Jef withonef has a great article titled at Houston Pres, “5 Hit Books Hollywood Will Never Film.” (HERE) Each entry includes an explanation of “Why we want it”, “Why it’s a bad idea” and “How about instead we film.”
My favorite non-King entry is House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. That book was crazy! Footnotes that went nowhere, text that went around the page in mathematical circles – or something.
Jef’s list includes:
5. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion
4. Neil Gaiman, Sandman
3. Mark Z. Danielewski. House of Leaves
2. Robert A. Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land
1. Stephen King, Rage
So why does Rage get top position?
Jef writes:
Rage was the first book that King published under the Richard Bachman pseudonym, and follows a deranged high school student that holds his class hostage at gunpoint while forcing them to endure a round of psychological discussions that seriously unhinges them all. It's a violent look at the pressures of youth that so often lead people to brutal violenceJef than explains why this is one really bad idea. If you’ve read the book and the newspaper you know why it’s a bad idea! (what’s a newspaper? Does anyone still get one of those?)
So, what books do you think Hollywood would never film?
In the King world, I’ve already suggested that Gerald’s Game would probably never make it to screen. And it’s starting to feel like the Dark Tower will never get made! The Talisman? How about the rest of Hearts in Atlantis?
Well, whatever you do, don't tell Guillermo del Toro about this, he's had his heart set on adapting Gaiman's "Death, the High Cost of Living."
ReplyDeleteChrisC
See, that would work. I just think a Sandman movie wouldn't. Death would probably be great
DeleteOh, "The Silmarillion" will get made ... eventually. There's a LOT of money to be made there.
ReplyDeleteHeinlein's book'll probably get adapted eventually, too, and if King ever sold the rights to "Rage," somebody will probably do that one some day as well.
Maybe, but will he be happy with it do you think?
DeleteChrisC
I suspect it would only happen once King was six feet under.
DeleteRage (as a film) = Hell on earth; seriously, that is how much I hate it, the beginning and the middle are alright, I guess, but the ending, ugh, did he need to make it that disturbing? He could have ended it on a much better note, as he should have from the very start. I pretend this story does not exist, but if it ever sees the light of day as a film, heck it should have never existed as a book, I will jump into a lake and try to drown myself, and I am not being over-dramatic.
ReplyDeleteMy memory is fuzzy; what's SO disturbing about this that it sets it apart from King's other works in that regard?
DeleteThe ending, and if you do not remember it, you might want to hesitate. I have not read the entire book, so I do not know if it is entirely horrifying, but I shudder even at the thought of a Rage film. Considering it is a held hostage high school version of "the Lord of the Flies." It even says on this site, if you read the book and the newspaper, you will know why it is such a bad idea. It also inspired violence in school, such as the Columbine High School Massacre, that is why (and probably other reasons) King wanted it out of print. Some may like it, but I hate it, and I am very sure I am not the only one who thinks it should not be a movie.
ReplyDeleteWhat exactly do you mean when you tell me that I might want to hesitate? Hesitate from doing what?
DeleteRead it if you want to, but please be wary if you read it, because the reason I said this is because the ending is very disturbing. I do not know how much of it you read it, but I will try to give you the premise without spoiling anything. In the book, a young man holds his classmates hostage, after he killed his teacher. During the book, the class act like a psychotherapy session, confessing their mortifying secrets, and everyone plays along except one of the classmates, who is supposed to be that "all-that" sort of guy. We are not like supposed to like the guy, but unfortunately, a "nightmare of evil" is awaiting for him, because at the end, the classmates (except the one that holds them hostage) psychologically and physically torment the guy who refuses to play along doing all sorts of disturbing things to him (Lord of the Flies here), leading him to become very fear-stricken and insane, the main character goes to a therapeutic center, too, but he has a much better ending. I am not going to discuss why I do not like this, because you might have some sort of idea, but if you do wish to read it, please, just think of whether or not you actually want to read it. I read last Saturday, and it is still tormenting me, and yes, it's a book, but one with a very realistic setting. We are not talking about possessed cars or fearsome clowns here.
ReplyDeleteAh, yes; now I remember how it ends.
DeleteLook, here's my thing: it IS a disturbing book, and I can understand why someone would read it and shudder a bit and then want to never read it again. But there is nothing in it -- from my point of view, at least -- that is fundamentally more disturbing than the type of material you can find in many other King books and stories.
The best/worst example: "Apt Pupil," which is more disturbing, more subversive, more dangerous, and more realistic than "Rage" ever gets even close to being. It's also about twice as good.
Sometimes there is supernatural goings-on that are present in the stories, and sometimes there aren't, but a great many of King's most vivid scenes of horror involve people doing terrible things to one another. Examples: the cruel taunting of Carrie's classmates in "Carrie"; the neglect of the infant in "Salem's Lot"; Greg Stillson kicking a dog to death in "The Dead Zone"; the perverse mindgames of John Rainbird in "Firestarter"; the rape scene in "Under the Dome"; the domestic abuses of "Dolores Claiborne" and "11/22/63"; a trucker going a bit too fast in "Pet Sematary"; the murders in "The Green Mile"; and so forth.
So I just don't see any reason to feel "Rage" is atypically disturbing as far as King's work goes. I can understand why King would want to withdraw the book from publication, but I'd also have to say that anyone who is screwed-up enough in the head to read that book and decide to copy what the main character does ... well, that's someone who was screwed up before they picked the book up, and would have found some other trigger to provoke their violent behavior even if they had never read it.
At the end of the day, though, it is an extremely mediocre book; content aside, unless you're a serious Stephen King fan, there's not much reason to try and track a copy down.
I never said "Rage" is the most disturbing story in the world, and I am sure there are other words by King that are more disturbing, "the Stand", "It", "the Dead Zone", all come to mind, I was just trying to point out that some might be very uneasy reading the end of "Rage", perhaps many, I don't know, but what I do know is that I read it last Saturday, and it still traumatizes me, but perhaps it's just me. That's all I am trying to point out, someone once told me what may be scary may not be scary to someone else, but I do that, as well as some other people I spoke to, "Rage" is a disturbing book. In any event, it should not be made into a movie, that's for sure.
ReplyDeleteWell, Brandon, if you were disturbed by "Rage," I'd say you had the correct reaction. It's supposed to be disturbing. Horror fiction should ALWAYS disturb; it it doesn't upset you, then it's not doing its job very well.
DeleteOut of curiosity: why did you read this book in the first place? Did you know anything about it beforehand? Hsd it been recommended to you? I don't mean those questions in a snarky way; I'm just curious.
Thanks for understanding, I guess. When I first read "Rage", I was traumatized due to the ending, and I have watched tons of horror movies and TV shows, I even read books from Edgar Allen Poe and H.P. Lovecraft. I guess, what makes me irked by this book, and I am merely talking about the ending, is the realistic setting, as opposed to the fantastical setting, for example, "A Nightmare on Elm Street", "Godzilla", "Christine", etc. I know this is merely a story, but perhaps, you do not understand the mystical power of books.
ReplyDeleteNow, even though I read this about three weeks ago, I changed my opinion about it. I like it, not the greatest book ever, not my most favorite, but I am intrigued by it. Stephen King has the ability to develop the characters in his stories very well. For example, when I read "Christine", I was hooked into the story, I enjoy the movie, but it is the book that had me hooked.
Overall, I like this story now, but it would still be a terrible film if ever adapted. I still hold by that opinion. If you cannot understand that, that is your problem not mine.