Don’t round up
I watched 8 1/2 last night for the first time and was reminded today about nine, the adaptation currently underway. I can’t help but wonder what people are thinking when they rework films like this. I don’t like that a lot of movies for American audiences are straight English language remakes of of foreign films, but sometimes the result is just as worthwhile and able to reach a new audience. In the case of Nine, an English language musical is derivative of a surrealist Italian film. I think a little more than linguistic translation is going on. There may be an art to adapting stories for musicals that I just can’t appreciate, but I think some things should be left alone. Many directors reference Fellini’s aesthetic and ideas as a way to pay tribute to his influence. Dropping a Fellini plot into a musical seems to miss the point.
I was a lot angrier when I started writing this. I’m still angry, but now at myself. I’ve been looking for a film still to compare this one from 8 1/2 with from a Woody Allen movie that doesn’t exist. I realize now that I confused My Favorite Year and Radio Days.
