FROM 800 PAGES TO 120(ISH) MINUTES
Director John Crowley on how to adapt a sprawling, beloved bestseller like The Goldfinch
DON’T WORRY ABOUT EXPECTATIONS
“There was a period where the book was ubiquitous. I was aware definitely of [people’s expectations], and you feel a responsibility. Having come from a much smaller [adaptation] with Brooklyn, you get a glimpse of that. But when you start actually doing it, and carry what you loved about the story with you, you get too busy to worry about it. You just think: get on and tell the story.”
GIVE IT A CINEMATIC STRUCTURE
“The first big decision was to not follow the structure of the book — to not be linear, which allowed us an entrance to a more cinematic storytelling form. The past and the present sit on top of each other a lot more than they perhaps do in the book. That allowed us into a certain kind of visual editorial idea, if that makes sense — you’re intercutting in a way that’s rather exciting.”
FIND YOUR FOCUS
“Dramatically, you’re focusing on the most pertinent parts of this story — of a boy and man caught in grief, and a dilemma with a painting. So we focused in on the two most dramatic parts of the story. We distilled our story timeframes down to two tighter sections. There are decisions that we make which might feel shorter, or more reductive, but I think that they’re needed.”
DON’T AIM TO BE DEFINITIVE
“You have to know that what you’re making is one account of the book. You’re not trying to do something definitive, which stands for everybody. And yes, there will be some people who will miss certain aspects of the story. A lot of my friends love the book, but I don’t know that any two of them would agree on what they loved about it. And even the ones who don’t like the book very much don’t even agree with what they don’t like! You hope that you truthfully capture the essence of all of that, and that there’s enough there for whatever people loved in the book to find in the film. They say good books make bad films... well, I don’t agree with that!”
THE GOLDFINCH IS IN CINEMAS FROM 27 SEPTEMBER