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Many wouldn’t expect that there would be movies about writers and writers; it honestly just feels weird. Still, movie producers and directors have introduced several movies about different kinds of writers over the years – famous writers, historical writers, failed writers, novelists, playwrights, and even poets.
But the truth is, movies about writers aren’t always captivating, mainly because there’s hardly anything dramatic about writers. However, we can’t deny that the entertainment industry has done its best to make some writer’s movies worthwhile. And as someone interested in writing, it’s a good idea to check out some of these movies, so you can understand what it means to be a writer or an author.
As an academic writing expert from Custom Writings essay service, Lauren Bradshaw would say, “There’s no better way to learn than to watch the events play out in real-time.” And as boring as some would think a writer’s movie would be, many of these films won several awards and accolades.
We’ve put together a list of seven movies about writers and writers that you can always check out:
Adaptation (2002)
If you suffer a lot from writer’s block, then this movie is for you. Adaptation tells the story of a scriptwriter Charlie Kaufman who’s hired to create a movie adaptation of the book The Orchid Thief.
Since he didn’t want to employ formulaic scriptwriting, Charlie tried as much as possible to create a proper adaptation of the book, but soon discovered that the book didn’t have a workable narrative and was challenging to turn into this movie. This issue gave him a severe case of writer’s block.
Filled with a whirlwind of dark comedy and a huge dose of meditative writing, Adaptation is a perfect depiction of the daily struggles of a writer. It makes you see that the act and art of writing aren’t all fun and games, even if it makes you a lot of money.
Midnight in Paris (2011)
Every writer wants to make a name for himself – publish a book and become a world-renowned author. This was Gil Pender’s dream in Midnight in Paris. Gil was a Hollywood screenwriter who had plans to finish and release his debut novel while handling his love for Paris, fondly called the city of love and his fiancée.
You should see this movie to understand a writer’s struggle to balance his life-long dream with other personal matters.
An Angel at My Table (1990)
If you’ve ever had doubts that writing could heal, An Angel at My Table would tell you otherwise. The 1990 biographical movie walks us through New Zealand author Janet Frame’s life from childhood to adolescence, through her years in a mental institution, and her life as a writer after she escaped the institution.
Jane Campion, the movie director, did an outstanding job at depicting Frame’s life and the importance of human creativity in our everyday lives. And the fact that this movie received numerous awards shows that the film is definitely a must-watch.
Bright Star (2009)
Bright Star is another biography that Jane Campion beautifully directed. The movie is a tragic story about the final years of poet John Keats and his relationship with his lady love Fanny Brawne.
Poor John Keats. Only if he had lived long enough to enjoy the success of his newly published works and his blossoming romance with his “shining light.” Alas, Tuberculosis – a disease that had previously plagued his family – finally caught up with him and sent him off at just the age of 24. Much can be said about the movie, but what pulls at our heartstrings the most is the final scenes in the film, where Fanny Brawne is seen walking Keats’ famous path, reciting the love sonnet “Bright Star” which her dead lover had written for her.
Misery (1990)
Writers have fans, and that’s awesome. However, all writers had better hope that they don’t have a psychopathic fan who loves a novel’s character just a little too much.
The famous author in Misery wasn’t so lucky, though. After launching a successful novel series about Misery Chastain, novelist Paul Sheldon decided to close a curtain on that series and start working on a new manuscript. It seems like a particular fan didn’t enjoy the idea of not reading about Misery anymore, and after rescuing the author from an accident, threatened him to continue the Misery series.
After a lot of back and forth, which ended up in the fan’s death, a nurse named Annie Wilkes, the post-Misery novel is finally written, and the writer ends up suffering from psychological trauma.
Reprise (2006)
Whoever said writers always had it easy? In fact, almost every successful writer has a “From Grass to Grace” story. The two aspiring writers in the 2006 movie Reprise also have their stories to tell, and off-screen aspiring writers can learn a thing or two from these guys.
The Norwegian film walks us through the lives of two childhood friends who aspired to be successful writers and shared a mutual love for writer Sten Egil Dahl. And through their eyes, we see all the hopes, dreams, and sufferings that walk hand-in-hand with the desire to make it big in the writing world.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)
A writer’s best talents are his creativity and a broad imagination – these are two ingredients that help him put down words in ways that average men can’t. In The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, a journalist experienced a stroke that left him bedridden and burdened with a locked-in syndrome. Throughout the movie, we see the writer attempt to handle his condition by doing what he knows how to do best – using his imagination.
There are countless movies about writers that you can always watch to understand a writer’s life better, and as a student, you should take advantage of these TV shows.
As a matter of fact, there are a lot of movies about writers on Netflix, you can enjoy watching them right now.