Filmography › Gordon Parks

All the book-based movies and TV shows adapted by Gordon Parks, ranked

Gordon Parks, known for works such as American Playhouse: Solomon Northup's Odyssey or Shaft, has adapted several stories from the pages of books and comic books to the screen.
Below, we present a ranked list, from best to worst, of 3 Gordon Parks movies and TV series based on existing source material. Revisit old favorites or discover hidden gems, whether books or film productions. We invite you to watch, read, and vote for any title, joining the debate of whether the book or the movie is better.
American Playhouse: Solomon Northup's Odyssey. Poster of the 1984 movie and cover of the 1853 book, Twelve Years a Slave
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Twelve Years a Slave
Solomon Northup, 1853
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American Playhouse: Solomon Northup's Odyssey
Gordon Parks, 1984

Solomon Northup’s Odyssey is based on the true story of Solomon Northup, a free black man in Saratoga, New York who was kidnapped in 1841 and sold into slavery. Northup was intelligent, skilled in carpentry, and was able to play music. He was enslaved in the state of Louisiana for 12 years before he was released.

A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks. Poster of the 2021 movie and cover of the 1966 book, A Choice of Weapons
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A Choice of Weapons
Gordon Parks, 1966
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A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks
John Maggio, 2021

This documentary chronicles renaissance man Gordon Parks’ stellar career from staff photographer for LIFE magazine, through his artistic development photographing everyday Americans, through his evolution as a novelist and groundbreaking filmmaker.

Shaft. Poster of the 1971 movie and cover of the 1970 book
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Shaft
Ernest Tidyman, 1970
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Shaft
Gordon Parks, 1971

In January 1971, John Shaft, a private detective, is informed that some gangsters are looking for him. During a short fight, Shaft dodges one of them who goes out the window, while the other surrenders and reveals to him that Bumpy Jonas, the leader of a Harlem-based organized crime family, wants Shaft brought uptown to Harlem for a meeting.