Percy-L: Literary, Religious, Scientific, and Philosophical Discussion of Walker Percy

["Karl M. Terrell" <kterrell AT stokeswagner.com>]

I would hope, though, that any moviemaker of Thanatos would not cheaply politicize it as a critique of liberalism (either in the broad classic sense or under the “liberal” label in American politics), or as an endorsement of the current right-wing’s fetishistic misunderstanding of expertise based on real science.

Percy was after something altogether different.

Karl Terrell

Sent from my iPhone

On Nov 5, 2022, at 11:16 AM, janetcantor37--- via Percy-L <percy-l AT lists.ibiblio.org> wrote:



I would like to see any good adaptation of any Percy novel.

I think the easiest for adaptation would be The Thanatos Syndrome.

It is wild enough to illustrate today's choices about how our authorities handled Covid and vaccinations, and about how the ruling class imposes its ideas of what is going on in the planet and casually ruins our lives and our economy as they go about it. Look how the novel matches how do gooders who think they know what is best for everyone else often forget that others' personal freedom and happiness must not be ignored while they are "helping" the world.

There is also that plot about Nazis in the novel that comes from Percy's own pivotal experience of seeing some Nazi Youth when he was a young boy and being viscerally changed by that and never forgetting that scary feeling. There is so much talk about Nazis these days, even that subplot is relevant.

A side comment: Percy hated the Nazis and used that subplot in an attempt to give the reader the same terror he understood about tyranny and how it can become normalcy so easily. He was balancing that against the "good intentions" of those who were wrongheadedly giving the happy juice to everyone to bring peace and calm into the world. Yet someone in my book group, a very intelligent woman read that and hated the book because she didn't like the way Percy was minimizing and mocking the Holocaust. She missed Percy's point completely.

Another woman there made the pithiest comment on the novel. "Just because we are able to do something does not always mean we should do it."

I think The Thanatos Syndrome could be a perfect novel to adapt today. 

Wouldn't it be wonderful if movie makers could at last see that these novels were prescient and could entertain us yet give us all food for thought.

I wonder if any adaptation of The Second Coming could be successful. It isa strange story, but if it could be pulled off, it could be magical.

Janet Cantor

On Saturday, November 5, 2022, 10:38:07 AM EDT, Henry P. Mills III <wppdirector AT gmail.com> wrote:

Dear Percy-L:

Members may be interested in this news of a future Percy novel film. Is the Second Coming more adaptive to the big screen than the Moviegoer? 

I wonder what novel members of the community think would be best suited for a feature-length film? It’d be interesting to hear the community’s responses.  Is Second Coming the most likely one?

Best wishes,

Henry Mills

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Aaron Magnani Developing Film Adaptation Of Walker Percy Novel ‘The Second Coming’; Peter Arneson Set As Screenwriter

Aaron Magnani has optioned screen rights to Walker Percy’s New York Times bestseller The Second Coming, with plans to develop the novel for film. He’s currently in search of a director for the adaptation and will produce via under his Aaron Magnani Productions banner. Peter Arneson adapted the script and will executive produce.

The story centers on a wealthy, suicidal widower who searches for proof of God but finds much more when he meets a young woman fugitive from a mental hospital. Influenced by the real-life suicides of Percy’s father and grandfather and suspected suicide of his mother, the plot combines comedy, tragedy and romance, with themes of alienation and redemption.

“This story is very relatable to the world we have been living in,” said Magnani. “And the adaptation is as much a director’s piece as an actor’s piece and incredible character study.”

Continue reading at …

https://deadline.com/2022/03/aaron-magnani-developing-walker-percy-novel-the-second-coming-for-film-1234981570/

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