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CHICAGO – There is no better time to take in a stage play that is based in U.S. history, depicting the battle between fact and religion. The old theater chestnut – first mounted in 1955 – is “Inherit the Wind,” now at the Goodman Theatre, completing it’s short run through October 20th. For tickets and more information, click INHERIT.
Film Feature: From Page to Screen, Fall 2011’s Biggest Adaptations
Submitted by BrianTT on November 28, 2011 - 10:39am
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 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Photo credit: Sony |
Film: “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” (December 21)
Based On: The most-effed up thriller about international journalism, hacking, and rape that every person you’ve ever met has read recently; originally published in 2005 by the now-deceased Stieg Larsson.
Director: David Fincher (“Seven”, “Social Network”, “Zodiac”, “Fight Club”).
Chances For Success: Half-and-half – big potential and big risk. “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” is the big publishing hit of the moment – you honestly can’t go into an airport without seeing 50 people reading a copy. This Swedish crime thriller has sold over 3 million copies, inspired two sequels, and become a pop culture phenomenon, so it’s no surprise that Hollywood had to make their own version, even though all three books were already turned into extremely popular Swedish films. And having someone like Fincher sign on to the film adaptation is equivalent to when Ron Howard and Tom Hanks signed on to turn Dan Brown’s “Da Vinci Code” into a movie. It’s A-list talent working on A-list material and expecting to make A-list cash in return. This should be a no-brainer, but there are too many risk factors to ignore. First of all, even though “Da Vinci Code” made a lot of money, it was a critical dud and it already feels extremely dated. A-list director and book pairings don’t necessarily always equal “The Godfather”. Second, even though the books are extremely popular, they’re about dark, dark events, which may or may not repel audiences. Are holiday moviegoers really going to want to watch American and British actors pretending they’re Swedish while they rape and murder each other? Is it just too dark for the season? Third, Fincher is a fantastic director, but a populist filmmaker he ain’t. While the man has virtuoso talent, the idea of him adapting such a pop culture popcorn flick still feels a bit off. And, finally, with the books being everywhere and the Swedish “Dragon Tattoo” movies on Netflix streaming, is the world already burned out on Stieg Larsson?
Working Against It: Fincher’s unpredictability; difficult subject matter; possible “Dragon Tattoo” burn-out.
