Chekhov's Mistress
Quixote’s Influence on Other Media
From TimeOut:
Director Terry Gilliam and producer Jeremy Thomas are trying to revive ‘The Man Who Killed Don Quixote’.
Gilliam attempted to film Miguel de Cervantes’ classic novel five years ago, but all manner of calamity beset the production and eventually the director was forced to abort.
With two films hitting the screen later in the year however (’The Brothers Grimm’ and ‘Tideland’), Gilliam feels that the time is right to resurrect the feature.
Peter Watson, of the Recorded Picture Company (who are backing the project), said: ‘Having collaborated on ‘Tideland’ it was such a good experience that we want to be in the Terry Gilliam business. We are now attempting mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the corpse of Don Quixote.’
Gilliam’s previous attempt to make the film spawned ‘Lost in La Mancha’; a hugely entertaining if somewhat tragic documentary charting the disasters that plagued the production.
I happen to be a big fan of Gilliam and his “vision” of stories that is always unique and a little wild, so this is good news. You may know about it, but there is a documentary about his mishaps trying to film his original Quixote movie. I’ve only seen parts of it and will have to watch again soon.
It is interesting to think how DQ has transcended its medium – that, according to the late critic, Leslie Fiedler, is the true test of literature. Ron Westray’s jazz composition is the most recent thing to come to mind (see Anne’s post), Manuel De Falla’s composition; I’ve seen a puppet show – not a kid’s show either, and of course, Orson Welles’ film that one of the translators in the Global Quixote panel said influenced her work on the book.
I would love to hear anyone else’s thoughts on how DQ has transcended the medium, whether influences or direct interpretations.
comments
Thanks for this, Bud. There’s a lot to say and think about this cool topic--I love watching the way artists transform their precursors.
For now, all I have to add is a tiny beginning: We watched “Motorcycle Diaries” over the weekend and, at the beginning when Ernesto & his friend mount their bike, the friend says “Don Quixote had his Rocinante and we have ‘The Mighty One.’” That’s perhaps more an allusion, a passing glance, than an influence, but perhaps not? Surely pairs of people (men) traveled together before Cervantes, but now, it’s hard to imagine a pair of friends setting off on a journey that’s not a quotation, a revisitation, of Don Quixote somehow.
– Anne Fernald (05/17 at 10:43 AM)
I saw MD. It was a good movie, although it was hyped so much by someone I met at the travel guide company Lonely Planet, who had a hand in marketing the film, I was a little let down. Ah, but anyway, what you say, Anne, makes me think of something else about DQ.
The pair of friends thing, even though we may now identify it with Cervantes’ creation, was less invented by him than identified; the mark of an observant/thoughtful writer, no. But it also makes me think about something else, which I will throw into a post.
– Bud Parr (05/17 at 02:25 PM)
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