Book to Movie News!

Good evening, everyone!


I've been following news from Publisher's Weekly and some other blogs pretty closely the past few days, and I've come across some interesting news coming out (some is rumor, but let's hope it's true), mostly dealing with a few of my favorite books and the movie/television industry. It was just too good not to share!

1) David Fincher, the incredible director who brought us such gems as Fight Club, The Social Network, and the American version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, is said to be in talks to direct a film adaptation of Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl. This, I believe, is an interesting pairing, and I wouldn't trust many other directors to adapt a film like this. He's done fantastic adaptations in the past and he's one of the few that actually maintains the bones and integrity of a book. So this excites me. Especially since Gillian Flynn has been involved in adapting the book to a screenplay. The other interesting aspect to this news is that the rights to the film were purchased by 20th Century Fox and will be produced by Pacific Standard, the production company owned by Reese Witherspoon. So, I guess that means Reese will be playing Amy Elliott Dunne? I don't know if I can see this. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE LOVE LOVE Reese Witherspoon. She's phenomenal and has played good crazy in the past. I just don't know if she is the right actress to play Amy. And who will they find to play Nick Dunne? May I suggest Gabriel Macht? Or perhaps Tom Hardy?

For more on this, check out this link: http://www.deadline.com/2013/01/david-fincher-eyeing-publishing-sensation-gone-girl-at-fox/

2) Bill O'Reilly's Killing Lincoln is in talks to become a film starring Tom Hanks. Again, not sure about this one.

3) They Royal Shakespeare Company has a stage adaptation of Hilary Mantel's novels Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies in the works for their 2013 winter season. They will reportedly be adapted into two parts, and will include unseen written material by the author herself. The play will run at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-Upon-Avon from December 2013 until March 2014. Don't know about you, but I seriously want to see this. BRING UP TO THE U.S.! SOON! PLEASE!

Link: http://www.thebookseller.com/news/rsc-stage-mantel-novels.html

4) TCG is reportedly releasing a printed edition of the Lincoln screenplay. I think this will be a great gift for your writer friends who are also film buffs and history buffs. Don't forget to read the original work the screenplay was based off, Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals. And see the movie! Seriously, if Daniel Day Lewis doesn't win the Oscar for this role, he's being robbed.

5) This is absolutely exciting news to me! One of my favorite authors, Lauren Oliver, has announced that her Delirium trilogy will be adapted into a television show by Fox! Fox had originally purchased the film rights, but seeing as the trilogy has quite a few twists and subplots and depth, it would be better suited to go the way of The Vampire Diaries. So they purchased a pilot instead! I am sincerely looking forward to this. Now the question is: who will play Lena, Alex, and Hanna? I can wait on Julian. He probably won't show up until season 2 or 3 anyway. Who do you guys want to see in the Delirium cast? Just one more thing: doesn't this sound more like a CW/WB agenda than Fox?

Oh well...

Link: http://lauren-oliver.tumblr.com/post/41284293685/announcing-the-delirium-tv-series



That's all from me. Have a great night!

Meg

Book Review: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Good morning!

Today is a beautiful day, one that will live on in history and in our memories forever. That's because today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and the second inauguration of President Barack Obama. I love days like these because they really portray what our country stands for, our democracy at work. It shows the optimism we have for the future and the hope we have as a nation in our equal chances to succeed. I feel so blessed to have been present for this moment. Congratulations to President Obama and Vice President Biden on their second Inauguration, and God Bless America!

Okay. Getting off my soap box now.

Let's get this party started! This is my first book review on this blog, so let me explain how this is going to work. As your resident barista and coffee addict, I decided that instead of stars or thumbs up, for each point that a book earns, I will give it an espresso shot, up to five shots. Just enough to keep anyone, even a seasoned coffee drinker, bouncing off the walls for a few hours (Trust me. I've done it.). So, at the end of my reviews, look for this symbol

for my overall assessment of my rating of the chosen book.

This week's review: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Do you remember this guy? 

This is Scott Peterson. Ten years ago, he was convicted of murdering his pregnant wife Laci Peterson and their unborn child. When reading Gone Girl, this case came to mind a lot. It had a lot of parallels to the plot of Gillian Flynn's novel. Of course, if you've read this book, you know things end very differently. But this, like the Scott Peterson case, is the basic theme of the novel: Is the husband always the prime suspect? With the increase of technology, can anyone get a fair trial if everyone knows what's happening before the trial? Because of technology and the media, is there such a thing as an impartial jury? Does the court of public opinion decide your fate? Are we still innocent until proven guilty, or are we now guilty until proven innocent?

What I liked about this novel is that it carries these themes well and realistically. Neither of the main characters is particularly likeable, and I struggled to figure out who I wanted to root for. Ultimately I felt more sympathetic to one more than the other, but near the end I had to force myself to feel that sympathy.

The novel begins as Nick Dunne and his wife Amy Elliott Dunne prepare to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary. Their marriage is on rocky ground, both are fed-up with the other person. After losing their jobs and moving to Missouri, neither is the person they were when they wed. Amy, once vivacious and rich (the heiress of her parents Amazing Amy children's book franchise wealth); Nick, the charming magazine journalist; now both are shadows. Then Amy goes missing. And everyone begins to think Nick had something to do with it, thanks mostly to a beautifully crafted cover up.

This is the first Gillian Flynn novel I've read, so I was skeptical going in due to all the hype the book was receiving. I don't like to give into hype, as the reality doesn't live up to the fantasy. I'm glad that I picked it up. Gillian Flynn has a firm grasp of language and diction. Her descriptions were strong, her plotting was done exceptionally well. The plot had a sense of predictable inevitability, but still maintained a large degree of suspense. I loved how easily she was able to switch back and forth between perspectives and maintain the distinct personalities and voices of both characters.

Where this book lost points was in the end. It was a good ending, it seemed inevitable that it would end the way it did. However, by the end I wanted to slap both characters for making all of the wrong decisions, no matter how realistic and inevitable they felt. I wanted to slap them both and shake them and yell "What are you doing?!"

Overall it was an amazing book. I am excited to read Gillian Flynn's other two books, Sharp Objects and Dark Places. I really enjoy her writing style and her voice, and I look forward to see what else she brings in the future. Read this book. I highly recommend it. You won't regret reading it.

Overall Rating: 4.5 espresso shots

 

Have a good week, everybody!

Meg

Update: Casting for the 2014-2015 film adaptation is underway for Gone Girl. Nick Dunne will be played by Oscar winner Ben Affleck, Amy Elliott Dunne by Pride and Prejudice actress Rosamunde Pike, and Desii Collins will be played by none other than.. Wait for it... NEIL PATRICK HARRIS! I am truly psyched about this casting, especially NPH as Desi. I know he will play the creeper I know Desi to be XD.