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Comments directly on the question of adaptation

From: Brian Taves <btav~at~loc.gov>
Date: Fri, 18 Jun 2004 18:48:17 -0400 (EDT)
To: jvforum <jvf~at~math.technion.ac.il>

Subject: FROM SCIFIWIRE: Coraci Re-Imagines '80 Days'


09:00am ET, 15-JUne-04

Coraci Re-Imagines 80 Days

Frank Coraci, director of the upcoming SF adventure Around the World in
80 Days, told SCI FI Wire that he wanted to change the main character,
Phileas Fogg, to make him more accessible to today's audiences.

"When I read the [Jules Verne] book and then [saw] the [1956] movie,
Phileas Fogg was a very secure, confident person, and he was a wealthy
man who made a bet," Coraci said. "He traveled the world, and he didn't
really change enough for me to make the story worth telling for now. So
I thought, 'Let's make Phileas Fogg more in the spirit of Jules Verne.
Let's make him a dreamer.' He can see the future, and that's what Jules
Verne was. He was amazing."

Coraci said that he had only fleeting memories of the original film
before he went back to research the material for his update, which stars
Steve Coogan (Coffee and Cigarettes) as Fogg and Jackie Chan (The
Medallion) as Passepartout. "I went to the book first and re-read it,
since I read it as a kid, and I remembered some of the scenes," Coraci
said. "Then I went to the original movie, where I remembered the balloon
only and the bullfight scene." Coraci's impression of the film was that
it fit the time in which it was made, but it was no longer relevant to
modern audiences. "At the time it was one of the second Cinemascope
movies, and from the perspective then, people went to the movies and
were amazed to see a widescreen movie."

Coraci also said that his research for the film turned up an encouraging
quote from a relative of Verne. "I read a quote from Jules Verne's
great-grandson," Coraci said. "He said filmmakers shouldn't literally
translate from his great-grandfather's book, because they were written
at a time in a certain perspective, ahead of its time, and maybe the
ideas then wouldn't exactly translate to the way things are now." Around
the World in 80 Days opens June 16.
Received on Sat 19 Jun 2004 - 01:48:58 IDT

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