Memories
While reading an LA article about the JetBlue landing, I saw an ad for Capote. Apparently the rumor I heard a long time ago was true. Back in high school I read a few of his books and did a paper on Truman himself, to see this dramatization of him researching “In Cold Blood” would be lovely.
Capote looks fairly close to the mark of what I researched myself back in 2000. I feel bemused that somewhere there was a Hollywood writer probably doing the exact same thing I was, but for a larger purpose. I have a fascination for adaptations like this. I learned that most movie releases were also accompanied by novellas that differed in subtle ways from the books they were originally based. I’ve been eager to compare and contrast the faithfulness to the material and the spirit of the movie in the main point of the book.
Sometimes one serves better than the other. My first experience with this was probably finding the Indiana Jones children’s movie adaptation books when I was about seven or so. I was well versed with this fedora’d adventurer and could make mental notes as I read. It wasn’t until late middle school or early high school that the novellas were not the ‘real deal’.
By this time I had thoroughly fell in love with Tolkien since I was in the fourth grade (“The Hobbit”) and had been reading the Lord of the Rings annually since my sixth grade. My seventh grade paper had been on Al Gore- my eighth grade paper was on Tolkien’s life. I clearly remember been not only excited to tackle such a large life, but that the movies were not far in production and was avidly following the progress.
I rushed my mother to drop me off at school so I could haunt my Reading teacher and be the first one to tell my choice, lest someone else in my mind be a fan and/or wanted the ‘scoop’ on the movie source. Funny, no one else asked for Tolkien. Wasn’t realistic to think that would be top choice on an eighth grader’s mind.
I have my Junior/Senior High School English teacher to thank for finding meaningful books to read rather than popular or abstract. She believed in T.S. Eliot, Robert Frost, and Shakespeare with a healthy dose of Fitzgerald. Ms. Greenfield also introduced me to Truman Capote. I started off with “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, then tackled “In Cold Blood”, and finished with “the Grass Harp”.
“Breakfast” was eagerly tackled as I was an Audrey Hepburn fan and always liked the Deep Blue Something song. I was a little disappointed, not by the novel- but that the character wasn’t as strong and sensible as my first impression. “In Cold Blood” took my breath away in excitement; I can definitely compare the courtroom drama to that in “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “12 Angry Men”. It was quite possibly what stemmed my interest in CSI and law forensics. The Grass Harp was the most touching tribute I have ever read. A young boy living with his aunts and their misadventures in a China tree, memories, and life lessons. I’m curious as to how they plan to have the tale unfold since they want to directly involve Capote in the lens, which he does abstractly in the book.
Haven’t really gone deeply into book to movie adaptations lately after I did High Fidelity, and Lord of the Rings exhausted me with the people complaining about ‘being true to the text’. I simply wish people read more, not that Tolkien is a master of his area- but that it is a unique work with its own buried treasures. Buried in lots of words. I wish more people were aware of the sources behind the movies they love and not take for granted that it is the whole story. Enjoy the manipulation the writers make of their comrades work for the screen, but it is the spirit of the film- not the rest of the story.
Capote looks fairly close to the mark of what I researched myself back in 2000. I feel bemused that somewhere there was a Hollywood writer probably doing the exact same thing I was, but for a larger purpose. I have a fascination for adaptations like this. I learned that most movie releases were also accompanied by novellas that differed in subtle ways from the books they were originally based. I’ve been eager to compare and contrast the faithfulness to the material and the spirit of the movie in the main point of the book.
Sometimes one serves better than the other. My first experience with this was probably finding the Indiana Jones children’s movie adaptation books when I was about seven or so. I was well versed with this fedora’d adventurer and could make mental notes as I read. It wasn’t until late middle school or early high school that the novellas were not the ‘real deal’.
By this time I had thoroughly fell in love with Tolkien since I was in the fourth grade (“The Hobbit”) and had been reading the Lord of the Rings annually since my sixth grade. My seventh grade paper had been on Al Gore- my eighth grade paper was on Tolkien’s life. I clearly remember been not only excited to tackle such a large life, but that the movies were not far in production and was avidly following the progress.
I rushed my mother to drop me off at school so I could haunt my Reading teacher and be the first one to tell my choice, lest someone else in my mind be a fan and/or wanted the ‘scoop’ on the movie source. Funny, no one else asked for Tolkien. Wasn’t realistic to think that would be top choice on an eighth grader’s mind.
I have my Junior/Senior High School English teacher to thank for finding meaningful books to read rather than popular or abstract. She believed in T.S. Eliot, Robert Frost, and Shakespeare with a healthy dose of Fitzgerald. Ms. Greenfield also introduced me to Truman Capote. I started off with “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, then tackled “In Cold Blood”, and finished with “the Grass Harp”.
“Breakfast” was eagerly tackled as I was an Audrey Hepburn fan and always liked the Deep Blue Something song. I was a little disappointed, not by the novel- but that the character wasn’t as strong and sensible as my first impression. “In Cold Blood” took my breath away in excitement; I can definitely compare the courtroom drama to that in “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “12 Angry Men”. It was quite possibly what stemmed my interest in CSI and law forensics. The Grass Harp was the most touching tribute I have ever read. A young boy living with his aunts and their misadventures in a China tree, memories, and life lessons. I’m curious as to how they plan to have the tale unfold since they want to directly involve Capote in the lens, which he does abstractly in the book.
Haven’t really gone deeply into book to movie adaptations lately after I did High Fidelity, and Lord of the Rings exhausted me with the people complaining about ‘being true to the text’. I simply wish people read more, not that Tolkien is a master of his area- but that it is a unique work with its own buried treasures. Buried in lots of words. I wish more people were aware of the sources behind the movies they love and not take for granted that it is the whole story. Enjoy the manipulation the writers make of their comrades work for the screen, but it is the spirit of the film- not the rest of the story.
posted by Razorhoney | 2:18 PM
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