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James Ellroy: 'L.A. Confidential' -

Acclaimed author James Ellroy has kept relatively quiet about the star-studded 1997 film adaptation of his novel 'L.A. Confidential' for more than two decades.

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James Ellroy: 'L.A. Confidential' -

The movie, directed by Curtis Hanson, starred Russell Crowe and Kim Basinger as the leads, along with Kevin Spacey, Guy Pearce, and James Cromwell. It was both a commercial and critical success, receiving nine Oscar nominations that year. Ellroy wasn't convinced, however. He has shared some misgivings about the movie over the years, and when Hanson died in 2016, he wrote a tribute to him that both praised his craftsmanship and described the film as "problematic." 

Ellroy spoke at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on April 22, 2023, and this time, he didn't hold back. “I think it’s turkey of the highest form. I think Russell Crowe and Kim Basinger are impotent. The director died, so now I can disparage the movie," he said in conversation with fellow crime author Michael Connelly. In the past, he explained in more diplomatic terms that he and Hanson's senses were always at odds, even though he respected him as an artist. 

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Roald Dahl: ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ -

Roald Dahl’s books have been adapted into many movies over the years. However, he was not a fan of ‘Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.'

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Roald Dahl: ‘Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory’ - According to ‘The Authorized Biography of Roald Dahl,' the author thought the movie was “crummy."

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Roald Dahl: ‘Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory’ -

Apparently, Dahl wasn’t a fan of Gene Wilder either. He called his portrayal “pretentious” and “bouncy.” An official sequel was never made for cinema.

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Stephen King: ‘The Shining’ - ‘The Shining’ is considered one of the best horror movies ever. However, author Stephen King wasn’t happy with Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of his book.

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Stephen King: ‘The Shining’ - King has criticized Kubrick, saying he “couldn't grasp the sheer inhuman evil of The Overlook Hotel. So he looked, instead, for evil in the characters and made the film into a domestic tragedy.” Ouch!

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Stephen King: ‘The Shining’ -

King added that he had “admired Kubrick for a long time and had great expectations for the project.” However, he was “deeply disappointed in the end result.”

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Winston Groom: ‘Forrest Gump’ - Winston Groom was not happy with the Hollywood adaptation of his 1986 novel, ‘Forrest Gump.’

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Winston Groom: ‘Forrest Gump’ - The film made some changes to the story, and Groom responded in the book’s sequel, ‘Gump and Co.’

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Winston Groom: ‘Forrest Gump’ - The book opens with the lines “Don't never let nobody make a movie of your life's story [...] Whether they get it right or wrong, it don't matter.”

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P. L. Travers: ‘Mary Poppins’ -

P. L. Travers had a special connection to ‘Mary Poppins.’ it was her first book and led the author to great success.

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P. L. Travers: ‘Mary Poppins’ - Travers was an outspoken critic of the film's animated scenes, and was reluctant about the release. It’s said she cried in her cinema seat at the premiere, and never let Disney make a sequel.

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P. L. Travers: ‘Mary Poppins’ - The behind-the-scenes struggle of ‘Mary Poppins’ was dramatized in the 2013 film ‘Saving Mr. Banks.’

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Anthony Burgess: ‘A Clockwork Orange’ - There are few films as controversial as ‘A Clockwork Orange,’ and like Stephen King, author Anthony Burgess was not a fan of Kubrick’s movie adaptation.

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Anthony Burgess: ‘A Clockwork Orange’ -

Not only did Burgess dislike the movie, he even regretted writing the novella. “The book I am best known for, or only known for, is a novel I am prepared to repudiate [...] a jeu d'esprit knocked off for money in three weeks,” he said.

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Anthony Burgess: A Clockwork Orange’ - Burgess added that his novella “became known as the raw material for a film which seemed to glorify assault and violence,” which was not his intention at all.

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Ken Kesey: ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ - ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ is another beloved movie on this list. It won five Oscars, including Best Picture. But author Ken Kesey wasn’t as excited about the result as the Academy.

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Ken Kesey: ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ - The book focuses on the perspective of the Chief Bromden character, while the film focuses more on Randle McMurphy, played by Jack Nicholson. It's been reported that this upset the author greatly. However, it’s said that Kesey was proud of the film later in his life.

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Anne Rice: ‘Interview with the Vampire’ - Way before ‘Twilight,’ Anne Rice was the queen of vampiric fiction, especially with her ‘Vampire Chronicles’ book series.

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Anne Rice: ‘Interview with the Vampire’ - However, the casting for ‘Interview with the Vampire’ did not sit well with Rice. She said Tom Cruise was “no more my vampire Lestat than Edward G. Robinson is Rhett Butler.”

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Anne Rice: ‘Interview with the Vampire’ - Rice added that the casting was “so bizarre.” She eventually became a fan, but has warned her fans of what to expect if they haven't already seen 2002's ‘Queen of the Damned,’ a loose adaptation of the third novel in her series.

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Clive Cussler: ‘Sahara’ - Clive Cussler has quite a cult following, but the movie adaptation of ‘Sahara’ was anything but a hit.

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Clive Cussler: ‘Sahara’ - As well as being a box office bomb, ‘Sahara’ was dismissed by its author. He even tried to sue director Philip Anschutz over the failed film.

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Clive Cussler: ‘Sahara’ - Apparently, Cussler said the film was a flop because he didn't have total script control.

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J.D. Salinger: ‘My Foolish Heart’ - Salinger’s ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ is one of the most-celebrated novels ever, but you won’t see it turned into a movie. Why? Because of ‘My Foolish Heart.’

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J.D. Salinger: ‘My Foolish Heart’ - ‘My Foolish Heart’ was a movie adapted from Salinger’s short story ‘Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut.’

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J.D. Salinger: ‘My Foolish Heart’ - It’s said that Salinger was so horrified by ‘My Foolish Heart’ that he rejected all other studio offers to adapt his work.

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Bret Easton Ellis: ‘American Psycho’ - ‘American Psycho’ is another hit film with a cult following. However, author Bret Easton Ellis wasn’t the biggest fan of the adaptation.

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Bret Easton Ellis: ‘American Psycho’ - “I didn’t think [it] needed to be turned into a movie,” he said. “It was conceived as a novel, as a literary work with a very unreliable narrator at the center of it and the medium of film demands answers.”

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Bret Easton Ellis: ‘American Psycho’ -

Ellis actually worked on an adaptation of his book, ‘The Informers.’ It wasn’t as successful as ‘American Psycho,’ and Ellis said “that movie doesn’t work for a lot reasons but I don’t think any of those reasons are my fault.”

See also: Actors who hated wearing their famous costumes

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