From Page To Screen – On Chesil Beach And Other Amazing Adaptations

On Chesil Beach may have been nothing more than a short novella from Ian McEwan – but if there’s one thing we know about that bloke, who was also responsible for Atonement, it’s that his work tends to translate onto the big screen quite magnificently!

 

Available to rent now on Virgin Movies, from €4.99, it’s a delicate drama to be savoured featuring our own Saoirse Ronan starring alongside Billy Howle, as newlyweds whose marriage doesn’t get off to the most sparkling of starts! And it’s not the only awesome adaptation on the box right now, either – here’s five more magnificent movies which started out life on the bookshelf...

 

 

A WRINKLE IN TIME

Available to rent now on Virgin Movies from €4.99

 

An influential novel more than 50 years ago, Madeleine L’Engel’s effort finally received the Tinseltown treatment it deserved earlier this year. Ava DuVernay helmed the ambitious Disney film, which boasts an incredible cast and more CGI trickery than you could shake an eyepiece at! Vast in scope and visually arresting, it’s one for the whole family to enjoy…

 

 

 

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN

Available to rent now on Virgin Movies from €2.99

 

The Coen brothers are masters at putting their twist on things, so nobody could have feigned surprise when they did such a sterling job adapting Cormac McCarthy’s western crime thriller. A cat-and-mouse tale that delivers tension, comedy and action in perfect balance, its haul of four Oscars was just desserts for a film frequently hailed as one of the new millennium’s best.

 

 

 

 

ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK

All seasons available now on Netflix Virgin TV 999

 

It’s rare that a book ends up becoming a full series, but then it’s rare you find a story quite like Piper Kerman’s! Her memoir of a prison spell makes for a fascinating read – and, it turns out, the perfect inspiration for the rechristened Piper Chapman’s Litchfield adventure. Some six seasons on, they’ve obviously moved a little off-script, but the premise still owes its roots to print…

 

 

 

 

ROOM

Available to rent now on Virgin Movies from €2.99

 

Emma Donoghue’s novel won a shelf-troubling number of awards, so when it was time for the big-screen version to take shape the Dublin woman was the perfect candidate to craft the script. From there, of course, Lenny Abrahamson brought his superb direction to bear on a story of a mother and child being kept prisoner – with Brie Larson’s performance in particular worthy of extraordinary praise.

 

 

 

 

MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS

Now showing on Sky Cinema, Virgin TV 301

 

More than 80 years after it hit the shelves, Agatha Christie’s drum-tight mystery is still an absorbing tale, so it follows that this glitzy take is a massively enjoyable update. With a cast that reads like a who’s who of acting royalty, and Kenneth Branagh taking on the dual responsibilities of director and the lead role – the inimitable Hercule Poirot – it’s proof positive that sometimes nothing can beat the classics!

 

 

 

 

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