Films by season & age - Page Turners (Ages 8-12)

Seasons are a great way to explore different ideas through watching a group of films. Why not try watching all the films in a season and make some time for discussion. Topics and discussion points are included.

Stories for movies can come from anywhere – a film-maker might have heard a great one on the bus, or read one in a newspaper, or even just plucked an idea straight from their imagination! But down through movie history, some of the very finest films have been adapted from books – both novels and poems too. To pay tribute to this long-standing link between the page and the screen – and to mark 2008’s status as “The Year of the Book” – we’re pleased to present this FilmClub season of fantastic movies which were based on books. In some cases, they’re books that were popular before the film was made (you might have heard of Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone, for instance!) – in others, they’re less well-known novels where we think that as well as enjoying the movie, film fans should check out the book it came from too. And just for good measure, we’ve also thrown in at least one film – the charming Finding Neverland – that’s the story of a writer themselves, in this case JM Barrie, the creator of Peter Pan. In all cases, we hope you enjoy what we’ve picked out – and that when you’re next taking a break from the wonder of the movies, you won’t forget the written word!

SUGGESTED PAIR

Alice in Wonderland and Billy Liar are both stories of the imagination which began life on the page and then became fantastic movies. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Fallen Idol both tell the tale of young characters who find their grown-up heroes may not be all they seem.

TALKING POINTS

Have you read any of the books here before seeing the film? What differences did you notice between them?

Do you find it more enjoyable to see a character on screen being played by an actor, or

when you’re just picturing them in your head?

Could you notice any differences between these movies that have been adapted from

books, and others you might have seen which started out as comics, or TV shows, or were

just made up by the film-makers?