It’s always interesting to see young stars of the big screen take a turn with directing, especially when they’re challenged with taking on an adaptation. Joseph Gordon-Levitt has made himself a triple threat with his original penned-film Don Jon, and Scarlett Johansson is taking on Truman Capote’s Summer Crossing. However, it’s James Franco’s latest project as director-screenwriter-actor in As I Lay Dying, based on William Faulkner’s classic novel.
The trailer for the Nobel prize-winning novel has just hit the web. The adaptation is far from epic or romantic, and certainly won’t rank up there with The Great Gatsby¸ but perhaps there’s something to Franco’s vision to this emotional, gritty family drama. It seems like he’s staying true to Faulkner’s narrative by sharing exposition from the point of view of each character.
The plot follows “the death of Addie Bundren and her family’s quest to honor her wish to be buried in the nearby town of Jefferson.” The cast includes Franco as brother Darl, Logan Marshall-Green (Prometheus) as Jewel, Danny McBride (Eastbound & Down) as the Bundren’s neighbor Vernon Tull, Jim Parrack (True Blood) as Cash, Tim Blake Nelsen (Lincoln) as patriarch Anse, Ahna O’Reilly (The Help) as sister Dewey Dell, newcomer Brady Permenter as youngest brother Vardaman, and Beth Grant (TV’s The Mindy Project) as mother Addie.
The movie has been screened at this week’s Cannes Film Festival, and is garnering lots of buzz for its slot in the Un Certain Regard competition with 17 other films. There have been no details about the U.S. release for the film, but it’s no secret that this project, if well-received, will put Franco back on the map after his awkwardly-cast role in Oz The Great and Powerful.
Are you a fan of the Faulkner novel? Are you looking forward to seeing Franco’s interpretation?
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