Cinema and literature often walk with hands held tight, and some of the bestOscar-winning movies of all time are based on great books. Adapting a story is much more than simply translating it to the big screen. Each type of art has its own distinctive advantage, and while books enable a deep dive into the subconscious, movies must rely on the power of the images to convey emotion, empathy, and depth.
The Best Adapted Screenplay category at the Oscars praises the best achievements in turning intricate stories into insightful screenplays for the big screen. However, quite often, agood book-to-film adaptationexcels in every possible aspect, occasionally earning the ceremony’s top awards, including Best Picture. Every year, there are multiple book adaptations among the Oscars' top picks, which makes it both a great movie and a book recommendation. As we are in the thick ofawards season, take a look at 15 must-watch Oscar-winning movies based on books.
15The Power of the Dog (2021)
The Power of the Dog
The Power of the Dogadapts a sensitive novel about the American West and feels like a late-western in a cultural moment that has moved on from the previously abundant genre in both movies in literature. Written in 1967 by Thomas Savage, the eponymous story was brought to the screen by director Jane Campion. It is centered around two unmarried brothers who are the opposite of each other. While one exposes himself to love, the other shows contempt for any kind of weakness, determined to keep the savagery within him intact.
Won the Oscar for Best Director
For a movie as filled with ambiguous symbolism as this one, one can expect an equally subtle book. Campion’s movie perfectly adapts the gestures and details in the everyday life of these characters, just to showcase the impact of these seemingly small moments later on. The movie was a favorite for Best Picture, and even thoughCODAwon the top prize, it managed to win for Best Director.Stream on Netflix
14How Green Was My Valley (1941)
Legendary Americandirector John Fordrose to prominence for his psychologically-charged westerns filled with moral dilemmas. In this context,How Green Was My Valley’s sweet narrative feels like a breather to the typical brutality of his filmography, even though the movie has its share of desolating moments.
Won the Oscars for Best Picture, Director, Supporting Actor, Art Direction, and Cinematography
Based on a highly personal novel of the same name by Richard Llewellyn, the story is a first-person narrative from the perspective of a Welsh boy and his working-class family growing up in a harsh mining town. It’s a beautiful tale of honor and love, but both the book and the movie also tackle important matters such as class struggle and ecology. It led to Ford’s fourth Best Director Oscar, and it also won for Best Picture.Rent on Apple TV
1312 Years a Slave (2013)
12 Years a Slave
Steve McQueen’s12 Years A Slavewas released exactly 160 years after Solomon Northup’s harrowing memoir,Twelve Years a Slave, was published, and the movie did justice to all the violence and injustice that permeates the true story without ever giving up on the hope that kept Solomon moving forward. It tells the story of a Black man, who was born free but tricked into an illegal slavery scheme in the Deep South.
Won the Oscars for Best Picture, Supporting Actress, and Adapted Screenplay
The movie is a haunting manifesto for apathy, a detriment that prevents humans from giving in to empathy and falling prey to the banality of evil. Solomon’s heartfelt journey earned three major Oscars: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress, launching Lupita Nyong’o to stardom, and Best Picture.Stream on Hulu or Paramount+
12No Country for Old Men (2007)
No Country for Old Men
It’s never easy to adapt a novel from one of the most influential 21st-Century writers of the past, but the Coen Brothers are the perfect match for the kind of raw, contemporary western that defined Cormac McCarthy’s career.No Country for Old Menplays with therags to richestrope by having Llewelyn Moss, a small-time hunter, stumble upon a pile of dead bodies and $2 million in cash in a Texas desert. This discovery triggers a ruthless serial killer to chase after him.
Won the Oscars for Best Picture, Director, Supporting Actor, and Adapted Screenplay
The movie adaptation does a great job at balancing McCarthy’s intertwining storylines, giving equal attention to Llewelyn, Anton Chigurh, the killer, and Ed Tom Bell, the sheriff. These three characters offer three moral perspectives on the same tragedy, and this nuanced approach led the movie to a Best Picture victory, alongside Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Director for both Coens and Best Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem’s chilling portrayal of a serial killer.Stream on Paramount+
11Shrek (2001)
There’s a huge gap between the film franchiseShrekand William Steig’s offhand book,Shrek!, but both of them are subversive in their own way. The film is committed to delivering a new take on children’s fairy tales, changing the figure of the Prince Charming stock character to that of an ogre, Shrek, who sets out on a mission to retrieve a gorgeous princess guarded by a terrifying dragon.
Won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film
On the other hand, the book is solely aboutShrek’s eccentric personality and his aimless journey toward a princess as hideous and smelly as he. Steig introduces an ogre’s idyllic inside-out world, where rot and decay equal happiness to our unconventional character. It’s all about Shrek, who makes even the rain and the thunder run away and has nightmares of sweet children playing with him. The film was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay and won for Best Animated Feature.Stream on Peacock
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10The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Silence of the Lambs
The Silence of the Lambsis an immersive crime thriller that made history for being one of the three movies to win theOscars' Big Five awards: Best Screenplay, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Director, and Best Picture. It’s an unusual feat for a genre film, especially because the movie verges on horror: it follows an FBI cadet who unites forces with a manipulative cannibal psychopath to catch a new serial killer.
Won the Oscars for Best Picture, Director, Actress, Actor, and Adapted Screenplay
The multifaceted Hannibal Lecter was, in fact, created by novelist Thomas Harris and first introduced inRed Dragon, which was later adapted to the big screen as well.The Silence of the Lambsis the second novel in the four-book series, which is unanimously regarded as the strongest entry both the film and literature scope.Rent on Apple TV
9Ordinary People (1980)
Ordinary People
Ordinary Peoplefollows a typical American family shattered by the death of one of their two sons. Conrad, the now one child, is overwhelmed with grief and spirals out of control. His parents struggle to support him while coming to terms with the loss of their favorite.
Even the movie adaptation ofOrdinary Peoplereads like a novel, as the narrative revolves entirely around the inner struggles of each character and their failed attempts to repress these feelings. The result is a moving family crisis that finds substance in a well-crafted script and sturdy performances, winning four major Oscars: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director, and Best Picture.Stream on Max
8Schindler’s List (1993)
Schindler’s List
To this day,Schindler’s Listis still regarded as one of themost haunting Holocaust movies ever made, with Steven Spielberg’s unique creative vision enabling a poignant account of the life of Oskar Schindler, a renowned businessman, who put his life at risk while saving multiple Jews right under the Nazi party’s nose.
Won the Oscars for Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay, Original Score, Film Editing, Cinematography, and Art Direction
Spielberg takes plenty of creative freedom to craft this ambitious story, but remains faithful to the real events, just like the writer Thomas Keneally did in his book,Schindler’s Ark. Keneally did justice to the facts for the majority of the novel, but added fictional dialogues and scenes in moments where details are unknown.Schindler’s Listwon seven Academy Awards, including those for Best Picture and Best Director.Rent on Apple TV
Related:Every Oscar-Nominated Actor That Appeared in the Harry Potter Movies
7Nomadland (2020)
A woman in her sixties, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad. Starring Frances McDormand and directed by Chloé Zhao.
Nomadlandtakes viewers on an unusual journey across the American West, exposing the effects of a post-recession period in contemporary society. The movie follows Fern, a woman in her 60s, who leaves every material possession behind to live as a modern-day nomad, encountering a series of peculiar strangers along the way.
Won the Oscars for Best Picture, Director, and Actress
Characters that appear in the film, such as Linda May and Swankie, are, in fact, fictional versions of themselves. They are part of the nomads that Jessica Bruder met on her own investigative journey, which led her to write the bookNomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century. Even though Frances McDormand’s Fern is fictional, her struggles and everything else in the movie are emotionally real.Stream on Hulu
6Forrest Gump (1994)
Forrest Gump
Forrest Gumptells the moving story of a man with mental disabilities, who navigates through the many hardships of life with an optimistic and unsuspecting attitude. He’s constantly subverting what others imagine he can do, facing heartbreak, war, and political controversies with charming ease.
Won the Oscars for Best Picture, Director, Actor, Adapted Screenplay, Film Editing, and Visual Effects
The movie that earned Tom Hanks his second Best Actor Oscar is based on the eponymous novel written by Winston Groom. The success of both the book and the film inspired Groom to write a sequel in 1995, which sadly never made it to the big screen. Forrest Gumpbrought home six statuettes, including Best Picture.Stream on Prime Video or Paramount+
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