8 Best Period Dramas Based on Books
- J.E Stanway
- Sep 1, 2018
- 5 min read
I love watching TV. Whenever I sit down to write an article, or outline a book, I usually do it with Netflix on in the background. So as you can imagine, I get super excited whenever I find a film adaptation of a book I love or have been planning to read. I’ve been watching book to film adaptations pretty much my whole life, from Jane Austen classics to true life stories, and over the years I’ve collected a list of favorites; So today I’m narrowing them down to my favorite selected period dramas:
1. Anne of Green Gables
AOGG has been a very huge influence in my life in regards to my creativity and even just my day to day, so Kevin Sullivan’s Anne Of Green Gables is at the top of my list. I watched this series years ago when I was very little, and then watched the series again about three years ago and completely fell in love with it. As much as I love the books, I have to say this is one of those rare times where I like the film better than the books. Kevin Sullivan was able to capture Anne’s world so perfectly, and it completely immersed you into the film and the characters lives. Megan Follows’ and the late Johnathan Crombie’s iconic performances of Anne and Gilbert are truly what made this film, and IMO none of the adaptations I’ve seen of this book since have ever measured up to Sullivan Entertainment's version.
2. Road to Avonlea
I can’t talk about film adaptations without mentioning Road to Avonlea, the AOGG spin off series. Based off of L.M Montgomery’s other works about Avonlea, this series follows the King family, through their day to day lives on PEI. Covering the years 1903-1912, we see the children in this show grow from childhood to young adulthood and see them change into unique individuals. This is my absolute favorite show to ever hit television. I’ve re-watched it at least five times since I saw it for the first time almost three years ago, and it never gets old. It’s historically accurate, teaches timeless lessons and values, and showcases incredibly unique and individualistic characters.
3. Pride & Prejudice (1995)
There has been an ongoing debate about which P&P adaptation is the best ever since the 2005 version hit the screen. I love both films, but in my opinion, there is no competition about which is the superior adaptation (how does it get any better than Colin Firth?). This 6 hour series pays fantastic attention to the details in the book, and the acting is superb. The characters were casted exactly the way you’d envision them to be while reading the novel. It displayed English culture in the regency in a historically accurate and slice of life way, which I personally prefer over the more artistic style of the 2005 film (though I love it dearly).
4. Sense & Sensibility (1995)
This is one of my most favorite movies. I only read the novel a few months ago and I liked it, but I love the way this movie adapted it. There was much more expansion upon Margaret's character, and being a pretty big Kate Winslet fan, I immediately loved her portrayal as Marianne (I even used the song she sings in the film for my first theatre audition). I’ve re-watched it 10 times over and I still get as much enjoyment from it as I did when I first watched it.
5. Beauty & the Beast (2017)
The internet exploded with an overload of praise for this movie last year, but I still cannot stop talking about it. Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite Disney musical. I even saw it live at TUTS Vancouver a couple years ago. So when I heard about the remake, I flipped, and after about the first five minutes of seeing it in theaters I knew immediately it was going to become my absolute favorite movie. Besides the fact that Emma Watson is the perfect person to play Belle, Dan Stevens as Beast is the most perfect thing since Be Our Guest was recorded for the first time. Being a musical theatre geek, I knew I was going to love this movie, but I had no idea how much. I could go on forever about it.
6. Testament of Youth
I had this movie on my Netflix list forever before I finally sat down to watch it, and the only thing I regret is not having watched it earlier. This movie took my soul, threw it on the ground and beat it to death with how sad this movie is (and I loved it). I didn’t realize until after I finished watching it that this was a movie based on a memoir, and discovering that made it even more depressing, and incredibly moving. Alicia Vikander has been being well used by Hollywood these last couple years, and rightly so, as her portrayal of Vera Brittain is wonderful, and she’s become one of my favorite actresses. Even more than the wonderful casting and story line, the message of this movie is so important; that violence causes nothing but suffering.
7. Belle
This is a film both wonderful and underappreciated. Belle covers the real life story of Dido Elizabeth Belle Lindsay (portrayed by Gugu Mbatha-Raw), an illegitimate mixed-race child of an English aristocrat who plays a role in the abolishment of slavery. The realistic portrayal of this story is so incredibly moving, and serves to remind us that behind much of the splendor of 1700's England, there were a great many barriers that were yet to be broken for those in dire circumstances such as slavery. It is one of my most re-watched films, and I never tire of hearing Sam Reid's (who portrays John Davinier) many heart racing declarations of love!
8. Larkrise to Candleford
I finished watching this series a few months ago, and it is my absolute favorite after Road to Avonlea. The semi fictional stories of Laura Timmons' life in Candleford are so incredibly inspirational and moving. It is basically the BBC version of RTA. It focuses in on the way day to day life was lived back in the Victorian era, and you truly get an in-depth view of the characters personalities. The fact that Flora Thompson wrote these stories based off of her own life makes it even more moving however. To know the characters were real people; you can truly connect with them on a personal basis. Additionally, I loved the running theme about Laura’s appreciation for nature and her little hamlet world around her, as my own novel that I recently finished has a similar theme. It gave me confidence that people still appreciate being told those kinds of stories. I recently purchased the illustrated copy of this novel, and look ever so forward to delving into Floras world all over again!
Which of these book adaptations have you seen, and which is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!
Cover Image: Larkrise to Candleford- BBC
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