Big news hit the net yesterday, which I missed because I was sitting in Jury Duty selection from 8am on. It seems HAUNTED is now on the fast-track to become Chuck Palahniuk's next movie adaptation. Variety reported that the option was acquired by Brian Levy, who has launched a management and production company called New School Media. 'Haunted' will be their first project.
The writer and director is going to Belgium filmmaker Koen Mortier (pictured below). Mortier already has a building filmography listed on the IMDB, but is most noted for his last film 'Ex-Drummer'. Koen is on board to write and direct the adaptation.
As a fan of most European film, I'm personally excited by this news. Koen is a filmmaker not saturated by Hollywood. An outsider. And with 'Haunted' being such a tough adaptation, it will be interesting to see someone that might have a very unique and fresh approach to the material.
What do you all think? Sound off.
Here's some more thoughts on director Koen Mortier, from Moriarty over at Aint It Cool News:
"HAUNTED is a very rich, very well crafted entry from him, and there have been rumors of it being made before now. Finally, we’ve got more than a rumor, and I’m not just interested in this film... I’m officially dying to see it starting right now.
Why? Because Koen Mortier is a psychopath with a deadly eye, a neo-Kubrickian in the school of most of the Propaganda graduates and music video craftsmen who make up the A-list these days. He’s meaner than Gaspar Noe. He’s funnier than Danny Boyle. He’s dirtier than David Fincher."
when they release this they need to do a wide release.
like they did for fight club.
choke didn't play in any theaters near me.
also; im wondering if they'll stick to the book as much as possible
& if so what the rating will be.
but this was by far one of my favorite book s by him.
can't wait to see it on the big screen
ALSO
i heard invisible monsters was going to be made into a movie with Jessica Beil playing Shannon.
From a director's standpoint, directing an adaptation is no different than directing anything else. I don't see where people get this idea that adaptations are lazy. If anything they're harder because you have to compete with the book.
I'm interested to see where Haunted goes. Some of the shorts were great but I found the central story to be pretty lacking. I think it would do better as an HBO miniseries or something.
I've seen Ex-Drummer and I've met the director, at last year's TIFF Festival in Romania. Ex-Drummer was awesome, I really enjoyed it. Very weird and with many stunning scenes. Can't wait to see what Mortier will do with Haunted. Should be extremely interesting.
i have nothing against adaptations. the conversion from rhetoric to film is pretty much the best way to go for movies of any substance. of course there are always exceptions both ways.
man on fire was an exceptional movie and one of my favs and it was adapted from a very decent novel
when a man loves a woman was exceptional, also one of my favs, and it was a film only, from a screenplay and not a book, though really it was mostly adapted from a song.. haha
i absolutely love george romero's zombie films. that is film, not adaption, but fight club and children of men and i am legend and stir of echoes and hitchhiker's guide and lord of the flies and lord of the rings and ask the dust and always outnumbered always outgunned and memento and into the wild and jesus' son and silence of the lambs and the dark knight and wise blood and camus' the fall and there are so many fantastic films adapted from books and songs and comics and short stories....
so what do you have against adaptions, alex ?
-kabol
i have no clue how they aim to craft this movie
then again, objectively thinking, fight club shouldve been the hardest to adapt
if nothing else, haunted will be a fantastic ride to enjoy and i know that chuck will reach a freight train huge audience with the release of this film because most new members who come here going on and on about how great haunted was for the most part are under sixteen. this film will garner the next generation of fans and add that group to chuck's fanbase. so i'm excited about this movie for several reasons.
Holy shit, how did he land this gig. I heard raunchy stuff about EX-DRUMMER, which played well over here as far as I've heard. Curious to see how they'll adapt the omnibus structure of HAUNTED though.
I'm not saying you don't have to work when filming an adaption, and I'm not saying there isn't room for creativity, what I'm saying is if the piece/art/work is already out there then there's no point in adapting it. Any creative touch you could bring to an adaption you could certainly bring to an original piece. If people want that story, they can go read the book, if they don't like reading, fuck them. Stop catering to the wannabe-illiterate.
While Haunted was great in its individual stories, I wasn't as impressed with the overarching plot. I need to get the book and read it again though, sometime.
Always wondered if Haunted would make it to the big screen. I'm shocked, but definitely stoked to see how all the short stories will play out, especially Guts and The Nightmare Box.
I agree with ParanoidANDR01D, though; part of me thinks Haunted might do better as some sort of TV miniseries. I guess we'll see.
I really can't see how they're going to properly turn this into a movie. I mean, with all the back stories of the characters plus the main plot line PLUS all the things that happen in the novel... I know that with the right rating, they can do it, but I can't imagine it as a movie with the goings-on. I just put down the novel itself three days ago with a hundred odd pages to go. I'm giving it to a friend, I just can't read the rest. Maybe that makes me an anomaly, but it was getting to the point where I was nauseated reading it, and I've never had that problem before. Palahnuik is an amazing author, Fight Club was brilliant, but I don't see how they're going to make a successful movie out of Haunted.
I'm sorry, but you can't make a movie out of this book. You need to do it as a TV show. If anything. Put it on HBO or Showtime, make it like 45-50 minutes a night, 20 episodes. Do it in a Lost way, where the stories, whihc are essentially back stories, are the flashbacks. Weave what's going on in the house with each character's back story. That's the only way I feel this novel works on any screen. If you wanted a second season, do it as a prequel with the story of the daughter at the writer's retreat.
Since this is my first post on this site I'd hate to paint a picture of myself by stating I am a fan of euro films or adaptations can be just as great as the complete works.
There are examples where this has worked and has failed. Kubrick is a terrible example of either because he was... well, he was KUBRICK.
I've been a fan of Chucks since Fight Club and I've read them all and wondered what books would actually convert to film well. Other than Fight Club of course.
As badly as I'd like to see Invisible Monsters made, I'll wait until Hollywood is finished using Chuck and he can do it on his own accord.
Never judge a Book by it's movie.
As of late, I've been on the set of Nip/Tuck and House MD. Sadly, this is the closest to a C.P. set I feel I'll ever get. But I'll still buy the ticket and sit in the theatre reguardless of how badly Hollywood exploits his work.
Or perhaps someone doing work in the vein of the great Stanley kubrick.
A Clockwork orange and Space odyssey are 2 of my favorite flicks
I haven't seen any of Koen's work but I'm definitely gong to check him out.
This is what I fear in a neo-Kubrickian filmmaker. Kubrick botched the message of both Clockwork and Lolita. Now, I haven't read the Shining but I've heard he strayed from the book in numerous ways. Let's just pray Koen here knows what he's doing and sticks to the overall themes. I refuse to sit through another failed adaptation like Choke.
My heart sank a little. It's been my dream since I first read "Haunted" to make "The Nightmare Box" story, as well as the two following stories told by Mrs. Clark. I hope for the best, but after reading Chuck's post about aiming for something high in 2009, and attaining permission to make "The Nightmare Box" was my goal, I don't know what to think of.
Congrats to Koen, I can't wait to see how it is adapted.
haha okay. sit and refuse. or stand. either way. im very hopeful it is made at all, whether the director adheres to chuck's vision or more his own. it'll be fascinating either way.
OMG OMG OMG!!! I loved Haunted and thought the whole time I was reading it that it would be an excellent screenplay. "The camera behind the camera..." indeed! I'm officially dying to see the outcome. I hope we aren't spared any gruesome images. I wonder who will be cast....the characters are so original, it will be intersting to see the result! The flash back scenes to all of the stories will make for a great film.
a sasquatch on an airplane, a kid chewing through guts, a woman craving the taste of her own cooked ass while bleeding to death. how the hell is this gonna make it to the screen? it's have to be a 3 hour movie to even cover the basics.
This is the only book Ive ever read that has prevented me from sleeping. So as such ive had 3 of my friends read it and my newspaper teacher.
I dont know how this will do as a movie thou, because it's more or less a very good saw movie. Its a saw movie were the killers and the killed are the same person and their reasons are perfect. To be able to film the backstories of all the characters in enough detail to understand their reasons would be impossible, so some will obviously be cut. In fact, i would not be surprised if it was filmed from the point of view of Saint, and then goes into the backstories of each of the characters as they die, or during scenes with them featured distinctly.
Comments
I think Guts will be weird seeing on the big screen.
Hey guys,
Here's some more thoughts on director Koen Mortier, from Moriarty over at Aint It Cool News:
"HAUNTED is a very rich, very well crafted entry from him, and there have been rumors of it being made before now. Finally, we’ve got more than a rumor, and I’m not just interested in this film... I’m officially dying to see it starting right now.
Why? Because Koen Mortier is a psychopath with a deadly eye, a neo-Kubrickian in the school of most of the Propaganda graduates and music video craftsmen who make up the A-list these days. He’s meaner than Gaspar Noe. He’s funnier than Danny Boyle. He’s dirtier than David Fincher."
Whoa, I can't wait!
when they release this they need to do a wide release.
like they did for fight club.
choke didn't play in any theaters near me.
also; im wondering if they'll stick to the book as much as possible
& if so what the rating will be.
but this was by far one of my favorite book s by him.
can't wait to see it on the big screen
ALSO
i heard invisible monsters was going to be made into a movie with Jessica Beil playing Shannon.
How can you be a fan of "most european film" don't be so insufferably pretentious. Most of it is as shite as most american film.
neo-Kubrickian!
Ahahah! What the fuck is that? Sounds like some sort of building utensil.
Stop making adaptions, film a fucking film for once.
From a director's standpoint, directing an adaptation is no different than directing anything else. I don't see where people get this idea that adaptations are lazy. If anything they're harder because you have to compete with the book.
I'm interested to see where Haunted goes. Some of the shorts were great but I found the central story to be pretty lacking. I think it would do better as an HBO miniseries or something.
Those of us not doing our civic duty started talking about this yesterday...
http://chuckpalahniuk.net/forum/1000031/haunted-movie-rights-optioned
WTF?
this is great, i thought it would make a horror/comedy movie lol
really dark though and im sure a lot of ppl wont be able to handle it
oh and i wonder how theyre going to cut it down to required time for a movie ????
Hah, Alex, I thought this exact same thing when I read that European film comment. Jesus.
Out of all of these books, why the fuck is this getting an adaptation?
I've seen Ex-Drummer and I've met the director, at last year's TIFF Festival in Romania. Ex-Drummer was awesome, I really enjoyed it. Very weird and with many stunning scenes. Can't wait to see what Mortier will do with Haunted. Should be extremely interesting.
i have nothing against adaptations. the conversion from rhetoric to film is pretty much the best way to go for movies of any substance. of course there are always exceptions both ways.
man on fire was an exceptional movie and one of my favs and it was adapted from a very decent novel
when a man loves a woman was exceptional, also one of my favs, and it was a film only, from a screenplay and not a book, though really it was mostly adapted from a song.. haha
i absolutely love george romero's zombie films. that is film, not adaption, but fight club and children of men and i am legend and stir of echoes and hitchhiker's guide and lord of the flies and lord of the rings and ask the dust and always outnumbered always outgunned and memento and into the wild and jesus' son and silence of the lambs and the dark knight and wise blood and camus' the fall and there are so many fantastic films adapted from books and songs and comics and short stories....
so what do you have against adaptions, alex ?
-kabol
..
and back to the thread, or, umm, notice..
i have no clue how they aim to craft this movie
then again, objectively thinking, fight club shouldve been the hardest to adapt
if nothing else, haunted will be a fantastic ride to enjoy and i know that chuck will reach a freight train huge audience with the release of this film because most new members who come here going on and on about how great haunted was for the most part are under sixteen. this film will garner the next generation of fans and add that group to chuck's fanbase. so i'm excited about this movie for several reasons.
Holy shit, how did he land this gig. I heard raunchy stuff about EX-DRUMMER, which played well over here as far as I've heard. Curious to see how they'll adapt the omnibus structure of HAUNTED though.
I'm a fan of most Indian film...
i think the general story will work better on screen then in the book. i'm excited but i'll be really sad if it sucks.
I'm not saying you don't have to work when filming an adaption, and I'm not saying there isn't room for creativity, what I'm saying is if the piece/art/work is already out there then there's no point in adapting it. Any creative touch you could bring to an adaption you could certainly bring to an original piece. If people want that story, they can go read the book, if they don't like reading, fuck them. Stop catering to the wannabe-illiterate.
Fight Club was an incredible adaptation that really added a creative touch to an already published work.
Oh no, I want this to just be a book, not a movie.. =(
I'm gonna try and find Ex-Drummer asap!
"Fight Club was an incredible adaptation that really added a creative touch to an already published work"
thats the only movie Ive ever seen that was actually better than the book
25th hour was a better adaptation, i think. juat slightly. but, tanus, i know what youre saying.
The Shining was a way better film than book.
A Clockwork Orange was an excelent adaptation and managed to deliver the exact opposite message as the book did.
While Haunted was great in its individual stories, I wasn't as impressed with the overarching plot. I need to get the book and read it again though, sometime.
Always wondered if Haunted would make it to the big screen. I'm shocked, but definitely stoked to see how all the short stories will play out, especially Guts and The Nightmare Box.
I agree with ParanoidANDR01D, though; part of me thinks Haunted might do better as some sort of TV miniseries. I guess we'll see.
that's exciting. I'm actually reading Haunted right now. I think it'd be a good one to see made in to a movie.
Haunted should stay a novel...
though i'd like to see ed norton play Saint Gut-Free
totally...
I really can't see how they're going to properly turn this into a movie. I mean, with all the back stories of the characters plus the main plot line PLUS all the things that happen in the novel... I know that with the right rating, they can do it, but I can't imagine it as a movie with the goings-on. I just put down the novel itself three days ago with a hundred odd pages to go. I'm giving it to a friend, I just can't read the rest. Maybe that makes me an anomaly, but it was getting to the point where I was nauseated reading it, and I've never had that problem before. Palahnuik is an amazing author, Fight Club was brilliant, but I don't see how they're going to make a successful movie out of Haunted.
I'm sorry, but you can't make a movie out of this book. You need to do it as a TV show. If anything. Put it on HBO or Showtime, make it like 45-50 minutes a night, 20 episodes. Do it in a Lost way, where the stories, whihc are essentially back stories, are the flashbacks. Weave what's going on in the house with each character's back story. That's the only way I feel this novel works on any screen. If you wanted a second season, do it as a prequel with the story of the daughter at the writer's retreat.
oh my god, yes.
I completely agree. So much would be left out if it was made into a movie. Theres just too much going on, and its going to end up too lengthy.
Ican't wait for this movie!!!!
Neo-Kubrickian? Fuck yes donut!!!
Since this is my first post on this site I'd hate to paint a picture of myself by stating I am a fan of euro films or adaptations can be just as great as the complete works.
There are examples where this has worked and has failed. Kubrick is a terrible example of either because he was... well, he was KUBRICK.
I've been a fan of Chucks since Fight Club and I've read them all and wondered what books would actually convert to film well. Other than Fight Club of course.
As badly as I'd like to see Invisible Monsters made, I'll wait until Hollywood is finished using Chuck and he can do it on his own accord.
Never judge a Book by it's movie.
As of late, I've been on the set of Nip/Tuck and House MD. Sadly, this is the closest to a C.P. set I feel I'll ever get. But I'll still buy the ticket and sit in the theatre reguardless of how badly Hollywood exploits his work.
whoa. i never expected Haunted to be made into a movie! i can't wait!
Or perhaps someone doing work in the vein of the great Stanley kubrick.
A Clockwork orange and Space odyssey are 2 of my favorite flicks
I haven't seen any of Koen's work but I'm definitely gong to check him out.
yesssss<3
wonder what the rating will be???
This is what I fear in a neo-Kubrickian filmmaker. Kubrick botched the message of both Clockwork and Lolita. Now, I haven't read the Shining but I've heard he strayed from the book in numerous ways. Let's just pray Koen here knows what he's doing and sticks to the overall themes. I refuse to sit through another failed adaptation like Choke.
I'm bitterly excited.
My heart sank a little. It's been my dream since I first read "Haunted" to make "The Nightmare Box" story, as well as the two following stories told by Mrs. Clark. I hope for the best, but after reading Chuck's post about aiming for something high in 2009, and attaining permission to make "The Nightmare Box" was my goal, I don't know what to think of.
Congrats to Koen, I can't wait to see how it is adapted.
i just hope they keep the penis cutting and choking on it part in the movie.
or ill be pissed and ruin the ending in the theater.
haha okay. sit and refuse. or stand. either way. im very hopeful it is made at all, whether the director adheres to chuck's vision or more his own. it'll be fascinating either way.
this is insane! i pretty much can't wait. How's guts gonna happen?
OMG OMG OMG!!! I loved Haunted and thought the whole time I was reading it that it would be an excellent screenplay. "The camera behind the camera..." indeed! I'm officially dying to see the outcome. I hope we aren't spared any gruesome images. I wonder who will be cast....the characters are so original, it will be intersting to see the result! The flash back scenes to all of the stories will make for a great film.
yes but i bet they will edit it out because everything interesting never gets shown
Guts has definately got to be one of the stories they include though. If people fainted reading it, imagine the effect of SEEING it! :S
a sasquatch on an airplane, a kid chewing through guts, a woman craving the taste of her own cooked ass while bleeding to death. how the hell is this gonna make it to the screen? it's have to be a 3 hour movie to even cover the basics.
This is the only book Ive ever read that has prevented me from sleeping. So as such ive had 3 of my friends read it and my newspaper teacher.
I dont know how this will do as a movie thou, because it's more or less a very good saw movie. Its a saw movie were the killers and the killed are the same person and their reasons are perfect. To be able to film the backstories of all the characters in enough detail to understand their reasons would be impossible, so some will obviously be cut. In fact, i would not be surprised if it was filmed from the point of view of Saint, and then goes into the backstories of each of the characters as they die, or during scenes with them featured distinctly.