FILM 2216: ADAPTATION. (2002)

TRIVIA: In one scene, Charlie comes home and checks his mail. He is in front of a mirror, and Donald is talking to him behind him. The reflection of fictitious Charlie Kaufman in the mirror is actually the real Charlie Kaufman.

Based on writer Charlie Kaufman's struggle to adapt the best-selling book "The Orchid Thief" by Susan Orlean. Kaufman quickly got writer's block, since the book lacked the dramatic structure needed for a movie. So he decided to write a screenplay about himself struggling to write a book adaptation, exaggerating many of the story elements and characters, and making up new ones (such as a non-existent twin brother, Donald Kaufman.) Knowing that the producers would reject the idea, he did not tell them about the new direction in which he was taking the story, and simply handed in the finished script. Although this move was supported by Spike Jonze, Kaufman himself believed it would end his career (it didn't).

Charlie Kaufman was nominated for a Golden Globe with Donald Kaufman, despite the latter being a fictional character. They were also both nominated for an Academy Award and the Academy made it known that, in the event of a victory, the two "brothers" would have to share one statue.

Nicolas Cage has said that during the filming of this movie, he ignored all of his acting instincts and played the part of Charlie Kaufman exactly as director Spike Jonze asked him to. He then received an Academy Award nomination for it.

Meryl Streep said the screenplay for Adaptation was the best she has ever read.

In his renowned screenwriters seminars, Robert McKee now makes note that he is not against the use of voice-over narration, "despite what Charlie Kaufman says." His point is voice-over narration must add to the story, not describe what's already being seen on the screen, otherwise there's no reason for it.

Joaquin Phoenix auditioned for the role of John Laroche and got close to getting the part. According to Spike Jonze, during one of their final meetings, Phoenix told him that he was wrong for the part, and that it should go to someone else, and took himself out of the running. Chris Cooper eventually got the part, and ended up winning an Oscar for his performance.

Nicolas Cage's brother, New York City radio personality Marc Coppola, often stood in for one of the twins during filming.

Weezer recorded an acoustic version of "Happy Together" to be included in the film. However, Spike Jonze felt the original version by The Turtles was a better fit for the film.

Having been submitted the screenplay for approval, Susan Orlean was strongly opposed to the making of the film; she ended up reluctantly approving its production, and was ultimately very impressed with the final result. In 2012, she stated "[reading the screenplay] was a complete shock. My first reaction was 'Absolutely not!' They had to get my permission and I just said: 'No! Are you kidding? This is going to ruin my career!' Very wisely, they didn't really pressure me. They told me that everybody else had agreed and I somehow got emboldened. It was certainly scary to see the movie for the first time. It took a while for me to get over the idea that I had been insane to agree to it, but I love the movie now."

The film cast includes (as of 2015) six Oscar winners: Nicolas Cage, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper, Tilda Swinton, Curtis Hanson, and Spike Jonze; and four Oscar nominees: Maggie Gyllenhaal, David O. Russell, Catherine Keener, and John Malkovich.

The film is included on Roger Ebert's "Great Movies" list.

All the three main stars of Con Air (1997) appear in this film: Nicolas Cage, John Malkovich, and John Cusack.

Charlie Kaufman never actually met Susan Orleans while writing the screenplay for the film. The first time he encountered him in person was over a year into production when Orleans visited the set during filming, and Nicholas Cage introduced her to Kaufman. The first thing she said was "you have no idea how embarrassed I am right now," to which Kaufman responded with "not as embarrassed as me" before running off set. The two did not meet for another year after that.

Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider.

I’m making my way through the book "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider. See my blog post about my copy of the book here…

You can buy an updated version (which I will get after I’ve made my way through this edition) here…

I really hope you can come on this journey with me – if you do I’d love to know which films you’ve enjoyed the most!

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