If you want to be your teen customers’ best friend, embed this widget (via CinemaBlend) on your Web site. It links to the final Twilight movie trailer, which debuts tonight at 8 p.m. EST (after it’s TV debut on Entertainment Tonight).

[Note: I had to take down the widget; it insists on playing ALL THE TIME. Nonfans of Twilight will surely be annoyed. The new trailer is available by clicking on 11/21 — Twilight in our "Books to Movies" section to the right]

Three movies based on books open this weekend; two of them are reviewed in the new issue of People (dated Oct. 20). 

The lead review is for Body of Lies (based on the book of the same title by David Ignatius), directed by Ridley Scott and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe. Calling the movie “tricky to follow”, People gives it just two of four stars. David Denby in the New Yorker, however, calls it “smart and tightly drawn.”

The Express, starring Dennis Quaid and Bob Brown gets three of four stars. Based on the book of the same title, it’s about Ernie Davis, the first African-American winner of the Heisman Trophy. The review says the movie “rises above sports movie clichés” by showing how both coach (Quaid) and Davis (played by Brown) were affted by the rising civil rights movement and concludes, “Express is terrific to show to kids 8 and up as a starting point to discuss race.” 

Express not only has a tie-in book, but also a tie-in audio edition (see below).

People mentions City of Ember, also opening this weekend, saying it didn’t screen in time for review, but in a nod to the movie, they include a sidebar on star Bill Murray.

It’s been a very strong year for movies based on books and more are coming (see “Books to Movies” listing on the right).

The really big books to movies day will be Christmas, when six are scheduled to open (that is, if Time Travelers Wife is actually released that day; there has been little publicity for it, which causes us to suspect that it may be moved to another date). 

Below is tie-in information for the movies opening tomorrow, from EarlyWord’s Upcoming Movies — with Tie-ins listings:

OCT 10

Movie Title: City of Ember
Director: Gil Kenan
Starring: Bill Murray, Tim Robbins

Based on: City of Ember by Jeanne Duprau

Movie tie-in:

City of Ember
Jeanne Duprau

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Paperback: $6.99
• Publisher: Yearling (August 26, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 0385736282
• ISBN-13: 978-0385736282

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OCT 10 (wide release)

Movie Title: Body of Lies
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe

Based on: Body of Lies, David Ignatius

Body of Lies
David Ignatius

• Trade Paperback: $13.95
• Publisher: Norton, Sept
• ISBN-13: 9780393334296

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OCT 10

Movie Title: The Express
Director: Gary Fleder
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Rob Brown

Based on: The Express: The Ernie Davis Story by Robert C. Gallagher

Movie tie-in:

The Express: The Ernie Davis Story
 Robert C. Gallagher

• Paperback: $13; 208 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; Reprint edition (September 2, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 0345510860
• ISBN-13: 978-0345510860

• Audio CD: Unabridged, $39.99 (Library Binder)
• Publisher: Tantor Media; (September 1, 2008)
• ISBN-13: 9781400138777

Last week, in our roundup of titles new to the USA Today bestsellers list, we noted the following, at #94:

The Love Dare, Stephen Kendrick, Alex Kendrick, B&H, pbk, $14.99; The companion volume to the Christian-themed film, Fireproof, which is a surprise box-office success. The star of the movie, Kirk Cameron, who played Mike Seaver on the TV series Growing Pains, appeared on the Today Show recently, promoting both the book and the movie. Libraries have not ordered it.

The book is now at #9 on Amazon and the movie was #8 on Variety’s weekly box office rankings.

On Monday, the NYT ran a story on the movie’s success;

An almost all-volunteer cast and crew, including a star who was an ’80s teen heartthrob, and a plot about a firefighter who saves his marriage by turning to God — it hardly sounds like a recipe for box office success, let alone a best-selling book. But that’s what the film “Fireproof” has spawned.

In addition to The Love Dare, a paperback novelization of the film has been published by Thomas Nelson and an inspirational book by the film’s executive producer.

The Love Dare
Stephen Kendrick and Alex Kendrick

• Paperback: $14; 224 pages
• Publisher: B&H Books (September 28, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 0805448853
• ISBN-13: 978-0805448856

On the heels of the announcement that Johnny Depp will play the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton’s adaptation of Alice in Wonderland, the news this week is that Anne Hathaway’s been signed to play the White Queen (Helena Bonham Carter is her evil sister, the Red Queen; clearly the more challenging role, with all that screaming, “Off with their heads!”).

Who would make a good hookah-smoking catepillar? I’m thinking Danny deVito or Joe Pesci.

Filming has begun in Cornwall, England. If you’re curious to see how Alice is being portrayed, INF Daily has some  shots from the set, with Australian actress Mia Wasikowska in her Alice garb. The movie is currently scheduled for release in March, 2010.

Alice is in our Upcoming Movies — with Tie-ins listings (even though the tie-in is not available quite yet), along with several other titles scheduled for mid-2009 into 2010:

MAY 15, 2009
Movie Title: Angels & Demons
Director: Ron Howard
Starring: Tom Hanks
Based on: Angels and Demons by Dan Brown

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JULY 17, 2009
Movie Title: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Director: David Yates
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson
Based on: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by J.K Rowling

Note: The last book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows is being filmed as two movies, scheduled for Nov., 2010 and May, 2011.

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JULY 31, 2009

Movie Title: The Taking of Pelham 123
Director: Tony Scott
Starring: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, Luis Guzman
Based on: The Taking of Pelham 123 by John Godey

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OCT 2, 2009
Movie Title: Shutter Island
Director: Martin Scorsese
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kindsley, Emily Mortimer
Based On: Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane

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MAR 10. 2010
Movie Title: Alice in Wonderland
Director: Tim Burton
Starring:

Alice – Mia Wasikowska
Mad Hatter – Johnny Depp
The Red Queen - Helena Bonham Carter
The White Queen - Anne Hathaway

Based On: Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

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MAR 26, 2010
Movie Title: How to Train Your Dragon
Director: Peter Hastings
Starring: Gerard Butler, Jonah Hill, America Ferrera
Based on: How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell

Since yesterday’s update, we’ve discovered even more new additions, which are now incorporated into our Upcoming Movies, with tie-ins listings: 

We’ve just posted the trailer (see right, under “Books to Movies”).

Today, Variety speculated that the film’s lead actor Robert Downey Jr. will be nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor and co-star Jamie Foxx for Best Supporting.

Movie tie-in:

• Paperback: $15.00
• Publisher: Berkley Trade (September 30, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 042522600X
• ISBN-13: 978-0425226001

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DEC 25 — Time Traveler’s Wife

We haven’t seen a trailer, web site, or any kind of advance publicity for this yet, which makes us wonder if the movie is now in limbo. Several sources (such as IMDB) no longer list it for a 12/25 release, although in a piece in Variety on 8/21/08 still did. Until we hear definite news, we’re sticking to the 12/25 date.

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JAN 9 — Not Easily Broken 

Based on T.D. Jakes’s book, this movie is now slated for early in ‘09.

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New listings:

JAN 23 — Hotel for Dogs

Director: Thor Fruedenthal

Starring: Kevin Dillon, Emma Roberts, Lisa Kudrow, Don Cheadle

Based on: Hotel for Dogs, Lois Duncan

Movie Tie-In:

• Mass Market Paperback: $5.99; 192 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks (December 1, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 054510792X
• ISBN-13: 978-0545107921

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FEB 13

Movie Title: Confessions of a Shopaholic

Director: P.J. Hogan

Starring: Isla Fisher, Hugh Dancy, Krysten Ritter, Joan Cusack

Based on: Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

Movie Tie-In:

• Publisher: Dell Publishing
• Pub. Date: December 30, 2008
• ISBN-13: 9780385342353
• $14; 320pp

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MAR 27, 2009

Movie Title: The Informant

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Starring: Matt Damon, Melanie Lynskey

Based on: The Informant by Kurt Eichenwald

Movie Tie-In: 

The Informant
Kurt Eichenwald

• Paperback: $16.95
• Publisher: Broadway (January 6, 2009)
• ISBN-10: 0767931254
• ISBN-13: 978-0767931250

Lots has been happening in the film world, so we’ve been busily updating the “Books to Movies” section; a release date was finally named for The Reader, the trailers for Revolutionary Road and The Curious History of Benjamin Button are now online. 

Below are all the updates, by release date. These as well as the other upcoming books to movies are listed in Upcoming Movies — with Tie-ins.

10/24 –  He’s Just Not That Into You

Starring nearly everyone (Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connelly, Scarlett Johansson, Drew Barrymore, Ben Affleck), nonetheless, it’s been moved to February 6th.

No tie-in edition available yet.

11/07 — Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Based on John Boyne’s YA novel of the same title, the movie is scheduled for a limited release in the US on Nov. 7th. It opened on Sept 11th in London where it’s been controversial; attacked as a “Disneyfication of the Final Solution” (The Guardian) and praised as “..an unusual and brave piece of family entertainment, and one worth seeing.” (The Times of London). Despite, or more likely because of the controversy, It’s been doing well at the box office in Europe. The new trailer is posted in the “Books to Movies” section to the right.

No tie-in edition available yet.

11/7 – Killshot (Limited)  

We’ve posted the new trailer for this film, based on Elmore Leonard’s book of the same title, directed by John Madden (Shakespeare in Love), starring Diane Lane, Thomas Jane, and Mickey Rourke (Rourke has been getting Oscar buzz for another movie, The Wrestler, which comes out in December and is not based on a book).

Tie-in Edition:

• Mass Market Paperback: $7.99; 416 pages
• Publisher: Harper (March 25, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 0061563862
• ISBN-13: 978-0061563867

12/12 — The Reader

This movie has gone through many trials. Nicole Kidman had to drop out of the lead because of her pregnancy and was replaced by Kate Winslet, setting shooting back by several months. Then the director objected to pressure to get the film through post-production in time to be an Oscar contender. Two days ago, the December 12th date was finally announced.

No tie-in edition available yet.

12/25 – Revolutionary Road

Based on Richard Yates’s novel, this stars Kate Winslet and Leo DiCaprio, together again after The Titanic, now as a married couple. The just-released trailer shows this movie, which is already getting Oscar buzz is quite different form the pair’s earlier outing.

No tie-in edition available yet.

12/25 – Curious Case of Benjamin Button

The NYT reports today that Paramount hopes Benjamin Button, their $150 million flick based on an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story will revive their flagging brand name. The film stars Brad Pitt, and is directed by David Fincher (Fight Club). See what you think; the new trailer is posted on the right.

You’ve probably seen at least one of the lush ads for The Duchess, starring Keira Knightly and Ralph Fiennes. The movie, currently showing in just a few cities, will hit more screens beginning October 3rd.

The Wall Street Journal’s recently redesigned book site features an interview with Amanda Foreman, who wrote the book the movie is based upon (originally titled Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire, but retitled The Duchess for the tie-in edition). Foreman also served as an advisor on the film, answering the cast’s questions on how their characters could have behaved. 

The book has been on the USA Today bestseller list for four weeks and on the NYT Trade Paperback list for  3 weeks.

Tie-in edition:

The Duchess

Amanda Foreman

• Paperback: $15.95; 512 pages
• Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks (August 19, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 0812979699
• ISBN-13: 978-0812979695

Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire

Amanda Foreman

• Paperback: $15.95
• Publisher: Modern Library (January 16, 2001)
• ISBN-10: 0375753834
• ISBN-13: 978-0375753831

The HBO series, True Blood, about vampires struggling with their natures, set in a tiny southern town, began last week. Towelhead, a movie about an Arab-American girl struggling with her developing sexuality, set in Houston, opens in select theaters today.

As different as they sound, both are directed by Alan Ball, creator of HBO’s Six Feet Under and writer of American Beauty, the 1999 movie starring Kevin Spacey. Both are also based on books.

Ball appeared on Fresh Air with Terry Gross this week, offering fascinating insights into the threads that connect his work.

Newsweek (9/1) reminds us that the summer is reaching an end, with their fall entertainment preview. Among their picks in movies, are three based on books (and, no, they don’t mention Twilight).

Check our “Upcoming Movies — with Tie-ins” section for tie-ins to these and other movies of the Fall.

• SEPT 26  Miracle at Santa Anna

Directed by Spike Lee, this story of black WW II soldiers is based on the book of the same title by James McBride.

• OCT 10   Body of Lies

Directed by Ridley Scott; starring Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington, based on the book by David Ignatius.

• NOV 14 Quantum of Solace

(Newsweek lists the opening date as Nov 7th, but it was recently moved to the following week). The next in the 007 franchise, starring Daniel Craig, directed by Marc Foster (who directed The Kite Runner). Based on the collection of Bond short stories of the same title.

Unfortunately, turning to books, Newsweek’s “Guide to the Fall’s Hottest Reads” doesn’t engender much excitement for the nine selections. Each book gets a “Pro” and a “Con” with the cons being more persuasive. Page numbers come up a lot; the editors seem exhausted by the length of many of the books. Here’s hoping other fall book previews will exhibit more enthusiasm.

We’re pleased to see that some library web sites are doing “Read the Book Before You See the Movie” sections, based on our Upcoming Books to Movies information.

The number of movies based on books seems to keep growing and we’ve added several new titles. Links are to trailers, where available.

SEPT 26 - Limited

OCT 03 — Wide

Movie Title: Blindness

Director: Fernando Meirelles

Starring: Jullianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo

Based on: Blindness by Jose Saramago

• Paperback Tie-in: $15.00
• Publisher: Harvest Books; 1 (September 2, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 0156035588
• ISBN-13: 978-0156035583

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OCT 03

Movie title: How to Lose Friends and Alienate People

Director: Robert B. Weide

Starring: Simon Pegg, Kirsten Dunst, Danny Huston, Megan Fox, Jeff Bridges

Based on: How to Lose Friends and Alienate People by Toby Young

• Movie Tie-in Pbk: $14.95
• Publisher: Perseus Publishing
• Pub. Date: September 01, 2008
• ISBN-13: 9780306816130

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DEC 5

Movie Title: Youth in Revolt — no trailer yet

Director: Miguel Arteta

Starring: Michael Cera, Justin Long, Steve Buscemi, Ray Liotta

Based on: Youth in Revolt by C.D. Payne

No tie-in edition announced yet

DEC 19

Movie title: Yes Man

Director: Peyton Reed

Starring: Jim Carrey, Zooey Deschanel

Based on: Yes Man by  Danny Wallace, 2005

Movie tie-in:

[no cover yet]

• Paperback: $12.99
• Publisher: Simon Spotlight Entertainment; Mti edition (December 9, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 1416595538
• ISBN-13: 978-1416595533

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DEC 26  – Limited

Movie title: Revolutionary Road

No trailer yet

Yates biographer Blake Bailey looks at the rocky road from book to movie: Slate, 6/26/08

Director: Sam Mendes (American Beauty)

Starring:

Leonardo DiCaprio — Frank Wheeler

Kate Winslet — April Wheeler

Based on: Revolutionary Road, Richard Yates

[No cover yet]

• Publisher: Knopf, $14.95
• Pub. Date: November 25, 2008
• ISBN-13: 9780307454621
• Series: Vintage Contemporaries Ser.
• Edition Description: Media Tie

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FEB 6, ‘09

Film Title: Coraline

Director: Henry Selick

Animated, featuring the voices of: Dakota Fanning, Ian McShane, Teri Hatcher

Based on the book: Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Coraline Movie Tie-in Edition by Neil Gaiman and Dave Mckean

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: HarperEntertainment (October 28, 2008)
• ISBN-10: 0061649694
• ISBN-13: 978-0061649691