In development with a 2011 release date.

A Great and Terrible Beauty: Announced with a theoretical release date in 2010.

The Great Gilly Hopkins: In development with a theoretical release date in 2010.

Gulliver’s Travels: In post-production and due in U.S. theaters on 22 December 2010.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I: In post-production and due in U.S. theaters on 19 November 2010.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2: Currently filming and due in theaters on 15 July 2011.

The Hobbit: Announced with a release date currently set for December 2011.

The Host: In development with a theoretical 2011 release date.

House of Night: In development with a theoretical 2011 release date.

The Illustrated Man: In development with a theoretical 2010 release date.

The Immortality Factor: In development with a release date sometime in 2011.

It: In development with a theoretical release date in 2011.

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell: Announced with a theoretical release date in 2010.

Life of Pi: In pre-production with a theoretical release date sometime in 2011.

The Lorax: In development with a release date in 2012. Word is that this will be in 3D.

The Lost Symbol: In development with a 2012 release date.

The Lovely Bones: Currently in U.S. theaters.

Magic Kingdom for Sale: Announced with a theoretical release date in 2010 sometime.

Mars Needs Moms!: Currently filming with a release date in 2010.

Maximum Ride: In development with a theoretical release date in 2010.

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane: In development with a 2010 release date.

Monster Blood Tattoo: In Development. U.S. theatrical release sometime in 2010.

The Motel Life: In development with a 2012 release date.

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH: In development with a 2013 release date.

My Name is Memory: In development with a 2012 release date.

Netherland: In development with a 2013 release date.

Neuromancer: In pre-production with a release date in 2011 sometime.

The NeverEnding Story: In development with a 2012 release date.

On the Road: In development with a theoretical release date listed as 2011.

Paradise Lost: This version is in pre-production with a 2011 release date.

Paradise Lost: And this version is in development with a 2012 release date.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief : U.S. theatrical release is scheduled for 12 February 2010.

The Piano Tuner: In development with a 2013 release date.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: In pre-production with a release date sometime in 2011.

Queen of Babble: In development with a 2011 release date.

Ramona and Beezus: In post-production and due in U.S. theaters on 13 August 2010.

The Screwtape Letters: In development with a theoretical release date in 2010.

The Secret History of Tom Trueheart: In development with a release date sometime in 2010.

Septimus Heap: Magyk: In development with a 2012 release date.

Shantaram: In development and due in U.S. theaters sometime in 2011.

A Spell for Chameleon: In development with a theoretical release date in 2011.

Startide Rising: In development with a 2012 release date.

The Stoneheart Trilogy: In development with a 2012 release date. Mind you, I’m not sure which one of the trilogy they mean to start with.

The Sword of Shannara: In development with a theoretical release date in 2010.

The Thirteenth Hour: In development with a release date in 2011.

A Thousand Splendid Suns: In development with a theoretical release date in 2011.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy: In development with a 2012 release date.

The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn: In post-production with a U.S. theatrical release on 23 December 2011.

Tomorrow, When the War Began:In post-production with a 2010 release date.

The Tripods: In development with a 2012 release date.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: In development with a 2012 release date.

Uglies: Announced with a theoretical release date sometime in 2011.

The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag: In development with a 2011 release date.

We Have Always Lived in the Castle: In development with a 2011 release date.

Where’s Waldo?: In development with a theoretical release date in 2010.

Wicked: Witch Not sure how they are going to divide up the five book series and make it into films, but it looks like the first film may be called Curse. It’s in development with a 2012 release date.

World War Z: In development with a 2010 release date.

Matt Damon will be appearing in an adaptation of a Philip K. Dick short story as a Politician names David Norris. The Adjustment Bureau is now in post production with a release date sometime in 2010.

Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle, a novel about a family forced to beome recluses after a mysterious poisoning, is currently in development with a theoretical release date in 2011. No further word as yet.

This is the trailer for the film adaptation of J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. I need to see all of the expanded edition to be sure, but what I saw of it felt a bit less rushed that the version I saw on the big screen. Not that I blame them really. That’s a lot of print to translate to film.

This is the trailer for the film adaptation of J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. It seems to me that I waited in line for the midnight showing of this one when it appeared in U.S. theaters 4 June 2004. The third book was my favorite of the lot, so this film had a lot to live up to. Honestly, it felt a bit rushed to me, but overall I liked it.

Once upon a time, when I was a youngling, I encountered a writer by the name of Alexander Key. (Not the writer himself, mind you, just his books. Though…come to think of it, I did write him a fan letter once. I imagine that was before he passed on.)

Anyway, I adored his books and I read everything I could get my hands on. The Case of the Vanishing Boy, The Magic Meadow, The Golden Enemy, The Forgotten Door, Escape to Witch Mountain, Return from Witch Mountain, etc. I loved them all. Books were my friends, and really, Mr. Key’s books spoke to me in a way that few others did. Perhaps it was the element of hope and understanding of differences that he deftly wove into his stories. People who didn’t fit in eventually found a place that they belonged and others like themselves. His books seemed to say that there were good people out there that would help you get where you needed to go. All very comforting when you were a strange as I was as a child. My particular favorites were the Witch Mountain books. Just imagine my delight when I discovered that they had been made into films!

Escape to Witch Mountain (1975) Opening Segment:

I adored the 1975 version of Escape to Witch Mountain for all that it wasn’t quite the same as the book. In the book, for example, Tia couldn’t talk like everyone else. Only Tony could hear her. Stuff like that. I must have seen that film over a hundred times. (Just ask my sister, she’ll tell you.) I was obsessed.

The film version of its sequel, Return From Witch Mountain, is one of the closest adaptations that I’ve seen. They did an excellent job bringing it to the big screen. It was great to see the events I’d imagined unfolding in front of me. Hmmm…I wonder if this spawned my lifelong interest in Book Adaptations. You can check out the trailer for this film below. (Mind you, the trailer narration is a wee bit on the…hokey side. I warn you now.)

Return From Witch Mountain Trailer:

Beyond Witch Mountain (no YouTube, sorry) was all Disney. It was one of those “Wonderful World of Disney” TV movies. It wasn’t bad. The person they got to play Deranian (the baddie from book one, and apparently for this tv film as well) looked a lot closer to the description from the first book. They had different actors for Tia and Tony, which surprised me as I recall. I wish I could find it on DVD. All I have is an old copy on VHS. Anyway, it way okay. It detailed the story of the two kids returning to find another missing member of their extended family. They enlist the help of their old friend Mr. O’Day and off they go.

And then came the Purple Monstrosity. In 1995, Disney came out with a version of Escape to Witch Mountain that looked like a very loose adaption of the previous film written by people who didn’t even know that a book existed. (You can watch it here if you’re feeling brave.) Suffice to say…I absolutely loathed it. They had taken this book that I loved and made a mockery of it. Just thinking about it makes me shiver. Quite the immediate and visceral reaction, wouldn’t you say?

So, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that I was very cautious when it came to Race to Witch Mountain back in March 2009. I followed its progress closely from the beginning. I questioned the casting (The Rock? That kid from The Seeker? He’s already been in one travesty of a book that I loved…) I agonized about the story. And then I watched it…and thought it was great! It had very little to do with the original source material, beyond the concepts and a few nods, but somehow managed to become its own entity. Yep. Against all odds, it managed to win me over.

Race to Witch Mountain Teaser Trailer:

So there you are. Escape to Witch Mountain and me. A story of a good book and its translation to film.

Oh! And just for fun. Have you heard of the Blair Witch Mountain Project? You can see it here. It’s sort of a spoof of Blair Witch and the Witch Mountain movies, featuring the original Tia and Tony.

(Yes, Alexander Key is still my favorite author. I have a quest to collect all of his books. Some day I will manage it.)

As of 16 December 2009, the following authors do not have and books that have been filmed or are headed that way. Some of these surprised me, honestly. I mean, I can see the difficulty of translating Garth Nix to the big screen, but what about Nancy Atherton? As usual, please let me know if you encounter mention of a new film project featuring one of the authors on the unfilmed list.

Anyway, all of the unfilmed authors that I list on this site can be found compiled in the tab marked “Authors – No” at the top of the blog.

The following authors have no filmed books…yet:

David Aaron
Nancy Atherton
David Eddings
Jasper Fforde
Ellen Hopkins
Laurie R. King
Charlotte MacLeod
Lurlene McDaniel
Garth Nix
Tamora Pierce

This is the trailer for the film adaptation of J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. It appeared in U.S. Theaters on 15 November 2002. I have to say that this was not my favorite film in the series so far. This may have something to do with Dobby and the flying car.

This is the trailer for the film adaptation of J. K. Rowling’s first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (or Philosopher’s Stone for those of you in the UK.) It appeared in U.S. Theaters on 16 November 2001. Wow. Has it really been that long?

Stephenie Meyer (website) (IMDB)

Books

* Twilight (21 November 2008) – Filmed as “Twilight.” (trailer)

* New Moon (20 November 2009) – Filmed as “The Twilight Saga: New Moon.” (trailer)

* Eclipse (30 June 2010) – Filmed as “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.”

* Breaking Dawn (2011) – In development.

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* The Host (2011) – In development.