Favorite books of the year 2021

Which books really affected me? Here’s my list. There are no math books, even though I did read a few. They are mostly philosophy or writing books, listed below in no particular order.

• Steven B Smith, Spinoza, Liberalism, and the Question of Jewish Identity, Yale Univ. Press. Smith is a political science professor at Yale and a Spinoza expert. This is a book of how Spinoza’s philosophy influenced political science thought today and how he (in the 1600s) laid out foundational principles for the American democratic republic of today. Smith’s very clear writing and well-laid out arguments make this a terrific book for anyone (like me) who’s a Spinoza fan. I’m reading Smith’s next book, Spinoza’s Book of Life, now. Excellent so far.
  
• Zoe Quinn, Crash Override, PublicAffairs Books. This is an eye-opening account of how misogynists use the internet and social media to attack women. While specific to abuse of women in the video game community, these techniques have been refined and expanded to attacking politicians and journalists today (see Ezra Klein’s article from 2014 and the article of Aja Romano from 2021, among others).
• Michael Botvinnik, One Hundred Selected Games, Dover. I’m so impressed with this former world champion chess grandmaster. This book sent me down a rabbit hole trying to research his life. He was very self-disciplined and held down a full time job as an engineer, solving some important electrical engineering problems for the growing Soviet state, while pursuing the world chess championship title. Do I agree with his personal views? No. He once said Stalin wasn’t communist enough! But he’s also a Jew that not only survived but thrived in the Stalinist era, not an easy feat. My favorite part of each game was the one moment in which an ordinary looking chess move was made (that is, ordinary looking to me) and then the next line of Botvinnik’s commentary was “Of course, this was the move that lost the game.” Of all the games, I don’t remember even once predicting the losing move. I loved the commentary though.
• Mel Scult, volume 2 of Communings With the Spirit. This is the second volume in Mel Scult’s series of selections from Mordecai Kaplan’s diaries. Volume 1 was excellent and I’m reading volume 3 now. Kaplan (who died in 1983 at the age of 102) was IMHO one of the most important and profound philosophical thinkers on religion and American society. Like Botvinnik, Kaplan was another extremely disciplined worker. This is the volume where Kaplan explains his interest with Spinoza’s philosophy. While Spinoza’s precise influence isn’t clear from the diaries, the influence is clearly there. For more details on this connection, see for example the 2000 scholarly article by Shaul Magid, now a professor at Dartmouth College. I’m reading volume 3 of Scult’s series now. Excellent so far.
• Ben Westhoff, Fentanyl Inc, Atlantic Monthly Press. After my step-son Zach died, I wanted to learn more about how fentanyl reaches the USA, where it comes from, and so on. To be clear, when the press uses the work “fentanyl” it usually means a fentanyl derivative which has been cooked up to avoid export laws in China (where some exports are allowed even though use is illegal). While the situation on the ground is constantly evolving, this explains a lot about the origins in China of these narcotic products and the idiocy of the current US drug laws.
• Steve Kaplan, The Comic Hero’s Journey. This book should be paired with Kaplan’s earlier book, The Hidden Tools of Comedy. Steve Kaplan (no relation to my knowledge to Mordacai Kaplan) is a director and looks at comedy from that perspective. Before I read these books, I’d read lots of books on comedy and thought I had an inkling of comedic structure. I was wrong. These books, and Kaplan’s online courses, which go into detail on these books, really taught me a great deal. I may not be funnier but I understand comedic structure (and comedy screenplay structure) much much better as a result of Kaplan’s books and classes.
• Charles Deemer, Screenwright: the craft of screenwriting, Xlibris Corp (reviewed on this blog here). Deemer taught screenwriting for many years at the college level and this book distills the down-to-earth lessons from his classes. I liked that he presented a number of screenplay templates, such as the 3-act paradigm and some of its “spin-offs”. Deemer’s book is out-of-print but still available in paperback (on amazon, for example) or free from ibiblio.org, in html format, at this link. The online version is not only free but it’s expanded greatly in some sections, such as the examples of breakdowns breakdowns using one of his templates. I don’t want to say this is better than, say Dan O’Bannon’s book, Dan O'Bannon's Guide to Screenplay Structure, but it is in many ways similar and (like O’Bannon’s book) pleasant to read. O’Bannon is more of a Hollywood icon than Deemer. O’Bannon wrote or co-wrote the screenplays for, among many others, the classic movies Alien (the first in the franchise) and The Return of the Living Dead (the first of several sequels to George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, which was co-written with John Russo - the complicated explanation of the sequels is discussed at this link). I like the organization of both of these books by Deemer and O’Bannon.

3 act breakdown of "Meet the Robinsons"

Let's look at one of my favorite movies, the inventive and energetic Disney animation, Meet the Robinsons (2007).

While overall quite a lot of fun, with a strong emotopnal theme, terrific music and memorable visuals, IMHO the film is complicated by too many subplots that don't contribute to the emotional core of the story. The description below skips a lot of these subplots. For a sequence breakdown that includes these details, see the blog post by Kirby Kirby Marshall-Collins, From Okay, But: A “Meet the Robinsons" Scene-by-Scene Breakdown. Despite these issues with subplots (which are IMHO relatively minor flaws in the story-line, but others may disagree), this is still one of my favorite movies.

The breakdown below follows the O'Bannon model [OL12], emphasizing the protagonist's Dramatic Problem arising from the Inciting Incident and the Point of No Return.

Note: The film goes back and forth in time using both flashbacks and a time machine. This in itself presents it's own set of plot problems which I'm also going to ignore.

Act 1: The Conflict.

Our protagonist Lewis (later renamed Cornelius) is 12, an energetic, science prodigy, and apiring inventor who's so far has spend his life in an orphanage. His roommate is Goob, another orphan who loves baseball.

So many potential adoptive parents have rejected him, Lewis is convinced that no one wants him. Mildred (voiced by the awesome Angela Bassett), the house mom of the orphanage, counters that they don’t know that; maybe his mom just couldn’t keep him. Lewis was the only one who saw her, so he decides to build an invention, his Mind Scanner, to look into the past and find his mom.

Lewis works on his Mind Scanner over months, keeping poor Goob up most nights building it. Finally, it’s the day of the InventCo-sponsored science fair. Goob can hardly stay awake but has an important event as well, a baseball game (he plays outfield). In fact, Goob falls asleep in the outfield and is, in fact, hit in the head by an easily caught ball. Because of that, they lose the game and his teammates are mad at him. Goob blames it all on Lewis, vowing revenge. Goob goes up hating Lewis.

At the science fair, an InventCo scientist, Mrs Lucille Krunklehorn (voiced by the legendary Laurie Metcalf) is a judge. Lucille's husband Bud will be important later but is not shown until later. (Bud and Lucille will later adopt Lewis/Cornelius.) Lewis barely notices young Franny, who has entered trained frogs into the science competition. (Lewis will later marry Franny the frog trainer.)

Lewis sets up his Mind Scanner machine. From the future, Bowler Hat Guy (BHG), an older and very disgruntled version of Goob, has arrived using a stolen Time Machine. Goob/BHG wants to steal Lewis' invention because he hates Lewis. Lewis' future 13-year old son Wilber follows BHG into the past in another Time Machine to try to stop him. (In this future, there are only two such Time Machines and the stolen Time Machine was Wilber's responsibility.)

In some sense, this defines BHG/Goob as the antagonist. This can also be regarded as the inciting event.

After BHG/Goob steals the Mind Scanner and returns to the future, Lewis is devastated. Wilber tells Lewis he's from the future and has a Time Machine. Lewis doesn't believe him. To prove it, Wilber tosses Lewis into his Time Machine and they fly away.

While traveling to the future, Lewis realizes he doesn't need a Mind Scanner, he can just use the Time Machine to see his mom. Wilber and he get into a fight over this and they crash the Time Machine in Wilber's front yard. Wilbur wants Lewis to fix the machine. Lewis bargains that if he fixes the time machine, Wilbur will take him back to see his mom. Wilbur agrees.

This is the Lock in.

Act 2: The Conflict intensifies.

Bowler Hat Guy attempts to pass off the Memory Scanner as his own at InventCo, but the CEO says he "hasn’t thought this through." (A recurring joke.) He can’t even figure out how to turn it on. They throw him out the doors of InventCo HQ.

Wilbur and Lewis push their broken machine into the garage. Even though Lewis keeps failing, Wilbur simply says, "Keep moving forward," his dad’s motto. Also, based on an actual quote:

We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths. -- Walt Disney

Bowler Hat Guy arrives outside, undetected. BHG uses a robotic hat to control Frankie, leader of Frannie's frogs. Frankie approaches the table to get Lewis, but he can’t capture him since he’s too small. Frankie warns BHG hasn’t thought this through. (Recurring joke 2.)

This failing, BHG (again using a robot hat) decides to get a dinosaur, a life-sized T-Rex, to get Lewis. The Robinsons band together to save Lewis from the T-Rex. T-Rex corners Lewis outside, but "big head and tiny arms" means that it can't grab Lewis. T-Rex warns BHG hasn’t thought this through. (Recurring joke 3.)

Franny and the other Robinsons invite Lewis to join their family. He's elated. Wilbur confesses the truth about the Time Machines. Realizing now who Lewis really is, they decide he needs to go back to his time and life his life.

Unfortunately, before this can happen, BHG/Goob captures Lewis. He offers to take Lewis to see his mom if Lewis fixes the Memory Scanner. Lewis fixes his Memory Scanner and learns BHG is Goob in the future. Lewis learns disgruntled future Goob knew just the moment to go back to, so as to ruin Lewis' life. Lewis tells BHG he's sorry about the baseball game and that if he’d let go of the past and kept "moving forward" his life would’ve turned out better. BHG would rather blame Lewis. (This also establishes part of Lewis' character arc.)

Done with Lewis, BHG takes Lewis to the now empty orphanage building (still in the future) and dumps tied up Lewis on the roof of the orphanage. Wilber recovers Lewis from BHG, stealing back the Mind Scanner as well. They almost make it back to the Robinson home when BHG/Goob catches up to them and takes back the Mind Scanner. BHG tries to remarket the working Mind Scanner to InventCo. BHG shows the scanner and signs the paperwork with the InventCo executives. This changes the future, causing Wilber to stop existing.

Before Wilber disappears, he tells Lewis that it's up to him - he must fix the Time Machine in the garage and go back to the science fair and stop BHG from originally stealing the Mind Scanner.

The world is darker. Lewis rushes into the Robinson garage. No one is there. The only thing there is a screen that shows what happened in the new dystopian future.

This is the Point of No Return.

Act 3: The Resolution.

Lewis scrambles to fix the machine, as the world gets darker and darker. Lewis goes back to the past, not to his birth mom but to the InventCo-sponsored science fair to stop BHG from taking his Mind Scanner.

Lewis stops on his way to the science fair to wake up Goob at the baseball game, who is sleeping in the outfield. Goob wakes up just in time to catch the ball and save the game. Everybody cheers for him!

At the science fair, Lewis pleads for one more chance. Lucille whispers a date to Lewis to plug in. The memory scanner works perfectly, showing her wedding to Bud, who has just arrived at the fair to drive Lucille home. A frog lands on Lewis, and Franny and Lewis finally notice each other. She asks if he thinks she’s crazy for training frogs to sing. He says no, and it's love at first sight.

Lucille and Bud love Lewis and decide to adopt him, but rename him "Cornelius." They move Cornelius into their house and show him what room will be the lab.

The emotional ending is accentuated by music from Little Wonders by singer/songwriter Rob Thomas.

Bibliography:
[OL12]Dan O'Bannon and Matt Lohr, Dan O'Bannon's guide to screenplay structure, Michael Wiese Productions, 2012.

Deemer's book Screenwright - a review

Charles Deemer wrote a 1998 book titled Screenwright: the craft of screenwriting. Last time I checked, lots of compied were available used at low cost. Then, in 2013, he revised it a bit as a hypertext e-book, but as a collection of html pages, not a hypertext pdf. Moreover, he posted it free online: hypertext Screenwright.

I like this version for several reasons, but the main one is that's it's the only free, detailed discussion of screenwriting from an expert. His experience is detailed in his online resume and online biography. At this point, you the reader is thinking "hurry up and describe his system so I can get on with my day." Patience!

Another thing I like about his book: he doesn't advocate one system or another. He does present several systems, and spends a good amount of time devoted to the beginning writer exploring their own writing system. Are you a "tree person" (meaning basically you like to outline first) or a "forest person" (creation is discovery)? He even gives a "writing method preference test". Besides that, he does spend time discussing several methods. He discusses in some detail Syd Field's "3-act paradigm":

• The hook
• The complication
• The hero's call to action
• First act plot point, leading to the
• Hero's goal
• Midpoint plot point
• Act two plot point
• Hero's new goal, leading to the
• Climax and resolution

He gives numerous examples of analysis and break-downs of dynamic structure of films using this paradigm, from Chinatown to True Lies. Deemer also briefly looks at some "spin-offs" by people such as Dave Trottier "6-events paradigm" (catalyst, big event, pinch, crisis, showdown, realization), and Chris Vogel's Hero's journey.

There's lots of details on the writing process, with encouragement and helpful advice on each stage of the process.

For more details, the table of contents is at this link. Check it out!

Sinclair Lewis on writing with little time

In 1921 Sinclair Lewis wrote a short essay entitled "How I wrote a novel on trains and beside a kitchen sink." (Nine years before he won the Nobel Prize in Literature.)

I first saw this article referenced in a quote by Tom Wolfe on the craft of writing. I googled for it and found it referenced in a blog, where someone commented on where it appeared. I tracked down the issues of The American Magazine (in the public domain and posted on the internet archive. Then I downloaded the huge psd and extracted the pages for the Sinclair Lewis article. You can download the three page article (as a pdf) by clicking here.

Robin Swicord on adapting novels to a screenplay

Sundance Collab recently gave a fascinating master class taught by the great Robin Swicord on adaptations.

It's free to watch her class (click on the video at the bottom of the page linked to above). You do have to sign up at sundance collab but you can do that without a credit card or anything like that. I'm just going to give you a selection of her three hour lecture so you can decide if you want to see the whole thing:

... Start making notes on what unique qualities describe the protagonist. And beyond that, look for the ways the protagonist hinders themself. When do they get in their own way? You also want to start to identify the antagonist -- that person or system that opposes the protagonist. If it's a system, what person or people would you consider inventing in order to represent that system in the story?

One example that I can give you is the movie "Hidden Figures" that gave us in an insidious system that opposes the the protagonist. Standing in for that system is a composite character made up by the screenwriters Al Harrison played by Kevin Costner. History gave us Katherine Johnson a mathematician who worked for NASA, Margot Lee Shetterly gave us the facts in her well-researched nonfiction book, and the writers Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi crafted the screenplay. At each stage that story got shaped and told from the individuals point of view. When we work from history, there is no single objective truth. That is something to keep in mind if you are anxious about having to supply something that the story doesn't give us an order to make it more dramatic. There was no Al Harrison, but we needed him for the movie.

Keep in mind that the protagonist shrinks to the size of their antagonist or their problem, so if you give a protagonist too small of a problem, it makes the protagonist seem smaller.

When you give them an antagonist or problem of sufficient size, they become enabled and you see that in "Hidden Figures" where you have this very small ignoble little human problem of being denied access to a convenient bathroom in terms of a dramatic problem you think that's not that huge. But it was huge because that problem stood in for the much larger ennobling problem of systemic racism sexism that affected the women who worked at NASA. ...

I can't embed her video but you can access the video from the sundance collab site https://collab.sundance.org/.

Brad Rushing on artistic motivation

Brad Rushing is a cinematographer who was recently interviewed on the youtube channel Film Courage. It was so insipring to me, I thought I'd post a few outakes of his interview. For more details, see the full interview.

Q: How do you keep faith in yourself and in your craft during turbulent times?

A: ... there was a time early in my career (early on in the 90’s) where I was so frustrated and so down and didn’t believe in myself and I just had this revelation You know what, I’ve set a goal. I don’t have to believe in myself. I just have to do the steps that I committed to doing to get me through the valley of the shadow of death, and that worked for me. It was a device that worked for me and I feel like occasionally I still have it. ... I just find that my brain is a little more complex in terms of the things it does to me. I don’t know that I am always in the driver’s seat and, quite honestly, I deal with self-esteem issues. I really do. I think a lot of people do in this business. Your identity is tied up in your work, even if you don’t want it to be because you put so much of yourself into it ... I do try and keep faith in myself and you know honestly when I do have crisis with the system or success is a nebulous thing I really get basic and I go back and remind myself: Brad you're an artist. That was the contract you made. You never said you wanted to be rich. I don’t care about being rich. I would like to be self-sufficient. I’d like to be secure. If I was rich it would be okay but I’d be donating, helping, and so on. I mean, I just don’t need a super yacht and an island. But I remind myself of the contract that I made was that I wanted to be an artist, simple as that.

For more questions and his wise advise, see the interview on Film Courage.

Chris Mack on story design and character

Chris Mack (a creative executive on Netflix) and stage 32 presented a workshop on pitching a series idea to Netflix. The 3 hour workshop is online and free but you need to sign up with stage 32, locate the workshop in their education section, order it (which might require a credit card, but they won't charge it). If you don't have time for all that, see the attached for a sketchy version of only a small part of his presentation. He gave some good advice on story design and character, IMHO.

***** Story design. Key story questions:

• Who are the characters?
• What do they want? (internal goal and external goal)
• Why do they want it?
• How do they go about getting it?
• What stops them?
• What are the consequences?

Robert McKee quote:

Of the total creative effort in a finished work, 75 percent or more of a writer’s effort goes into designing story. [repeats the questions above] Finding the answers to these grand questions and shaping them into story is our overwhelming creative task.

The last two questions of McKee can be revised to

• What are the central conflicts?
• What are the stakes?

Central conflicts generate story! Answer these questions for your protagonist. Challenger yourself to get the best answer possible. Repeat this for each main character.

Characters. Backstory. Traits. Arcs. Describe each of your main characters. Three key ingredients for a “rootworthy” character:

• Catalyst. (Underlying motivation or backstory, centered around one reason that feeds into their main goal. Think “call to action” or personal tragedy or inherently wanting to do the “right thing.”)
• Moral compass. (A set of rules the character sets for themself. This allows the audience to set expectations on how a character will act. Think fighting for the greater good or protecting their family or uncovering some hidden truth for the sake of justice.)
• Transformation. (What obstacles and challenges spur growth in the character? How do they handle themselves under trials? Note the trials and challenges must make sense given the character’s Catalyst. Their actions must be consistent with their Moral Compass. Think sacrifices made, learning to control their skills/power, overcoming hardships. Note that a character can have both an external arcs/transformation and an internal arc/transformation.

Backstory: Tell us only the parts that inform us about the story itself - e.g., the potential flashbacks. We want to know:

• The characters' wants, fears, and needs.
• How do/did they approach life?
• What motivates/motivated them?
• What choices did they make in the past?

Traits: These help bring the character to life for the audience. There are 3 types of traits.

• Moral - values and beliefs, (These give you ideas for emotional acrs for your characters.)
• Emotional/physical. (As an emotional arc, think going from honest to dishonest, unselfish to greedy, and so on. As a physical trait, ask how this affects their actions? For example, wild could lead to risky situations, tieless leads to being exploited, busy leads to unattentive, and so on. Subvert expectations. What if they are strong but are also insecure? What if they are ugly but very confident?)
• Personality quirks. (Are they friendly, adventurous, timid? Ambitious? Thoughtful? Combine characters that have opposing personality traits. Think The Odd Couple.)

Relationship dynamics: What is the character’s relationship to the protagonist? If it’s an ensemble, how do the characters compete with each other? Characters having the same goal but different motivations makes for conflict (which is good for adding dramatic tension).

See Chris Mack's excellent presentation for more details!

Kira Snyder's TV writing exercises

I found this on reddit but I guess it was first on twitter. I've lightly editted the content for readability (completing abbreviations, formatting into a list, deleting hashtags, etc).

Feature film and TV writer Kira Snyder (Eureka (Syfy), The 100 (the CW), The Handmaiden's Tale (Hulu), co-writer of Pacific Rim: Uprising, ...) provides real world production rewrite exercises.

A key part of TV writing that isn’t often taught AFAIK is the Production Rewrite: revisions required by budget, schedule, unforeseen circumstances, etc. So here are some exercises to try with a completed script. For added realism give yourself a time limit, such as a day. Or 2 hrs :-)

1. Your episode is over budget on cast. You can keep your main characters, but reduce your script’s secondary characters by at least 50 percent. (tip: Who can you cut or combine? Can you give dialogue to existing characters?)
2. In prep, the director found a new location everyone loves, including you. Pick a location in your script where at least three scenes take place and rewrite those scenes for a completely different location.
3. Your lead actor has a family emergency and isn’t available for this episode. At all. Rewrite your script without them but you can’t change the story or add new cast. (tip: Can another character step up to carry the story?)
4. Yikes! The network suddenly has decided they hate your B-story and shooting starts tomorrow. Write a new B-story without changing any of its locations or cast or your A-story.
5. Your director isn’t making their day (finishing all scheduled scenes) and there’s no time or budget for pickups. Cut three pages from your script. Oh, and it has to be from the second half of the script because the 1st half has already been shot.
6. It’s raining cats and dogs. Pick your script’s most important exterior location, or one used for several scenes, and rewrite it to be indoors.
7. Due to how the schedule worked out, half your day scenes need to be night and half your night scenes need to be day. Make it so in your script, and not just slug lines. Look at content and location. (tip: You may need to restructure the episode.)
8. More budget headaches. You can keep your script’s B-story but you have to rewrite it to take place in one location.
9. Cool! The network is willing to spring for a big guest star in this episode. But they need a bit more in your script to entice said star. Without changing page count, add two juicy scenes for a key (but not lead) character.
10. Ack! The actor playing one of your main characters has an injury. They’ll be okay but can’t stand, walk, or run for this episode. Rewrite all their scenes so they are seated or lying down.
11. You’re out of money for the episode (notice a theme here?). Find the most expensive element of your script – e.g. action set piece, elaborate visual special effects scene, anything with kids, animals, or water – and rewrite your script to get rid of it.
12. Surprise! Your network is changing their episode format (maybe to sell more commercials 🙃) and your episode’s already in prep. Rewrite your script to include one more act break than it currently has.
13. You’re about to shoot the most important scene of your script. The actors love the scene but their dialogue, not so much. Change all of the dialogue but not the story. Extra credit: do it in 30 minutes because the crew’s almost ready to shoot.

Howard Hawks' narrative story structure

Some notes on narrative story structure employed by Howard Hawks, as gleaned from Gerald Mast’s biography Howard Hawks, storyteller.

Howard Hawks is famous for using Ben Hecht or Charles Lederer or William Faulkner as screenwriters on his films, and is not well-known as a screenwriter himself. None-the-less, he write many of his earliest films, and was known to rewrite many others. For example, the idea to make Hildy female (as in his version of The Front Page that Hawks titled His Girl Friday) was his, although Charles Lederer (and uncredited Ben Hecht) wrote the script. A quick look at his filmography will show you he kept writing into the 1960s (fyi, he was born in the 1890s). Mast’s book describes Hawks’ four part screenplay structure:

• Part 1: The prologue. This part either (a) establishes conflict in the past or present of the major characters, or (b) initiates a conflict among the major characters.
• Part 2: Develop this central conflict from the point of view of one of the major characters, or let the perspective (or lifestyle) of one of the major characters dominate the action.
• Part 3: Either (a) allow another one of the major characters to dominate the action, or (b) develop conflict by allowing two (or more) major characters to work together.
• Part 4: Resolve the central conflict, often by returning to the physical setting in the prologue, but now the opposing characters see each other in a new light.

The first and last part match up well with most other “screenplay structure” suggestions, parts 2 and 3 seems to me like more of a stylistic structural component that he superimposed on a script. In any case, here is an example using one of my favorite movies. Example: His Girl Friday. Part 1 involves (a) Hildy’s divorce from Walter and her planned marriage to Bruce, (b) the important to-be-written newspaper story of the execution of an innocent man. Part 2 involves Walter scheming behind Hildy’s back to (a) get Hildy to work on the newspaper article for him, (b) to block Bruce’s efforts to get him out of town. Part 3 involves Hildy writing the article (and in the process discovering how much she loves being a good reporter) and helping to save the innocent convict. Part 4 involved Bruce leaving, and Hildy and Walter becoming reunited.

A selection of adapted comedies

I'm leaving out movie sequels (such as Toy Story 3), remakes not based on a novel (e.g., based on another movie, such as James Cameron's True Lies, Blake Edwards' Victor/Victoria or Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot), or movies adapted from TV series (such as Borat or In the Loop). While they are technically adaptations, I'm focusing more on feature film adaptations from books or plays where the main language is English.

Based on Novels/Books

1. Yes Day (2021), based upon the 2009 children's book of the same name by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld. [justwatch.com]
2. Emma (2020) and Emma (1996), based on the 1815 novel of the same name by Jane Austen. [justwatch.com for 2020 version, justwatch.com for 1996 version]
3. How to Build a Girl (2019), based on her 2014 novel of the same name written by Caitlin Moran who also wrote the script. [justwatch.com]
4. JoJo Rabbit (2019), based on the 2008 novel Caging Skies by Christine Leunens. Screenwriter Taika Waititi (who also acted in and directed the film) won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
5. BlacKkKlansman (2018), based on the 2014 memoir Black Klansman by Ron Stallworth. [justwatch.com]
6. Crazy Rich Asians (2018), based on the 2013 novel of the same title by Kevin Kwan. [justwatch.com]
7. A Futile and Stupid Gesture (2018), based on Josh Karp's 2006 (non-fiction) book of the same name. [justwatch.com]
8. Freaky Friday (2018) and Freaky Friday (2003) and Freaky Friday (1976), all based on the 1972 children’s novel of the same name written by Mary Rodgers. The 2018 version is a musical. There is also a 1995 made-for-TV version. [justwatch.com for 2018 version, justwatch.com for 2003 version, justwatch.com for 1976 version]
9. The Little Hours (2017), loosely based on the first and second stories of day three of ten of The Decameron, a collection of novellas by Giovanni Boccaccio, a 14th-century Italian writer. [justwatch.com]
10. Love & Friendship (2016), based on Jane Austen's epistolary 1794 novel Lady Susan. [justwatch.com]
11. Maggie's Plan (2015), based on an original story by Karen Rinaldi (later published as the 2017 novel The End of Men). This script, written by Rebecca Miller, is published in book form and available from amazon.com. [justwatch.com]
12. The DUFF (2015), based on the 2010 novel of the same name by Kody Keplinger. [justwatch.com]
13. Hector and the Search for Happiness (2014), based on François Lelord's novel of the same name (published in 2002, translated to English in 2010). [justwatch.com]
14. Inherent Vice (2014), based on Thomas Pynchon's 2009 novel of the same name. Paul Thomas Anderson's script was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
15. Silver Linings Playbook (2012), based on Matthew Quick’s 2008 novel of the same name. David O. Russell was nominated from an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. However, he won the BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
16. Pitch Perfect (2012), loosely based on Mickey Rapkin's 2009 non-fiction book, titled Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate a Cappella Glory. [justwatch.com]
17. Warm Bodies (2013), based on Isaac Marion's 2010 novel of the same name (which in turn is inspired by Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet). [justwatch.com]
18. Red (2010), loosely inspired by the 2003-2004 Homage Comics limited series of the same name by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner. [justwatch.com]
19. Julie and Julia (2009), based on two books: My Life in France, Child's 2006 autobiography written with Alex Prud'homme, and a 2005 memoir by Powell, Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously. The screenplay by Nora Ephron (who also directed) was nominated for a WGA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
20. Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009), based on the first two entries in the Shopaholic series of novels by Sophie Kinsella. [justwatch.com]
21. The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009), based on Rebecca Miller's 2008 novel of the same name. (While classified as a comedy/drama and technically Pippa Lee qualifies as a "comic non-hero", there aren't many laughs in this excellent film. Trivial fact: Rebecca Miller is playright Arthur Miller's daughter.) [justwatch.com]
22. Meet the Robinsons (2007), loosely based on the 1990 children's book A Day with Wilbur Robinson by William Joyce. While poorly reviewed, this is another one of my favorite films. [justwatch.com]
23. The Devil Wears Prada (2006), based on Lauren Weisberger's 2003 novel of the same name. Screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna was nominated by both the WGA and BAFTA for the Best Adapted Screenplay award. [justwatch.com]
24. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005), based Douglas Adams' 1979 novel of the same name. (That novel was, in turn, based on Adams' comedy radio show from 1978.) [justwatch.com]
25. Mean Girls (2004), based in part on Rosalind Wiseman's 2002 non-fiction self-help book, Queen Bees and Wannabes. Screenwriter Tina Fey was nominated by the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
26. Sideways (2004), based on Rex Pickett's 2004 novel of the same name. Screenwriters Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. They also won the Award for Best Adapted Screenplay from both BAFTA and the WGA. [justwatch.com]
27. About a Boy (2002), based Nick Hornby's 1998 novel of the same name. Screenwriters Chris Weitz and Paul Weitz and Peter Hedges were nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
28. About Schmidt (2002), very loosely based on the 1996 novel of the same title by Louis Begley. The screenplay by Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor was nominated for the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay and won the Golden Globe award for best screenplay. [justwatch.com]
29. Adaptation (2002), which is technically an adaptation (as material from the 1998 novel The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean is used), it's really a self-referential comedy about a screenwriter and his twin struggling to write the adaptation. The screenplay by Charlie Kaufman and Donald Kaufman was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, a WGA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, A Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay, and won the BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Note: Donald Kauffman is Charlie Kauffman's fictional brother (a character in this film), but still is given writing credit on the award. [justwatch.com]
30. Ghost World (2001), based on the 1993-1997 comic book of the same name by Daniel Clowes. he screenplay by Daniel Clowes and Terry Zwigoff was nominated for the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
31. Shrek (2001), loosely based on the 1990 fairy tale picture book of the same name by William Steig. [justwatch.com]
32. Bridget Jones's Diary (2001), based on Fielding's 1996 novel of the same name, which is a reinterpretation of Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice. [justwatch.com]
33. Legally Blonde (2001), based on Amanda Brown's 2001 novel of the same name. [justwatch.com]
34. High Fidelity (2000), based on the 1995 British novel of the same name by Nick Hornby. Screenwriters D. V. DeVincentis, Steve Pink, John Cusack, and Scott Rosenberg were nominated for the WGA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
35. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), based on the epic poem The Odyssey by Homer. Screenwriters Joel and Ethan Coen were nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
36. Stuart Little (1999), oosely based on the 1945 novel of the same name by E. B. White. [justwatch.com]
37. Election (1999), based Tom Perrotta's 1998 novel of the same name. Screenwriters Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor won the WGA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and was nominated for an Academy Award in that category. [justwatch.com]
38. Mansfield Park (1999), based on Jane Austen's 1814 novel of the same name. See also the 2007 made for TV film Mansfield Park, also based on the book. [justwatch.com]
39. The Parent Trap (1998) and The Parent Trap (1961), based on the 1949 children’s novel by Erich Kästner Lottie and Lisa (originally in German, with the title Das doppelte Lottchen). [justwatch.com 1998 version, justwatch.com 1961 version]
40. Primary Colors (1998), adapted from Joe Klein's 1996 novel Primary Colors: A Novel of Politics. The screenwriter Elaine May was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. She was also nominated by the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay. She won the BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
41. Wag the Dog (1997), based on the 1993 novel American Hero by Larry Beinhart. The screenplay by The screenplay by Scott Frank was nominated by the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay. was nominated by the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
42. To Die For (1995), based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Joyce Maynard, which in turn was inspired by the story of Pamela Smart. [justwatch.com]
43. Clueless (1995), loosely based on Jane Austen's 1815 novel Emma. [justwatch.com]
44. Get Shorty (1995), based on Elmore Leonard's novel of the same name. The screenplay by Scott Frank was nominated by the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
45. Forrest Gump (1994), based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom. Screenwriter Eric Roth won the Academy Award for Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published. [justwatch.com]
46. Mrs Doubtfire (1993), based on the 1987 novel Alias Madame Doubtfire by Anne Fine. [justwatch.com]
47. The Player (1992), written by Michael Tolkin, based on his own 1988 novel of the same name. Tolkin was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, nominated by the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay, and he received an Edgar Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
48. Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), based on the 1987 novel Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg (who also co-wrote the screenplay). Screenwriters Fannie Flagg and Carol Sobieski were nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. They were also nominated by the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
49. Doc Hollywood (1991), based on Neil B. Shulman's 1979 book What? Dead...Again?. See also the 2006 Pixar movie Cars. [justwatch.com]
50. Father of the Bride (1991) and Father of the Bride (1950), based on the 1949 novel by Edward Streeter. The 1950 screenplay by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett was nominated for an Academy Award for best adapted screenplay. [justwatch.com for the 1991 film, justwatch.com for the 1950 film]
51. Postcards From the Edge (1990), based on Carrie Fisher's 1987 semi-autobiographical novel of the same title. Screenwriter Carrie Fisher was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
52. The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990), based on the best-selling 1987 novel of the same name by Tom Wolfe. [justwatch.com]
53. The Princess Bride (1987), adapted by William Goldman from his 1973 novel of the same name. His screenplay was also nominated by the WGA for Best Adapted Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
54. Heartburn (1986), based on Nora Ephron's 1983 novel of the same name, a semi-biographical account of her marriage to Carl Bernstein. [justwatch.com]
55. Brewster’s Millions (1985), based on the 1902 novel of the same name by George Barr McCutcheon, was adapted into a film in 1914, 1921, 1935, 1945, and 1985 (starring Richard Pryor). [justwatch.com]
56. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), written by Cameron Crowe adapted from his 1981 book Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A True Story. Crowe's screenplay was nominated for a WGA Award for best comedy adapted from another medium. [justwatch.com]
57. Who am I This Time? (1982), based on the 1961 short story of the same name by Kurt Vonnegut (published in the Saturday Evening Post magazine, originally titled My Name is Everyone). This is another one (besides Heavy Weather) that should not be on this list -- it's a made-for-TV movie. But I love everything about it. A great film, IMHO. Try to watch it if you can. [justwatch.com]
58. Being There (1979), based on the 1970 novel of the same name by Jerzy Kosiński. The screenplay by Jerzy Kosiński won the BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay, won for the Writers Guild Association award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Mediumm and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
59. Starting Over (1979), based on Dan Wakefield's 1973 novel of the same title. The screenplay by James L. Brooks was nominated for the Writers Guild Association award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
60. Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (1978), based on the 1976 novel Someone Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe by Nan and Ivan Lyons. The screenplay by Peter Stone was nominated for the Writers Guild Association award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
61. Oh, God! (1977), based on the 1971 novel of the same name by Avery Corman. Larry Gelbart's screenplay was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and won the Writers Guild award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
62. Semi-Tough (1977), based on the 1972 novel of the same name by Dan Jenkins. The screenplay by Walter Bernstein was nominated for the Writers Guild Association award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
63. Family Plot (1976), based on Victor Canning's 1972 novel The Rainbird Pattern. The screenplay by Ernest Lehman was nominated for the Writers Guild Association award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
64. The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings (1976), based upon William Brashler's 1973 novel of the same name. The screenplay by Hal Barwood and Matthew Robbins was nominated for the WGA Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
65. The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1974), based on the 1959 novel of the same name by Mordecai Richler. The screenplay by Mordecai Richler and Lionel Chetwynd won the Writers Guild Association award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
66. Paper Moon (1973), adapted from the 1971 novel Addie Pray by Joe David Brown. The screenplay by Alvin Sargent was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Screenplay – Based on Material from Another Medium. It won the WGA Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
67. Pete and Tillie (1972), based on based on the 1968 novel Witch’s Milk by Peter De Vries. Screenwriter Julius J. Epstein was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. [not listed on justwatch.com]
68. Travels with My Aunt (1972), loosely based on the 1969 novel of the same name by Graham Greene. The screenplay by Jay Presson Allen and Hugh Wheeler was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
69. A New Leaf (1971), based on the short story The Green Heart by Jack Ritchie (John George Reitci), which first appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, March 1963. The screenplay by Elaine May was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
70. Kotch (1971), based on the 1965 novel of the same name by Katharine Topkins. The screenplay by John Paxton was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [not on justwatch.com]
71. Where's Poppa? (1970), based on the 1970 novel of the same title by Robert Klane. The screenplay by Robert Klane was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
72. M*A*S*H (1970), based on Richard Hooker's 1968 novel MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors. [justwatch.com]
73. Catch-22 (1970), adapted from the 1961 novel of the same name by Joseph Heller. The screenplay by Buck Henry was nominated for the WGA Award for Best Drama Adapted from Another Medium. (My italics to Drama added. - wdj) [justwatch.com]
74. Gaily, Gaily (1969), adapted from a 1954 autobiographical novel by Ben Hecht called A Child of the Century. The screenplay by Abram S. Ginnes was nominated for a WGA Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [not on justwatch.com]
75. Candy (1968), based on the 1958 novel of the same name by Terry Southern and Mason Hoffenberg, itself based on Voltaire's 1759 Candide. [justwatch.com]
76. The Graduate (1967), based on Charles Webb's 1963 novel of the same name. This was directed by Mike Nichols, who won the Academy Award for Best Director that year. Buck Henry and Calder Willingham's screenplay was nominated for an Academy Award for best adapted screenplay. [justwatch.com]
77. The Silencers (1966), a spy-thriller parady loosely based upon the 1962 novel The Silencers by Donald Hamilton, and also adapts elements of Hamilton's first Helm novel, Death of a Citizen (1960). [justwatch.com]
78. The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming (1966), based on the 1961 Nathaniel Benchley novel The Off-Islanders. William Rose's screenplay was nominated for an Academy Award for best adapted screenplay. [justwatch.com]
79. Man's Favorite Sport? (1964), based on the magazine story "The Girl Who Almost Got Away" by Pat Frank (which first appeared in the July 1950 issue of Cosmopolitan magazine). [justwatch.com]
80. Dr Strangelove (1964), loosely based on Peter George's thriller novel Red Alert (1958). Stanley Kubrick, Peter George and Terry Southern's screenplay was nominated for an Academy Award for best adapted screenplay. [justwatch]
81. Tom Jones (1963) and The Bawdy Adventures of Tom Jones (1973), are based on Henry Fielding's classic 1749 novel The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling. John Osborne's script for the 1963 film won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. It won the BAFTA Award for Best British Screenplay. It won the Writers Guild of Great Britian Award for Best British Comedy Screenplay. [justwatch.com for 1963 film, justwatch.com has no entry for the 1973 film]
82. Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), based on Truman Capote's 1958 novella of the same name. George Axelrod's screenplay was nominated for an Academy Award for best adapted screenplay. [justwatch.com]
83. Auntie Mame (1958), based on the 1955 novel of the same name by Edward Everett Tanner III (under the pseudonym Patrick Dennis) and its 1956 theatrical adaptation by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee. [justwatch.com]
84. Lucky Jim (1957), adapted from the 1954 novel Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis. [justwatch.com]
85. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), based on the 1949 stage musical of the same name which was, in turn, based on the 1925 novel of the same name by Anita Loos (who also co-write the stage musical). The screenplay by Charles Lederer was nominated by the WGA for Best Written Musical. [justwatch.com]
86. I Was a Male War Bride (1949), based on I Was an Alien Spouse of Female Military Personnel Enroute to the United States Under Public Law 271 of the Congress, a biography of Henri Rochard, a Belgian who married an American nurse, and based on Male War Bride Trial to Army, Baltimore Sun 1947, by Henri Rochard. [justwatch.com]
87. Ball of Fire (1941), based on the (apparently undated, unpublished) short story From A to Z by Thomas Monroe and Billy Wilder. [justwatch.com]
88. Mr and Mrs Smith (1941), a screwball comedy by Alfred Hitchcock based on an unpublished short story by Norman Krasna under the original working titles of "Who Was That Lady I Seen You With?" and "No for an Answer" (Krasna also wrote the screenplay). Trivia: RKO bought the short story at the encouragement of Carole Lombard (who eventually starred in the movie) and then Hitchcock was hired. Lombard died shortly after the film was released in an airplane crash. [justwatch.com]
89. Bringing Up Baby (1938), adapted by Dudley Nichols and Hagar Wilde from a short story by Wilde which originally appeared in Collier's Weekly magazine on April 10, 1937. [justwatch.com]
90. The Thin Man (1934), based on the 1934 novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett. This was followed by several sequels: After the Thin Man (1936), Another Thin Man (1939), Shadow of the Thin Man (1941), The Thin Man Goes Home (1945), Song of the Thin Man (1947). After the Thin Man was based on an original story by Dashell Hammett. The screenplay by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett for that film was nominated for an Academy Award for best adapted screenplay. Dashell Hammett's story the film is based on was not previously published but was written for the movie. However, that was the last of the series to involve Dashell Hammett in the writing process. For example, the story for the next one, Another Thin Man, was written by Anita Loos. The married couple Goodrich and Hackett wrote the screenplays for the first three films. [justwatch.com for 1934 film, justwatch.com for 1936 film/a>, justwatch.com for 1939 film, justwatch.com for 1941 film, justwatch.com for the 1945 film, justwatch.com for the 1947 film]

Based on Plays

1. Twelfth Night (2018), full-text adaptation of William Shakespeare's play of the same name. [justwatch.com, however it is on amazon prime even though justwatch doesn't list it]
2. Much Ado About Nothing (2012), adapted for the screen, produced, and directed by Joss Whedon, from William Shakespeare's play of the same name. There is also a 1993 adaptation by Kenneth Branagh. [justwatch for 2012 version, justwatch for the 1993 version]
3. Mamma Mia! (2008), based on Catherine Johnson's 1999 musical of the same name. [justwatch.com]
4. As You Like It (2006), based on the Shakespearean play of the same name. There are several other adaptations, such as the one in 1936 starring L. Olivier. [justwatch.com]
5. She's the Man (2006), inspired by William Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night. [justwatch.com]
6. A Good Woman (2004), based on the 1892 play Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde. [justwatch.com]
7. The Importance of Being Earnest (2002) or TIOBE (1952) and others, all based on Oscar Wilde's classic 1895 play of the same name. [justwatch.com for 2002 film, justwatch.com for 1952 film]
8. Deliver us from Eva (2003), a modern update of William Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew. [justwatch.com]
9. My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), started as a one-woman play written by and starring Nia Vardalos in the summer of 1997. However, it is technically not adapted from her play for reasons I don't understand. In any case, the screenplay by Nia Vardalos was nominated for both an Academy Award and a WGA Award for Best Original Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
10. Love's Labour's Lost (2000), based on the comic play of the same name by William Shakespeare. [justwatch.com]
11. 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), based on the play Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare. [justwatch.com]
12. The Birdcage (1996), based on Jean Poiret's 1973 play La Cage aux Folles. Elaine May wrote the screenplay, which was nominated for a WGA award (Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published). Several other films (such as La Cage aux Folles in 1978) were also adapted from this play. [justwatch.com]
13. Twelfth Night (1996), adapted from William Shakespeare's play of the same name. [justwatch.com]
14. Noises Off (1992), based on the 1982 play of the same name by Michael Frayn. The play was nominated for a Tony Award. [justwatch.com]
15. Switch (1991), based on George Axelrod's 1959 play Goodbye Charlie (and the 1964 film of the same title). [justwatch.com]
16. Switching Channels (1988), based on Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur's 1928 play The Front Page. It is also a remake of the 1940 film His Girl Friday. (See also Front Page (1974) below.) [justwatch.com]
17. Roxanne (1987), based on Edmond Rostand's 1897 play Cyrano de Bergerac. The screenplay by Steve Martin won the WGA Award for Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
18. Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986), based on the 1919 French play Boudu sauvé des eaux. The screenplay by Paul Mazursky and Leon Capetanos was nominated for the WGA Award for Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
19. Crimes of the Heart (1986), based on Beth Henley's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1979 play of the same name. [justwatch.com]
20. The Canterville Ghost (1986), based on the 1887 short story "The Canterville Ghost" by Oscar Wilde. There is also a version made in 1985 and one from 1944. The other remakes are dramatic, not comedy. [justwatch.com 1944 version]
21. Just One of the Guys (1985), loosely adapted from William Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night. [justwatch.com]
22. Educating Rita (1983), with a screenplay by Willy Russell based on his 1980 stage play of the same name. [not on justwatch.com]
23. California Suite (1978), based on the 1976 play of the same name by Neil Simon. [justwatch.com]
24. Heaven Can Wait (1978), Harry Segall's 1938 play of the same name. The script was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay (Elaine May and Warren Beatty). The film Down to Earth (2001), starring Chris Rock, is also based on the play, as is Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941). For the 1941 version, Harry Segall won the Academy Award for Best Story (an award that ended in 1956), while Sidney Buchman and Seton I. Miller won for Best Screenplay. [justwatch.com for 1978 film, justwatch.com 1941 film, justwatch.com 2001 film]
25. The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1975), based on the 1971 play of the same name by Neil Simon. [justwatch.com]
26. The Sunshine Boys (1975), based on the 1972 play of the same name by Neil Simon. The screenplay (also written by Neil Simon) was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay, nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay, and won the WGA Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
27. The Front Page (1974), also based on Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur's 1928 play of the same name. [justwatch.com]
28. Phantom of the Paradise (1974), a loosely adapted mixture of several classic European works: Gaston Leroux's 1910 novel The Phantom of the Opera, Oscar Wilde's 1890 The Picture of Dorian Gray, and Faust by Goethe/Christopher Marlowe. [justwatch.com]
29. Avanti! (1972), based on the play of the same name by Samuel Taylor, which had a short run on Broadway in 1968. Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond were nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium, and nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay. [justwatch.com]
30. Little Murders (1971), based on the 1967 play of the same name by Jules Feiffer (who also wrote the screenplay), was nominated for the WGA Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. (Not to be confused by The Little Murders of Agatha Christie which is a French TV comedy based on the works of Christie.) [justwatch.com]
31. The Owl and the Pussycat (1970), based upon the 1964 play of the same name by Bill Manhoff. The script by Buck Henry was nominated for Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
32. Cactus Flower (1969), based on the 1965 Broadway play of the same name written by Abe Burrows, which in turn was based upon the French play Fleur de cactus by Pierre Barillet and Jean-Pierre Gredy. The screenplay by I.A.L. Diamond was nominated for a WGA Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [justwatch.com]
33. McLintock! (1963), loosely based on William Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew. [justwatch.com]
34. Sabrina (1954), based on the 1953 play Sabrina Fair by Samuel A. Taylor. Another adaption with the same name was made in 1995. [justwatch.com 1954 version, justwatch.com 1995 version]
35. Kiss Me Kate (1953), inspired by William Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew. [justwatch.com]
36. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944), based on Joseph Kesselring's 1941 play of the same name. (Trivia note: This was remade as a made-for-TV film in 1962 with Boris Karloff, who was also in the original play production.) [justwatch.com]
37. The Philadelphia Story (1940), based on the 1939 play of the same name by Philip Barry. The screenplay by Donald Ogden Stewart won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Trivia note: MGM remade the film in 1956 as a musical, retitled High Society. [justwatch.com]
38. His Girl Friday (1940), also based on the 1928 play The Front Page by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur. If I had to pick a "most favorite" film it would be this one. The screenplay and film are in the public domain. I've written other blog posts on this film. [justwatch.com]
39. Twentieth Century (1934), adapted by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur from their 1932 Broadway play of the same name, itself based on the unproduced play Napoleon of Broadway by Charles Bruce Millholland. [justwatch.com]

Based on Wodehouse There were several TV series based on the works of PG Wodehouse (e.g., Blandings and Jeeves and Wooster), as well as stage plays and radio plays. There were also a number of silent movies. We list only the more recent narrative movies in English, and those based on a novel or play (not simply using Wodehouse characters).

1. Piccadilly Jim (2004), based on the 1917 comic novel Piccadilly Jim by P. G. Wodehouse. Film adaptations were also made in 1919 and in 1936. [justwatch.com]
2. Heavy Weather (1995), based on the 1933 novel Heavy Weather by P. G. Wodehouse. This is a TV film, so should not be on this list, but I love this film. It stars the brilliant Peter O'Toole. Please watch it if you can. [this film is not on justwatch,com]
3. The Girl on the Boat (1962), based on the 1922 novel of the same name by P.G. Wodehouse. [no entry for this film on justwatch.com]
4. Anything Goes (1936 film) and Anything Goes (1956 film), each a musical-comedy adapted from the 1934 stage musical Anything Goes by Guy Bolton, and P.G. Wodehouse (music by Cole Porter). [justwatch.com for 1956 version]
5. A Damsel in Distress (1937), loosely based upon the P.G. Wodehouse 1919 novel of the same name (and on the 1928 stage play written by Wodehouse and Ian Hay). [justwatch,com]

Mel Brooks Adaptations by the one and only Mel Brooks.

1. The Twelve Chairs (1970), based on the Russian 1928 novel The Twelve Chairs by Ilf and Petrov. (According to wikipedia, it is one of at least 18 film adaptations of that novel.) Writer/director Mel Brooks was nominated by the Writers Guild of America for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. [not on justwatch,com]
2. Young Frankenstein (1974), Mel Brooks’ spoof of the various film adaptations of Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. [justwatch,com]
3. Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993), Mel Brooks’ spoof of the various film adaptations of the Robin Hood story. (The story goes back to at least the 1400s but was recorded, for example, in Howard Pyle's 1883 children’s novel The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood.) [justwatch,com]
4. Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995), Mel Brooks’ spoof of the various film adaptations of Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula, as well as spoofing the novel itself. [justwatch.com]