I had a great idea to write this news post about James Franco adapting William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury in a stream of consciousness style with italics confusingly jumping us back and forth in time. The I realized I wasn’t William Faulkner, and that blogging isn’t a great medium for that kind of story telling. Film is even worse.
Calling a novel unadaptable is might be a bit cliche, but THIS BOOK IS UNADAPTABLE. Even Martin Ritt’s version couldn’t do it and that means James Franco sure as hell won’t be able to. I liked the guy a few years ago, but he seems more and more pretentious with every move. At least his casting choices seem to be sound as he is working to pull in Jon Hamm to play Jason Compson III and his brother, Dave Franco, to play Quentin Compson. Danny McBride and Franco himself are also slated to be in the film.
I think a really interesting movie could be made out of the ideas and styles present in The Sound of Fury, but I don’t think that James Franco is the guy to pull them out.
[via L.A. Times]
