Sci-fi is a tricky genre to get right: it accounts for some of the best films of all time as well as the worst. Even when filmmakers have strong source material to work with, these movies can still misfire spectacularly, whether it’s because of production problems, limited budgets, or simply a lack of vision. For this reason, some of the most beloved sci-fi novels have been translated into cinematic garbage.
Indeed, there is no shortage of great novels that their screen adaptations have butchered. From unfaithful interpretations to oversimplified storytelling, these movies serve as a reminder that translating a great book to the screen requires more than just a big budget and special effects; the filmmakers must have a deep understanding of the source material. With this in mind, here are the ten most disappointing film adaptations of good sci-fi books.
10. Total Recall (2012)
The original Total Recall packs a punch, nicely translating Philip K. Dick’s short story We Can Remember It for You Wholesale to the screen. With Paul Verhoeven at the helm and Arnold Schwarzenegger in the lead role, that movie made for a genuine ’90s sci-fi gem. Not so for the Colin Farrell-starring remake, which lacks the humor and characterization of its source material.
It’s about a factory worker (Farrell) who discovers that his memories may be implanted and his true identity hidden. But, unlike the first one, which balanced action with clever psychological twists, the remake focuses heavily on special effects and action sequences, losing the mind-bending essence of Dick’s story.
The visuals are impressive, to be sure, but the story and dialogue are all rather boring. The film always feels at a distance from the viewer, never connecting emotionally. In short, director Len Wiseman reduces a madcap adventure to a joyless slog.
9. Dune (1984)
David Lynch’s take on Dune recounts Frank Herbert’s famous tale of Paul Atreides (Kyle MacLachlan) navigating the treacherous politics and deadly landscapes of Arrakis. It’s very quirky and unique, entertaining in its own way, but it falls short of the novel’s scope.
Plus, Denis Villeneuve’s masterful adaptation showed how could great this story could be if executed well, making Lynch’s Dune look even weaker by comparison. An epic sci-fi odyssey is reduced to melodrama and lame fight scenes.
The screenplay here is messy and poorly structured, wasting time on of digressions before rushing to an unsatisfying conclusion. Flimsy special effects and an odd aesthetic make it all a little ridiculous and laughable, rather than dramatic and immersive.
Lynch’s storytelling techniques are usually weird in a fascinating way, but here it feels amateurish and ill-fitting. All told the gulf between the quality of the novel and the mediocrity of the movie is pretty huge. A massive wasted opportunity.
8. The Giver (2014)
Based on Lois Lowry’s acclaimed novel, The Giver tells the story of a dystopian society where emotions and memories are suppressed to maintain order and conformity. The protagonist, Jonas (Brenton Thwaites) is chosen to inherit the role of Receiver of Memories, discovering the dark truths behind his seemingly perfect world. He’s joined in the supporting cast by talents like Jeff Bridges, Meryl Streep, Alexander Skarsgård, and Taylor Swift.
With performers like these and a visually deft director like Phillip Noyce, The Giver seemed like it would be fantastic. But unfortunately, the movie glosses over the book’s philosophical undertones in favor of a more action-oriented narrative. The result is a film that feels superficial and disconnected.
Even the aesthetics are kind of a mess, with the movie shifting awkwardly between black-and-white and color. In short, The Giver movie sands down all the rough edges that made the book intriguing, producing a generic and mainstream snooze-fest.
7. The Time Machine (2002)
H.G. Wells’s The Time Machine is a cornerstone of sci-fi literature, pioneering several time travel tropes and laying a blueprint that has been emulated countless times since. The book was turned into a decent film in 1960, but the same cannot be said for the 2002 version.
Directed by Wells’ great-grandson Simon Wells, it centers on Dr. Alexander Hartdegen (Guy Pearce), a scientist who builds a time machine to save his fiancée from a tragic fate, only to find himself 800,000 years in the future.
Wells attempts to bring the classic tale to modern audiences, but the movie is simply a visual and narrative mess. Some of the effects (especially the appearance of the monstrous Morlocks) are shoddy, while the story’s third-act swerve into action-thriller territory is a head-scratcher.
6. Mortal Engines (2018)
Based on Philip Reeve’s novel, Mortal Engines envisions a post-apocalyptic world where cities are mobile, devouring smaller towns for resources. The story revolves around Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar), a young woman seeking revenge against Thaddeus Valentine (Hugo Weaving), a powerful figure responsible for her mother’s death. Along the way, the movie rips off better films like Star Wars, The Matrix, and Mad Max.
With solid source material and Peter Jackson producing, Mortal Engines looked promising, but the movie is very underwhelming. Despite an intriguing premise and a cool steampunk aesthetic, the plot quickly becomes clichéd.
The doomsday devices, climactic duels, and “shocking” revelations (especially around the main character’s true parentage) are all things the viewer has seen before. The film makes several changes from the book, none of them good. Clunky dialogue and a lack of character development are the final nails in the coffin.
5. Johnny Mnemonic (1995)
This cyberpunk action flick was penned by sci-fi icon William Gibson (Neuromancer, The Difference Engine), adapting his own short story. Keanu Reeves leads the cast as the title character, a data courier who must deliver a package of information stored in his brain before it kills him. The concept is cool, but the execution is decidedly lackluster.
The main character is unlikable and frankly boring, the story is a retread of Blade Runner and Total Recall, and the plot lacks logic. Worst of all, Gibson’s thought-provoking ideas are jettisoned, replaced with mindless action and flashy gimmicks that would have been impressive in 1995 but have aged poorly.
As a result, the 96-minute film feels longer than it really is. That said, The Wachowskis have cited Johnny Mnenomic as a partial inspiration for The Matrix, so the movie could be viewed as a disastrous first pass at ideas that would be realized more effectively in the years to come.
4. The Darkest Minds (2018)
The Darkest Minds takes place in a dystopian future where a mysterious disease kills most of the world’s children, leaving the survivors with superpowers. The main character is Ruby Daly (Amandla Stenberg), a teenager with mind control abilities, who joins a group of superpowered teens on the run from a government.
This is essentially a run-of-the-mill foray into young adult sci-fi, a pale imitation of movies like The Hunger Games and The Maze Runner. The Darkest Minds is endlessly derivative, repurposing plots from other movies into a generic hodgepodge.
It’s a cheesy teen romance with postapocalyptic elements, peopled with one-dimensional characters and beset by pacing problems. In this regard, the movie is an example of a common trend, where a particular type of story becomes popular, and inferior imitators quickly jump on the bandwagon. Hardcore fans of this subgenre may enjoy it, but general viewers are likely to be bored.
3. Fahrenheit 451 (2018)
Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 (the title refers to the temperature at which paper burns) is a dystopian classic that explores themes of censorship, knowledge, and the power of literature. The 2018 adaptation attempts to modernize the story but struggles to capture the novel’s essence. It’s set in a future where books are banned, and “firemen” are tasked with burning them.
The protagonist, Guy Montag (Michael B. Jordan), begins to question his role in this oppressive society and ultimately rebels against it. The storytelling is heavy-handed, and Bahrani makes several changes from the book which just don’t work.
For example, he introduces a MacGuffin in the form of the OMNIS, a device designed to preserve all human knowledge and art by encoding it into DNA. This adds nothing to the story and overly muddies the themes. Basically, this adaptation fails to understand the appeal of the book. The strong performances from Jordan and Michael Shannon are not enough to save it.
2. The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996)
Another abysmal H.G. Wells adaptation, The Island of Dr. Moreau centers on Edward Douglas (David Thewlis), a castaway who discovers that Dr. Moreau (Marlon Brando), a mad scientist, has been conducting experiments to turn animals into humans on a remote island.
There are interesting ideas at play here, but the movie is an unmitigated disaster, in part due to its troubled production process. Brando, for example, showed up inconsistently and refused to learn his lines. The film’s tortured creation is documented in the film Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley’s Island of Dr. Moreau, which is worth checking out.
Production problems aside, the story itself is unfocused, relying on pulpy elements like diabolical laboratories, mind control devices, leopard/human hybrids, and a miniaturized clone (it would inspire Mini-Me in Austin Powers) rather than genuine drama. “This is just satanic!” Douglas exclaims at one point. The audience’s thoughts exactly.
1. The 5th Wave (2016)
The 5th Wave depicts a world devastated by an alien invasion, with humanity on the brink of extinction. The plot focuses on Cassie Sullivan (Chloë Grace Moretz), a teenage girl searching for her younger brother while navigating the perils of an Earth besieged by five waves of increasingly deadly attacks. She must face down otherworldly threats, armed with just her wits and an assault rifle.
Yet again, clichés and a predictable plot undermine an interesting premise. Moretz does her best, but the movie is just too silly to take seriously. The fact that Moretz always looks perfectly put-together and made up, despite living in the woods and battling extraterrestrials, doesn’t help.
Not to mention, the audience barely ever gets to see the aliens! They are teased for so long, only to be shown via quick and incomplete glimpses. Perhaps this was because the filmmakers knew that their CGI was underwhelming.
