Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Now a major motion picture
A roundup of fall films based on the books that inspired them
by Scott Renshaw @scottrenshaw
click to flip through (5)
- The Black Dahlia, book by James
Ellroy
Book overview: Taking off from an unsolved 1940s true crime, Ellroy follows two LAPD cops who become obsessed with the case of a beautiful woman found murdered and mutilated.
Book grade: A-
Reason for adaptation optimism: That's what everyone said about L.A. Confidential, which didn't turn out too badly; Brian DePalma's films are many things, but never boring.
Reason for adaptation concern: Ellroy's dense plot wouldn't seem to lend itself well to a condensed screenplay.
Film scheduled release date: Sept. 15
The movie pitch: "L.A. Confidential meets ... er, L.A. Confidential."
Everyone always says, "Yeah, but the book was better." But how do you know if they're just trying to pretend they actually read? Here's a handy guide for some of this fall's literary adaptations, based on a look at the source material. Maybe you, too, could pretend you actually read. (Release dates subject to change.)
