Nearly all movies see out there are inspired by some or the other source text, which leads us to the ample number of romantic comedies that are modern adaptations of classic literature. This isn’t an old game we’re harking at, rather since time immemorial teen comedies or romance sagas have been picking up on novels, plays or stories that found their footing originally during a historical epoch. Twisting these stories to fit the contemporary narrative has led to some of the most interesting fusions that have acquired the evergreen tag.
Let’s take a step back to relive through these titles of the 2000s that reignited our taste for classic literature with a modern spin.
Romantic Comedies That Are Modern Adaptations of Classic Literature
Easy A
Be it getting branded as an adulteress in the 19th century, or being reduced to a dehumanising rumour chain in the 21st century, both Hester and Olive owned up to their situations and took charge of their narratives. Based on Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Easy A posits Olive (Emma Stone), an average student running under everyone’s radar in the spotlight. Following a series of rumours, her social standing in high school is overturned in the blink of an eye, but she doesn’t get swayed by the hate in people’s eyes, rather takes it as an opportunity to start a new conversation around teen relationships.
She’s the Man
Back when Channing Tatum was everyone’s first heartthrob and Amanda Bynes ruled over the teen movie fraternity, She’s the Man transformed the way Shakespeare’s classic characters from The Twelfth Night would look like in high school. With football at its core, and driving the leading teens on, the movie picks up the same names of old characters and their confusing love circle set in a modern setting.
Clueless
At the top of Beverly Hills’s social chain, Cher is not the usual conceited Queen Bee. Turning into a matchmaker, she brings two of her opposing teachers on the same wavelength, which brings her next to giving the newcomer, Tai, a makeover. When she surpasses the OG diva of the school, her ex-stepbrother’s words ring a bell in her mind, making her realise how deluded she was, while also seeing him in a new light than before. The Alicia Silverstone-Paul Rudd starrer is based on Jane Austen’s Emma.
10 Things I Hate About You
Possibly one of the best teem rom-coms to date, 10 Things I Hate About You starring Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles and more, seeks its inspiration from Shakespeare’s classic play Taming of the Shrew. Sticking close to the original plot of the play, but cutting down on the original text’s misogyny content, the storyline follows the ‘taming’ of Kat, i.e. the ‘Shrew’ in this case.
Warm Bodies
Remember of the undead zombies mindlessly strutting across the various movie franchises of the 2000s? Here’s a new take on that visual as this movie features a zombie who has a mind, but even more so a heart which feels conflicted to prey on human beings unlike his fellow companions. Human beings and zombies practically make up two warring clans, the basic premise of a classic we are all well acquainted with. Based on Isaac Marion’s book that in turn loosely picks up the defining pieces of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, this film sees the development of a budding romance between a zombie and a woman, which ultimately helps the former recover.
John Tucker Must Die
The 2006 teen comedy enters around the basketball star of high school – the eponymous leading male character of the story. While his reputation is already set and established, the movie is more about a girls trio, each of whom have been dating the boy simultaneously without catching a hint. Once the secret is out, they cross the bridge and plot to break his heart for payback. Enter the unpopular girl in the mix, who’s recruited by them to set things right and pull a major con on John Tucker. Inspired by Merry Wives of Windsor, a comedy play by Shakespeare, both stories hold the womanising Johns in common.
Bridget Jones’ Diary
Jane Austen’s mega classic of the ages, Pride and Prejudice brings the English love story starring Renée Zellweger, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant and more to life.
The Half of It
Streaming on Netflix, The Half of It is, for a change, a heartwarming story of friendship more than being a romantic tale. In contrast with major hits of the same genre fixating on teenagers getting high or being focussed on bagging the tag of the popular Apex predator at school, this one rather lets its characters breathe a bit closer to realistic grounds instead of reducing them to stock labels. Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand has helped shape several modern rom-coms, and this is one of the most affectionate twists on the original plot.
The DUFF
Pygmalion
Which of these titles do you keep going back to? Are there any other films of this genre based on classic literature that you like to add to this list? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.