My Left Foot. Poster of the 1989 movie and cover of the 1954 book
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My Left Foot
Christy Brown, 1954
movie vs book
Jim Sheridan, 1989

In 1932, Christy Brown is born into a family of 15. Christy’s father, who never believed Christy would amount to anything, starts to become proud after witnessing him use his left foot, the only body part he can fully control, to write the word mother on the floor with a piece of chalk.


Great Expectations. Poster of the 1989 TV series and cover of the 1861 book
VS3
Great Expectations
Charles Dickens, 1861
TV series vs book
Kevin Connor, 1989

A young boy called Pip stumbles upon a hunted criminal who threatens him and demands food. A few years later, Pip finds that he has a benefactor. Imagining that Miss Havisham, a rich lady whose adopted daughter Estella he loves, is the benefactor, Pip believes in a grand plan at the end of which he will be married to Estella.


A Perfect Spy. Poster of the 1987 TV series and cover of the 1986 book
VS3
A Perfect Spy
John le Carré, 1986
TV series vs book
Peter Smith, 1987

A Perfect Spy traces the life story of Magnus Pym and his career in British intelligence and as a double agent. The series recounts Pym’s childhood with his con-man father, his early years at school and university, his encounters with long-time friend and Czech spy Axel, and his final downfall.


The Fourth Protocol. Poster of the 1987 movie and cover of the 1984 book
VS3
The Fourth Protocol
Frederick Forsyth, 1984
movie vs book
John Mackenzie, 1987

John Preston is a British Agent with the task of preventing the Russians detonating a nuclear explosion next to an American base in the UK. The Russians are hoping this will shatter the special relationship between the two countries.


Fear Is the Key. Poster of the 1972 movie and cover of the 1961 book, Fear is the Key
VS3
Fear is the Key
Alistair MacLean, 1961
movie vs book
Michael Tuchner, 1972

John Talbot is talking on radio to a woman and a man who is flying a plane. He hears them being machine gunned to death by another plane. Some time later, Talbot appears in a small town in Louisiana, where he starts a fight with some local police. He is arrested and faces trial, where it is revealed he is wanted for killing a policeman and robbing a bank.


The Looking Glass War. Poster of the 1970 movie and cover of the 1965 book
VS3
The Looking Glass War
John le Carré, 1965
movie vs book
Frank Pierson, 1970

Polish defector Leiser is offered a chance of UK citizenship by MI6, but only if he agrees to undertake a highly dangerous espionage mission behind the iron curtain in East Germany. Leiser’s role is to replace an MI6 agent who has already been murdered, and to gather photographic intelligence on a covert East German rocket system.


The Sicilian. Poster of the 1987 movie and cover of the 1969 book
VS3
The Sicilian
Mario Puzo, 1969
movie vs book
Michael Cimino, 1987

Salvatore Giuliano, an infamous bandit, together with his ragtag band of guerrillas, attempted to liberate early 1950s Sicily from Italian rule and make it an American state. Don Croce, in turn, sets out to kill the upstart by convincing his cousin and closest adviser Gaspare Aspanu Pisciotta to assassinate him.