film-and-literature

Ifyouaskedmetogiveyouthemostdistinctivequalityofgoodwriting,Iwouldgiveittoyouinoneword:VISUAL.Reducetheartofwritingtoitsfundamentals,andyoucometothissingleaim:toconveyimagesbymeansofwords.Buttoconveyimages.Tomakethemindsee...Thatisthedefinitionofgoodliterature...Itisalsoadefinitionoftheidealfilm.-HerbertRead(1945)Cinemashouldbynowhaveattainedsomemeasureofculturalrespectability.Butmanyliterarycriticsstillviewfilmatworstastheillegitimateoffspringoftheatreandphotography,andatbestasavulgar,commercialmedium,capableveryoccasionallyofachievingitsownaestheticidentity;whilefilmtheoriststendtovalueworkthatisthesolecreationofwriter-directorauteurs.Butbothreverethesamepantheonoffilm-makersanddisdainfilmadaptationsofnovels,especiallywhenthosenovelsaremuch-lovedclassics.Filmsadaptedfromnovelstypicallyinviteunfavourablecomparisonwithliteraryoriginals,fromfilmcritics,newspaperreviewersandaudiencesalike.Criticsseefilmadaptationsofnovelsasfundamentallyflawed,astheyarenotoriginal,cinematicconceptions;journalistsandaudiencesreactwithdisappointmentatsuperficialdissimilarities,dismayedbycastingdecisions,inevitablecompressionandthelossoffavouritecharactersorincidents.Suchfilmsareoftenjudgedbythedegreetowhichtheyadheretoordivergefromtheirliterarysourcematerial-thefilmseeneitheras'aremarkablyfaithfuladaptation'oronethat'failstocapturethespiritoftheoriginal.'Butwhatisitthattheyaresupposedtobefaithfulto?Iftherearepotentiallyasmanyreadingsofatextastherearereaders,thenmightnotfilmadaptationsberegardedinthesamelight,as'readings'ofor'essays'ontheirsourcetexts?Cinemabeganjustover100yearsagowiththeLumièreBrothers'filmofworkersleavingafactory.Thisrevelationwasrapidlyfollowedbythefirstfictionalmini-narratives.Thefirstproto-genretoemerge,then,wasrealism.By1905,GeorgesMeliès,inLeVoyagedanslaLune,hadinitiatedthecinema'salternative,carnivalesquetradition,usingthetechnicalcapabilitiesofthemediumtorealisedreamsandfantasies.Atthatmomentitmighthaveseemedthatitwasrealismwhichwouldbethedeadendandthatthecinema'spowertorepresenttheimaginarywouldgiverisetothemainstream.Yetrealismhasremainedthedominantmode:foreveryMatrixorMissionImpossible,everyyearhundredsoffilmsareproducedwhichgoonreflectingtherealworld,orrecreatingrealworldsofthepast.Anditistherealisttraditionofthenineteenth-andearlytwentieth-centurynovelthathasmostfrequentlyprovidedsourcematerialforfilm-makers,particularlyinBritishandEuropeancinema.Film-makerscontinuetoplunderthelibraryfornovelsthathavenotyetbeenadapted,orthatmightprofitablyberemade.Realistnovels,richinplotandstrongincharacterisation,havebeenthemodelforacinemawithliteraryaspirations.Modernistfictionmightseemmoreresistanttoadaptation,butfewnovelsareregardedas'unfilmable'andthetraditionpersists,withfilm-makersqueuinguptoacquirethefilmrightsforthelatestbest-sellers.Moresignificantperhapshasbeentheinfluenceofcinemaonprosefiction:fromJoycetoGrahamGreenetoRobertCoover,modernistandpost-modernistwritershaveacknowledged,andsometimesborrowedfrom,thevocabularyoffilm,employingliteraryequivalentsofmontage,cross-cutting,flashbacksandsoon.Butremarkablylittlehasbeenwrittenontheproblematicissueofthefilmadaptation,perhapsbecausethefilmednovelissuchanawkwardlyhybridgenre.Inadaptinganovel,thescreenwriterisalwaysfacedwithdifficultchoices:whattoinclude/exclude,howtocompensatefornecessaryexcisions,howtoconflatecharactersandincidents,howtoshowwhatthewritertells.Underlyingthesedecisionsarethecontrastingcircumstancesofreadingandwatching.Itisworthremindingourselves-andourstudents-thatanovelwilltakemanyhourstoread;thatunlessweareimpelledtostayupallnighttofinishit,thenovelwillbereadinchunks,overaperiodofdaysorweeks;thatreadingisanintimateexperience,usuallyundertakeninprivate;andthatthereaderisalwaysatlibertytore-read,toskip,tojumpaheadandgenerallytocontroltheexperience.Theexperienceofwatchingafilm,ontheotherhand,isconcentratedintotwoorthreehoursatmost;ittakesplaceonasingle,uninterruptedoccasioninadarkenedauditoriuminthecompanyofdozens,orperhapshundreds,ofstrangers;andtheviewerisacaptiveaudience,withnochoicebuttofollowtherelentlessprogressoftheactiononthescreen.Ofcourse,thecircumstancesofwatchingafilmonvideoorDVDoffertheviewer-andtheteacher-ameasureofcontrol,butevenfreeze-frameandrewindfacilitiescandolittletoimpedetheheadlongadvanceoffilm.Bothnarrativefictionandnarrativefilmgivetheiraudiencesastrongsenseofplace,makinguseofrecognisable,oftenactual,locations.Aswellasplaces,weliketofeelthatwerecognisecharacters,andinbothnovelandfilmwemeasurethesuccessoftheirrepresentationaccordingtothepsychologicalconsistencyoftheirbehaviour.Bothnovelandfilmtellstories:wegoonwatching,aswegoonreading,tofindoutwhathappensnext,orwhenwearefamiliarwiththeconventionsofthegenre,tofindouthowithappens.Novels,itseems,areadaptedforthescreeninthreeways,whichmightbedescribedbyanalogywithmodesofliterarytranslation.Thefirstiscomparabletoliteraltranslation,wherethefilm-makertriestorenderthenovelasfaithfullyaspossibleinadifferent'language'(e.g.PeterBrook'sLordoftheFliesorKennethBranagh'stellinglytitl