Last year it was announced that
David S. Goyer would be directing the next remake of the Alexandre Dumas
classic, The Count of Monte Cristo.
Goyer, known more for his writing credits – Man
of Steel, The Dark Knight Trilogy, Jumper,
Dark City – has not penned the screenplay, that credit going to Michael
Robert Johnson, the writer of Sherlock
Holmes and Pompeii.
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| Jim Caviezel as Edmond Dantés |
While there
have been a number of adaptations of Monte
Cristo, the most notable North American version is the 2002 film starring
Jim Caviezel and Guy Pierce.
I’ve
just finished reading Monte Cristo
and am very excited about seeing a new version of the old classic. Most of us
already know parts of the immense story of revenge – the accusations, the false
imprisonment, the unimaginable wealth, the vengeance – but there are a number
of story elements that are left out when adapting this novel into less than
three hours of screen time. Films have been attempted for the adaptation of Monte Cristo with wonderful results (I’m
not trying to bash the 2002 version here, nor the upcoming possibility of Goyer’s),
but I think it’s time to try a different approach.
Here are a few reasons why I
think producers should invest money into making The Count of Monte Cristo into mini-series rather than another
film.
1. Most
obviously, length
An unabridged version of the novel runs anywhere from 1200 – 1500 pages; there
are 117 chapters; it contains close to 500,000 words. It’s quite clear that The Count of Monte Cristo is a big novel
and takes a while to read. A lot happens from cover to cover, and while
adaptations often remain very true to the source for the first 400 pages or so,
as the 2002 version did, the limited time of a film forces writers to create a
new path for the story for the remaining thousand. While I don’t necessarily
disagree with this artistic liberty (the 2002 alterations to the story were
very entertaining, interesting, and valid on their own merit), a lot is lost by
not allowing for a faithful adaptation.
Why would a mini-series help?
Given enough time in a mini-series, a sufficient number of oft-missed plotlines
would be capable of inclusion. The story doesn’t only follow the Count the
entire novel; it has a wide scope that deals with different characters and dramatic
tension. Trying to fit over 1200 pages into less than three hours is an
impossibility that requires a lot of plot reshaping. If that same page count
was given, let’s say, ten hours (10 one-hour episodes) a lot more could be
accomplished stylistically. Is this not what they allowed for Game of Thrones, each book shorter than Monte Cristo as a whole?
I would love to see not just 20 minutes of Dantés and L’Abbé Faria in the
prison together, but a full hour: one episode dedicated to his imprisonment and
escape would be astounding. And that’s the majesty of this story that would be
gained in a mini-series. Writers could focus far more on the different dynamics
that play out during the novel – from the one-on-one in the prison, to the
later extravagant parties, to the viscous morally ambiguous vengeance, all of
it a complete tonal shift from episode to episode.
2. Timespan
Somewhat related to the last point, there’s also a lot of time covered in
the novel. From start to finish, the reader is presented over 25 years of drama,
showing a great change in many of the characters. In the 2002 version, the
timespan is changed to about 16 years, and while that doesn’t seem like a huge
change, its ripple effect has us experiencing a whole new take on the story. It’s
not necessary for Goyer to stray away from the 25 year timespan, and hopefully
he will stick to it, trying for a more faithful adaptation; however, there’s
more than just writing down a 25 instead of 16 that’s important.
Why would a mini-series help?
Spending a long period of time with characters has the uncanny ability to have
us build emotional connections akin to friendship. When the end of a series
finally occurs, or even if a character dies within a series, the heartbreak can
be as affecting as if they were real. We unconsciously pair our time with the
characters’ time. For Monte Cristo,
the audience shouldn’t rush through the years presented in only a few hours. Instead,
feeling length of Dantés’ imprisonment, or his time with smugglers, or the
unfolding of his meticulous plan is essential to getting a sense of his
suffering.
Never read an abridged version of Monte
Cristo because you would be denying yourself that feeling of elongated
time. It took me two months of casual reading to finish the novel, and what
impacted me most was when I neared the end, I looked back at the beginning chapters.
The characters had changed, as did my life. I had spent so much time away from
the first chapters that the length of time from young-Dantés to old-Dantés had
a singular, separate effect. A mini-series, shown over the course of a few
months, would allow for that stretched out feeling, rather than the quick
one-shot brought to the table by a film.
3. Cast of
Characters
For a novel as long as this one, there is a surprisingly low number of
characters: about 50 (probably less). By comparison, War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy, also one of the longest novels ever
written and set during a similar time period, contains over 500 characters,
boasting only 100,000 more words. Despite the modest character count, film
adaptations often have to cut out many of the characters, even major ones like
Maximilian, Valentine, Caderousse, for the sake of brevity. Reading the novel,
it’s clear that the lost characters really push the plot in a certain
direction, adding a much needed emotional gravity outside of Edmond’s
relentless quest for revenge.
Why would a mini-series help?
Even if they’re included in the next film, most of the characters will probably
be passing fancies unless Goyer opts for a three hour runtime. A mini-series
would really allow the audience to get to know these characters, become
attached to them, hate them – whatever it may be. Otherwise, the emotional
impact is lost and including them is near useless. Imagine that instead of Game of Thrones being adapted into a
series on television, it was a film series. Each book is given a season of
airtime for a reason. So much would be lost every movie – characters would be
cut left and right. The same goes for Monte
Cristo. Give it room to breathe. Allow audiences to know the characters
that really make a difference to the plot.
It’s known as one of the greatest adventure novels ever
written for a reason. Because I’ve already mentioned it, I’ve read the Song of Ice and Fire series (Game of Thrones for television), and
enjoyed every bit of it. But just as that series is exciting, so is Monte Cristo, and is more than deserving
of a faithful, long adaptation. I would love to see it made into a mini-series,
but for now, I’ll keep close at hand two important words – wait and hope.
David Letterman announced his retirement last week and since
then, there has been much speculation as to who will succeed the legend.
Today, CBS confirmed that Colbert too will be leaving his show, The Colbert Report, in order to assume
the vacant position on The Late Show. 