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From Books to Film: The Best of Roald Dahl Books
The great success and popularity of Roald Dahls’ many literary works have led to numerous and even repeated movie adaptations of his works. Some of his novels that were written decades ago still manage to find themselves adapted by modern movie producers – a mark of how timeless his works indeed are. So here are a few of the most famous Roald Dahl books that were adapted into film.
The Man from the South
This short story written by Roald Dhal has been adapted into a movie at least thrice. The first movie production was released in 1960 starred by Alfred Hitchcock, Steve McQueen and Peter Lorre. This is one of the most famous adult stories written by Dahl and was also relived over the radio almost 5 decades later after the first film version in 2009 by BBC Radio Four.
Matilda
Matilda was published in 1988 and the film adaptation was released in 1996, directed by Danny DeVito. This is one of the most famous children’s stories of Roald Dahl books. The film though, had several twists that were not found in the book. DeVito still manages to stand by the real essence of the story, in spite of the little twists and changes in the film. A musical version was also made out of the novel, written by Tim Minchin and Dennis Kelly. The musicale premièred in 2010 and was considered as “one of the best British musicale since Billy Elliot”
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
This story was inspired be the author’s own experience of chocolate factories giving out sample products to solicit for consumer’s take on their chocolates, during his younger years. This is also a very popular read among the Roald Dahl books. The movie was adapted into film in 1971 with the title “Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”. The movie was relived in 2005, this time, carrying the original novel title, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”
The Witches
The Witches is yet another of Roald Dahl books. This work was published in 1983 and made into film in 1990. The film was directed by Nicolas Roeg and starred by Angelica Houston, Rowan Atkinson and Mai Zetterling. Before this film, director Nicolas Roeg was at the downstream of his career. This work apparently put him back into the mainstream film industry.
James and the Giant Peach
James and the Giant Peach is one of the most famous Roald Dahl books, which was written way back in 1961. The film was a mix of live action and musical stop-animation released in 1996, directed by Henry Selick. The movie featured Paul Terry, Miriam Margolyles, Joanna Lumley and Pete Postlethwaite. The combination of live action and animation received very good reviews among film critics, calling it “innovative, daring and a technological marvel”.
Fantastic Mr. Fox
Fantastic Mr. Fox was published in 1970 and adopted into film in 2009. Just like the James and the Giant Peach, the movie was also a combination of reality shots and stop animation. The film starred George Clooney and Meryl Streep and produced by Joe Roth and Revolution Studios.
Although Dahl died in 1990, his literary legacy continues through the many film adaptations made from his a number novels and literary works.
The Life and Career of Roald Dahl
Roald Dhal is a British novelist, short story writer and screenwriter, and considered to be one of the best writers in his time. Dahl was born in September 1926 to Norwegian parents in Cardiff, Wales. At the age of three, his father died of pneumonia and left his mother to care for him and his three sisters. At the age of 23, he enrolled himself into the Royal Airforce as an aircraftman. An unfortunate crash brought him to a hospital where he met his wife, Mary Welland. He left the service in 1940 with the rank of Squadron leader.
Dahl’s real passion emerged 2 years later as he published his first ever literary work entitled “A Piece of Cake” in August 1, 1942. The story told of his adventures during World War II and was bought by the Saturday Evening Post for $1000, published under a different title, “Shot down over Libya”. After this first publication, Dahl went on to write many literary masterpieces until the end of his time. Today, Roald Dahl books are considered to be one of the most highly valued literary works of all time.
But aside from the Roald Dahl books, the author was also known for a number of his advocacies. In December of 1960, his four-month old daughter was severely injured in an accident which led her to develop hydrocephalus. To aid her daughter, Dahl was able to design the WDT valve (Wade-Dahl-Till) which was later formally regarded as a way to alleviate the condition.
Two years later, another tragedy struck his life as his other daughter, Olivia, died of measles encephalitis. After this unfortunate event, the father became an active proponent to child immunization. In 1982, he published a book entitled The BFG and dedicated it to his daughter. Roald Dahl books in a way, was a reflection of the triumphs and tragedies of the author’s life.
In 1965, his wife suffered several cerebral aneurysms while pregnant. Roald Dhal took care of her rehabilitation and nursed her back to health. The many tragedies in Dahl life led him to make several important contributions to the field of medical science. He has also made several contributions to literacy through his many Roald Dahl books and charities supporting literacy education.
Even years after his death, his charities still continue giving out help. In 2005, the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Center was opened in Great Missenden to celebrate his contributions to literature and his many published Roald Dahl books.
His most famous works mostly revolved around children’s books and his works are now considered to be one of the best kid’s stories written in the 20th Century. Most of his works have been adapted into movies such as Gremlins, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, Fantastic Mr. Fox and many others.
Aside from that, some of his written works also revolved around macabre short stories that earned him three Edgar Awards given by the Mystery Writers of America. Dahl was said to have written over 60 short stories in his time and has been included in numbers of short story collections over and over again. His short story collections, Tales of the Unexpected made it into film as well.
