March 2000 I Out in the Mountains 31

 

Michael Chabon on the Film Adaptation of

Wonder Bays

BY LARRY Fuck

46 eing a life-long
movie fan, there’s
_no way_ to fully

describe the experience of sit-
ting in a theater and seeing
your name appear in the credits
on the screen.” So says
Michael Chabon after a screen-
ing of Wonder Boys, the
Paramount Pictures adaptation
of his famed 1995 book of the
same name, “it’s totally cool...
and it’s a little surreal.”

It’s also a rite of passage for
the acclaimed writer, who has
been inching toward a full tran-
sition from the printed page to
the motion picture screen for
several years now. There’s a
splash of irony in the fact that
the first adaptation of a Chabon
novel also chronicles the fic-
tional life transition of a writer
of considerable note.

Chabon, who also wrote the
contemporary classic The
Mysteries of Pittsburgh,
(which, like Wonder Boys, has
achieved cult-like status in the
gay community) has created a
fascinating cast of characters,
some of whom are gay or are
struggling to define their sexu-
ality, that are immensely hon-
est and likable. In a film aimed
at a mainstream audience, this
matter-of-fact portrayal of gay
characters is a welcome change
from Hollywood’s typical
depiction. Here’s a film where
the gay characters do not end
up miserable, dead, or homici-
dal maniacs.

Wonder Boys’ key character,
50-year-old Grady Tripp,
played with a sharp, often anti-
hero edge by Michael Douglas,
is a one—time “wonder boy”
and darling of the literati,
whose unfinished novel has
been growing and 1netastasiz—
ing for years. _

“Grady’s a man who, in so
many ways, has never grown
up,” Chabon says. “It takes
seeing that spark of brilliance
in someone else to force the
revelation of his arrested
development — and trigger a
life-altering change.”

Enter James Leer, a brood-
ing college student played with
boyish flair by rising film star
Tobey Maguire (Ice Storm, The
Cider House Rules). On a fate-
ful evening that includes a
murdered dog and a stolen out-
fit once worn by Marilyn
Monroe, Grady and James
become inextricably tied into a

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sea of quirky melodrama.
Along the way, James also
catches the eye of Grady’s
flamboyant editor, Terry
Crabtree (a sly, notably under-
stated Robert Downey, Jr.)
Ultimately, the richly textured,
often startling story explores a
wide range of relationships and
sexuality — and it does so in a
remarkably relaxed, adult man-
her.

‘‘I’m pleasedthat the film
followed the book’s lead in that
it handled the character’s rela-
tionships and sexuality as no
big deal,” Chabon says, refer-
ring to the screen adaptation by
Steve Kloves (Fabulous Baker
Boys, Flesh & Bone). “I didn’t
want the fact that Terry
Crabtree is gay, or that James
turns out to be gay to be blown
out of proportion. My intention
was that their sexuality — as
well as Grady’s and that of
every other character in the
story — be woven prominently
into their lives, and not neces-
sarily be the sole driving force
for any of them. I was really
pleased that the film remained
true to that idea.”

This element of Wonder
Boys, which was directed by
Curtis Hanson (L.A.
Confidential) and co-produced
by Scott Rudin (Sleepy
Hollow, Angela s Ashes, South
Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut)
and Hanson, was not the only
one that closely mirrored the
novel. “There are several
scenes, including the opening
sequence, which are quite liter-
al,” Chabon says. “At times, it
was almost eerie to watch the
movie. So much of what I saw
and heard was exactly as I
imagined in my mind.”

And he’s philosophical
about his future in films. “It’s

an enticing business, but it’s
only one facet of my career. I
don’t see myself ever giving up
writing books and articles.”

For Chabon, writing has
always been his first passion.
“I’ve always been fascinated
by the power of words, and
how you can use them to form
powerful images.”

The writer first came into
prominence when his
acclaimed first novel, The
Mysteries of Pittsburgh, hit the
New York Times best-seller list
in 1988. Wonder Boys was his
second novel; it was honored
by Publishers Weekly as one
of the best books of 1995, and
it was heralded by the New
York Times as a Notable Book
of 1995. Along the way, he has
written two short story collec-
tions: A Model World and
Other Stories (1992), and the
recently published Werewolves
in Their Youth 1999). He’s also,
contributed stories and articles
to such magazines as the New
Yorker, Esquire, and Playboy,
among others.

Chabon is putting the finish-
ing touches on The Amazing
Adventures of Kavalier &
Clay, a novel he’s been work-
ing on for four years. Rudin’s
already bought the film rights
to the book. Meanwhile, Jon
Sherman, writer and director of
the charming, overlooked inde-
pendent feature ' Breathing
Room, has completed a screen
adaptation of The Mysteries of
Pittsburgh, which he plans to
direct. This will provide
Hollywood — and mainstream
film-goers, as a result — with
yet another richly complex
portrayal of a gay character. V

Here’s o film where
the goychorocters
do not end up F
miseroble, dead, or
homicidal moniocs.

The

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