Immortal stories set to world cinema

By Amal Hewavissenti

Film-makers throughout the world have made a choice of certain novels as possible plots for their films which have ultimately earned them due acclaim. It is interesting to note that the same story had multiple cinematic versions each with unique features introduced by movie directors.

Such a film is Silas Marner which starred Ben Kingsley as Silas Marner.

This film released in 1985, was based on George Elliot's classic under the same title. Silas Marner, a weaver is falsely charged with theft and is dispelled from his religious community.

In the village of Raveloe, he adopts a reclusive life with no human contact whatsoever except for the money he makes by spinning. One day, he finds a baby lying at his hearth and adopts her as his daughter who brings new life, new hopes and spiritual rebirth for him.

The film Count of Montechristo based on the French novel by Alexander Dumas, had three versions with Robert Donat in 1934, with Richard Chamberlain in 1974 and with Guy Perce in 1996 as the Count of Montechristo.

The film revolves round Edmund Dante whose wedding day proves to be a great confusion when the police arrest him on false accusations and send him, without trial, to the death prison over the sea.

In this infernal prison, he gets information and a map about a treasure from Faria who ultimately dies and Dante, in the guise of Faria's dead body is thrown into the sea below.

Thus, he escapes from the prison, follows the traces of the treasure and assumes a new identity as the Count of Montechristo to avoid recognition.

Now the "two handed engine" of his revenge is in action and Dante would come to everyone who has been responsible for the arrest on his wedding day.

Les Miserables, a novel by Victor Maric Hugo had three cinematic versions. This was filmed in 1935 starring Frederic March as Jean Valjean and Charles Laughton as Javert.

Again in 1978, another film starred Richard Jordan as Jean Valjean and Anthony Pekins as Javert. The new version of Les Miserables released in 1988 had featured Liam Neeson as Jean Valjean.

The story goes as follows. Jean Valjean is subjected to the most brutal treatment in prison for the "heinous crime" of stealing a loaf of bread. After 19 years of imprisonment, he comes back to the society only to be ruthlessly repulsed by whoever he meets. The Catholic Father whom he accidentally meets, acts as the healing force to transform him into an agreeable and pleasant person and erases all the vindictive tendencies within him.

Later Valjean becomes the Mayor but he is constantly thwarted and pursued by an unsympathetic police officer Javert who had been in charge of Valjean in the prison and who wanted to disgrace him.

Finally vindictive Javert who continuously follows the "culprit" becomes a victim of his own moral conscience and is pressured to commit suicide.

Memory

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier is yet another novel made into a movie. At the outset of the story, De Winter is seen moving onto Monte Carlo to blank out the agonising death of his arrogant and overbearing wife Rebecca.

To cancel the persistent memory of the death of his wife, De Winter develops a romantic relationship with a woman in Monte Carlo and returns to his house with her. However, the servant of the house begins to be antipathetic to the guest and plays a shrewd game to make De Winter split up with her.

A real drama unfolds when De Winter's new wife is haunted by the spirit of Rebecca and this phenomenon makes a stunning revelation that the underhand scheme to kill Rebecca was hatched by none other than De Winter himself!

The film was directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1940 and a film in Hindi was produced in 1964 as Kohraa.

Here, Biswajeeth played the role of De Winter and the new wife's role was played by Waheeda Rehman.

The films based on the famous novel by Leo Tolstoy were released in the years 1935, 1948 and 1985. In the film Anna Karenina, Anna is the sensitive wife of a Russian nobleman and soon develops a powerful emotional relationship with Vronsky, an imposing army officer.

Intense

The relationship becomes so intense that she is forced to live with her secret lover deserting her husband and son.

Vronsky soon confines Anna into a state of social outcast and she is trapped in the dilemma whether to live or commit suicide rather than living a deathlike life in the hostile and unforgiving society. The three films screened in 1935, 1948 and 1985 starred Greta Garbo, Vivien Leigh and Jacqueline Bisset as Anna.

The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper is another novel made to a highly popular movie. The basic events of this novel unfold against the background where French are fighting Indians and the British are battling with Americans.

Here Hawkeye, with the assistance of Chingachgook and his son Uncas the last survivors of the Mohican tribe accompanies Cora and Alice (who are the daughters of a senior British officer) along a track highly vulnerable to enemy attacks. Hawkeye's heroism is unleashed when he manages to keep Alice and Cora safe from lethal ambushes by native Americans.

However, Hawkeye gradually falls in love with Cora. Much of the story centres round their love and the tragedies which determine the course of the plot.

This was filmed in 1992 starring Daniel Days as Hawkeye and Madeleine Stowe as Cora.