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UNIQUE MOVIE NOVELIZATIONS

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Kmckeon	UNIQUE MOVIE NOVELIZATIONS	Lead	[-]
Mar 7 10 5:04 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Movie novelizations from the 70's and eighties gave authors a lot of room to change and explore the films they were adapting. For instance, ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK gives a whole back story on WW3, germ warfare being used instead of nuclear weapons, how the soldiers that came back were messed up by the gas, and how they then became a part of the nations police force. JAWS 2 is completely different from the movie, being based on a earlier script - in the book, Brody doesn't even suspect that there's a shark around until the very end. Can anyone else recommend a novelization that took liberties with its source material or expanded on the original ideas?
Dr Acula		#1	[-]
Mar 7 10 5:15 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	It's been a long time since I've read it, but I want to say that The Thing novelization for the 80's film (Alan Dean Foster?) told of the scenes that were cut out, but I can't remember if it had much completely unique material. Didn't the original Star Wars novelization give hints about the plot that changed from what Lucas eventually did with the films?
evilskippy		#2	[-]
Mar 7 10 8:29 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The Man Who Cheated Death by Jimmy Sangster spent about half of the book on the lead character's life before we met him. Very well fleshed out. Also The Werewolf Of London novelization by "Carl Dreadstone" gave a lot of heart to Glendon and also more on Yogami's background. It is actually better than the movie. "The world's going to change tonight, doctor, I'm glad you'll be able to watch it. And... happy Halloween."
Joe Lugoff		#3	[-]
Mar 7 10 9:29 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I've always heard that the Monarch paperback novels of THE STRANGLERS OF BOMBAY, BRIDES OF DRACULA, GORGO, KONGA and REPTILICUS included some fairly explicit sex scenes (by the standards of the day). Whether that's an improvement on the movies is up to each person to decide.
Rick		#4	[-]
Mar 7 10 10:49 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I still have the BRIDES OF DRACULA novelization, and I once owned REPTILICUS, but I don't remember a durn thing about what was in them. I still own GORGO, I do remember it and, yes, there was some extremely raunchy stuff for its time. And, no, it was not an improvement on the movie. Well, guess it actually depends on how dearly you treasure your raunch.
ByronOrlok		#5	[-]
Mar 7 10 11:19 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The "Strange Love" scene in the LUST FOR A VAMPIRE novelization is quite a bit more explicit than the movie. Ramsey Campbell's BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN is WAY more violent than the movie (at one point the Monster kills an old lady villager with an axe). Haven't read it in over 30 years, but I seem to recall a lot more recreational drug usage in the PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE novelization than in the film.
zogstar67		#6	[-]
Mar 8 10 1:25 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The HALLOWEEN novel depicted Michael Myers as the reincarnation of some kind of ancient Celt who participated in (or was a victim of) Samhain human sacrifice rituals. There were several flashbacks to ancient Ireland (or wherever), but this was just sort of tacked on and didn't get in the way of telling the movie story. I recall always looking forward to the STAR TREK novelizations, due to all the thoughtful "fleshing out" they included. Let's not forget Alan Deane Foster taking the 25 minute kid-intended ST animated episodes and expanding them to novel length sci fi tales. Chris Herzog "The Devil's on the loose and he's dancin' with the Mummy!!!"
Jameson281		#7	[-]
Mar 8 10 3:03 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Dr Acula wrote: Didn't the original Star Wars novelization give hints about the plot that changed from what Lucas eventually did with the films? The STAR WARS novelization (credited to Lucas, but ghosted by Alan Dean Foster) included several scenes cut from the final film--all the stuff with Luke and Biggs, Han's confrontation with Jabba the Hutt, etc. Foster's ALIEN novelization had the cocoon scene and other cut bits. The novelization of STAR TREK: TMP has an introduction credited to James T. Kirk. The Carl Dreadstone novelization of CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON is wildly different from the movie; I seem to recall the Gillman suddenly being 30 feet tall or some such thing!
G Vallejo		#8	[-]
Mar 8 10 5:08 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The Boogens book was a little different than the final film, but I can't be sure how much since I haven't seen The Boogens since the 80s. Along with ALIEN, the book for ALIENS also contained all the scenes put back in for the quadrilogy/director's cut... I forget if Burke's death by grenade is in the book, but it was filmed, though not included in any cut of the movie so far. (I've seen a photo of Burke coccooned). Same with ALIEN 3's cut/alternate scenes. King Kong's novilzation, of course, has quite a bit of stuff in it that was cut out. The asphalt scene, the spider-pit scene (the sailors know what's under them the whole time) and one scene where a sailor is washed away in some rapids, but is rescued and manages to hold on to his gun. That's just the stuff I remember. The Return of the Living Dead novelization (a prized rarity) has a whole subplot with Russian agents that was deleted from the film. Some of the characters' names were changed (Spider was named Meat, Trash was named Legs). Tina and Freddy were reeling from the overdose death of a friend named Sunshine, and were trying to go straight, which may explain why in the movie they look relatively normal yet are hanging out with a bunch of punks. I had Halloween III as a kid but can't remember anything about it. A perfect Monster has no end...
Dr Acula		#9	[-]
Mar 8 10 8:46 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	G Vallejo wrote: The Return of the Living Dead novelization (a prized rarity) has a whole subplot with Russian agents that was deleted from the film. Some of the characters' names were changed (Spider was named Meat, Trash was named Legs). Tina and Freddy were reeling from the overdose death of a friend named Sunshine, and were trying to go straight, which may explain why in the movie they look relatively normal yet are hanging out with a bunch of punks. I want to say the Russian agent angle was something that was still in the script when Dan O'Bannon came aboard the project, and it was largely due to the efforts of some of the Night of the Living Dead guys who were nutring the script along... O'Bannon cut it out though, and the rest was history!
Kmckeon		#10	[-]
Mar 8 10 10:21 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thanks for the info; I have the novelization for The Thing (got it a few months ago at a library sale for fifty cents in mint shape!), but haven't read it yet.
bluerosekiller.thehorrordrunx		#11	[-]
Mar 9 10 2:53 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	FIRST of ALL allow me to APOlogize FOr THIS POST's CRAZY AppearanCE. mY kEYBOARD RECENTLY SUFFERED A SPILL & i'VE YET to get it REpaIRED. Hell, to be honest, I'm actually LOOKING TO REPlace my WHOLE LAPTOP WITH A NEWER, BETTER Model... aNYHOW, ONTO THE SUBJEct of genre FILM novElizations, theY'RE SOMETHING THAT i'VE ACTUALLY GOT A Decent collection of. A sort of "subset" TO MY book cOllecTion & MY HorroR mEmOraBiLia cOLLectIOn. i've got somE olDIES, but goOdies likE DOnovAN'S bRain, thE fiRst MoVE Tie In EditION of PSYCHO WITh JanEt LeIgH on thE cover, tALeS From tHe Crypt, MR Sardonicus, The FIlm tiE IN vErsIoN oF Rosemary'S bABY, BOtH THe eARLiesT VERsiOns oF THE niGht of thE lIvInG dEAD & ReTurN oF the LivING DEAd, THE AMItYVille hOrrOR, THe fiLm tie In'S To A lOT of sTePHEn kiNG's Work liKE cARrie, Salem'S LOT, THE SHINING & SO On, the boOGeNS ( whIcH Was vEry DIfferenT thaN THe Film!), Dead and burIEd ( AgaIn, MuCH DiFFerEnt ), THe fog, THe fuNhouSE ( cOMPLetely DIffErENT THAN thE fILM & wrItTeN bY deAn koonTZ UNdeR A DIfFerenT nAME ), Alan deAN FostEr'S ADAPTIonS of alien & thE thiNg, THE OMEN, PROPHECy & MAnY MOre. gOod fuN! And, THE ResULT of boTH buying thEm wHEn MANY OF Them FIrst came out in THE Early '80s & picKIng sOmE Up iN mUSTy olD used book SHops. - JIM
G Vallejo		#12	[-]
Mar 9 10 5:20 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I wouldn't consider King, Bloch and other novels previously written as tie-ins. A novel is a different thing than a novelization... but I know what you mean... I'd like to get my hands on an original Return of the Living Dead... I have the novelization of the movie, but I know Russo wrote his own version way before that... so he's got 2 different books with the same title. I just checked amazon, and a paperback is going for 40 bucks. I'll have to check to see if it's the original version. 40 bucks is a bit high when he's not even that great a writer. A perfect Monster has no end...
JamesD		#13	[-]
Mar 10 10 6:16 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I remember that the novelization of Gremlins includes an origin for the Mogwai and Gremlins (not that the story needs it). They were created by a scientist from an alien planet, and somehow escaped or were sent to Earth circa World War II (hence the "gremlin in the plane" legend of that era). Or something like that.
gfanikf		#14	[-]
Mar 10 10 9:24 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Rick wrote: I still have the BRIDES OF DRACULA novelization, and I once owned REPTILICUS, but I don't remember a durn thing about what was in them. I still own GORGO, I do remember it and, yes, there was some extremely raunchy stuff for its time. And, no, it was not an improvement on the movie. Well, guess it actually depends on how dearly you treasure your raunch. I was reading about those in KWTS yesterday, it describes one which features a man taking a women, "with the savage lance of his manhood?" IIRC I think Bill says that is Reptilicus. HK AND CULT FILM NEWS Your source for all the latest Hong Kong and Cult Films DVD News and Reviews! I actually said he was da bomb but my main man Dennis didn't peep me right.- Tom "Big Daddy" Weaver. Last Edited By: gfanikf Mar 10 10 11:14 AM. Edited 1 times.
G Vallejo		#15	[-]
Mar 10 10 10:16 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	JamesD wrote: I remember that the novelization of Gremlins includes an origin for the Mogwai and Gremlins (not that the story needs it). They were created by a scientist from an alien planet, and somehow escaped or were sent to Earth circa World War II (hence the "gremlin in the plane" legend of that era). Or something like that. I've got that book, but I haven't cracked it open in 20 years. I liked the book at the time, but even then I thought the alien origin was completely wrong for the story as it is. Still, it's one of the best novelizations I've read... it's practically a novel. I'll have to pull it out and read it again soon. By the way, picked up POLTERGEIST a few weeks ago. I never read the book, and I've heard there's extra stuff in it, so maybe I'll make it an 80s-movie-book month when I finish my current projects. A perfect Monster has no end...
JamesD		#16	[-]
Mar 10 10 8:48 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	G Vallejo wrote: By the way, picked up POLTERGEIST a few weeks ago. I never read the book, and I've heard there's extra stuff in it, so maybe I'll make it an 80s-movie-book month when I finish my current projects. I owned a bunch of 80's novelizations as a kid - all three Star Wars films, Wargames, Tron, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Explorers, The Goonies... I don't remember there being many major additions to the story in these, though. I do remember that the Wargames book added an extra scene after the point where the film ends - David is back in school and learns he's been accepted into some government scholarship program or something like that. Mostly I recall that a few of the books added extra detail between the film scenes - like Indy traveling through Nepal to get to Marion's bar in Raiders.
Rick		#17	[-]
Mar 10 10 10:19 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I was reading about those in KWTS yesterday, it describes one which features a man taking a women, "with the savage lance of his manhood?" IIRC I think Bill says that is Reptilicus. Probably is. But it's very much like the spicy additions to the GORGO book.
Wich2		#18	[-]
Mar 11 10 10:14 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Finally got around to reading the ST:TMP novelization last summer... Though Roddenberry's prose is un-electrifying (which makes me believe he DIDN'T use a ghost), it does fill out the story in many little ways that would've made for a better film. (Though Shat's poor work, and Wise's oddly humorless direction, would still be there.) -Craig
professor liebstrum		#19	[-]
Mar 11 10 3:41 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I seem to remember James Kahn's adaption of POLTERGEIST including a lot of stuff that wasnt in the film. It's a long time since I read, but I enjoyed it. Russ PS Sorry Guys, completely missed the Poltergeist mention above. IIRC, some of the extra stuff revolved around the Medium's back ground story. Last Edited By: professor liebstrum Mar 11 10 4:17 PM. Edited 1 times.
Bill Warren		#20	[-]
Mar 11 10 3:50 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	It's impossible to tell from a novelization itself whether any additional scenes were in some iteration of the script, or if they were added by the novelizer.

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