The Harry Potter series of films may have lined JK Rowling’s pockets, but their success at the box office has not translated to positive reviews from moviegoers.
Hollywood has a patchy record where book to film adaptions are concerned, with filmmakers often criticised for failing to capture the spirit of the written story.
A recent study by Betway Casino appears to confirm that point to perfection for the seven Harry Potter films, with each of them receiving disappointing review scores on IMDb.
None of the movies feature in the top 10 best-rated film adaptations, but three of them are among the top seven most lucrative.
That appears to suggest that Potter fans are gluttons for punishment, with Rowling’s written efforts failing to translate well to the silver screen.
However, it is a different story where The Lord of the Rings is concerned, with the trilogy delivering the goods at the box office and in the review rankings.
Two of three films feature in the top 10 list for making the most money, while all three are in the top five list of the most popular movies.
The Return of the King and The Fellowship of the Ring are second and third in the IMDb rankings, while The Two Towers is in fifth place.
The movies are in extremely good company in the top 10 popular list, with the other seven films amongst the most iconic movies ever made.
Forrest Gump takes fourth place, with The Green Mile and A Clockwork Orange taking sixth and seventh. Shutter Island, A Beautiful Mind and No Country For Old Men complete the top 10.
While the nine other movies undoubtedly deserve their place on the list, one movie stands head and shoulders above the rest according to IMDb reviewers.
The Shawshank Redemption was initially a box office flop when first released in 1994, earning only $16 million during its initial theatrical run.
Competition from Forrest Gump and Pulp Fiction were cited as reasons for its failure, while the title also left people a little baffled.
Several Oscars nominations highlighted the movie’s brilliance, and its re-run at the cinemas subsequently took it up to $58.3m.
While this was still way behind Forrest Gump, the film has since become widely recognised as a cinematic masterpiece.
Based on Stephen King’s novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption, barely a week goes by without the movie being screened by a television channel.
Its brilliance has even been acknowledged by King, who has generally disliked the majority of film adaptations of his books.
“I love The Shawshank Redemption and I’ve always enjoyed working with Frank (Darabont, the director) – he’s a sweet guy,” he told Deadline.
The enduring popularity of The Shawshank Redemption also highlights another point about book adaptations – standalone film releases are more popular than series.
Of the 10 most popular films on IMDB, seven are standalone releases, a statistic that should strike fear into filmmakers tasked with turning producing a series of films on the same topic.
