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Post by politicidal on Jul 19, 2022 20:18:21 GMT
The best-selling novel THE GRAVEYARD BOOK was published in 2008 and won several prestigious literary awards, including the American Newberry Medal. Gaiman’s source material tells the story of Nobody “Bod” Owen, a young boy who is raised by the ghosts and supernatural beings of a graveyard – including, the graveyard’s caretaker Silas – after his family is murdered. deadline.com/2022/07/marc-forster-renee-wolfe-disney-the-graveyard-book-1235072324/ |
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Post by Nalkarj on Jul 19, 2022 22:14:48 GMT
Hm. On the one hand, I love The Graveyard Book. It’s warm and human and spooky and mysterious and funny and thrilling and filled with small surprises and just great all the way through. Thoroughly deserving of its Newbery.
On the other hand—I’m not sure it’d work as a movie, even as an animated movie. For one thing, it’s fragmented à la its source material, The Jungle Book, a format that rarely works well onscreen. (If it were adapted, though, I’d hire Henry Selick for the job. His Coraline understood what Gaiman was going for.)
And I just don’t think Marc Foster and David Magee are quite the right fit for it. I vaguely remember liking Finding Neverland, but Life of Pi and Mary Poppins Returns struck me as mawkish rather than moving.
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Post by Nalkarj on Jul 19, 2022 22:18:59 GMT
On the third hand, which a character in a Neil Gaiman story may have, I’m just happy that Gaiman’s books are being adapted again. I liked some of the relatively recent American Gods adaptation (Ian McShane is good and fun casting for Mr. Wednesday), but episode after episode kept spinning its wheels instead of getting to the point, my eternal problem with modern TV.
Adapting The Ocean at the End of the Lane would be difficult—a filmmaker would have to get the mood just right, among other things. But if done right it might make a fine film.
And I still want an adaptation of “A Study in Emerald” with Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. That’s less of a mood piece than Ocean, more plot-based, and thus probably easier to adapt.
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